Councillor calls for resignation of provincial cabinet minister

Kenora city councillor Bob Bernie is lashing out at the provincial government, in particular the Attorney General.

Bob Bernie says the province has allowed an accute shortage of assistant crown attorney in Kenora.

He suggests there’s only one person to put the blame.

“I’m done with this incompetence…it’s stark and staggering and I’m calling for the Attorney General to resign,” Bernie told council at the Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday morning.

“He’s incompetent. He needs to resign. Doug Downey needs to resign.”

Bernie says there’s a 50 percent vacancy rate in the crown’s office in Kenora.

“Over 2,000 cases are basically backlogged. So, these individuals, that have been charged with criminal offenses, are released, probably on undertakings, they are in our communities, they’ve probably breached multiple times. The criminal element knows that if there are no consequences, they’ll continue to engage in this behavior.”

Councillor Lindsey Koch says the OPP Detachment Board was recently told there were only seven assistant crown attorneys working in Kenora, when there should be 15.