2 Calgary sexual assault trials delayed due to judge shortage crisis

At least two sexual assault trials in Calgary have been delayed due to the ongoing critical shortage of judges in Alberta.

In anemailedstatement, MichelleSomers, theexecutive legal officer with the Court of Queen's Bench, said it is a matter of a lack of resources.

"Thereare two criminal cases, sexual assault charges, which have been adjourned and will be spoken to on Monday,"Somerssaid.

Four other casesanother sexual assault and three civil mattersare in "overbook" status and the likelihood of a judge becoming available to hear them is "remote," she added.

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Will be rescheduled, not dropped

The chief Crown prosecutor for Calgary, Suzanne Kendall, said the charges will not be dropped due to the lack of judges.

"Our understanding is two of the cases will be rescheduled this coming week for a new trial date and a third will be rescheduled within the coming weeks. We are not aware at this time of any applications to stay these cases."

The president of the Calgary Criminal Defence Lawyers' Association says theshortage of judges is a problem.

"It is time for action on this issue," saidIan Savage.

He said the number of Queen's Bench judges inAlberta has fallen behind on a per capita basis compared to B.C. and Ontario, and thatat least nine new judges are needed to help ease the backlog.

Some criminal trials are now being booked into early 2018, said Savage,which is more than double the standard of seven to 12 months recommended by the Supreme Court of Canada.

Kathleen Ganley, Alberta's justice minister, acknowledges the problem but said, "Only the federal government has the authority to appoint justices."

In a statement released Friday afternoon, Ganley said sheis trying to get the issueaddressed.

"I've raised this issue with my federal counterpart several times and will continue to advocate for these vacancies to be filled," she said.

"New appointments will help address pressures on the justice system by allowing more cases to be heard in a given day."

There are six vacant justice positions on the Court of Queen's Bench and only one new position has been appointed by the federal government in the last 20 years. Over that period Alberta's population has doubled.

There are four empty spots on the Court of Appeal as well.

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