Gabriel Wortman Cock-Up : So many “JUDGEMENTS”, so few “JUDGES”

for Two Decades of Wortman , the police would not these people do their job

So many toxic ‘cant’ words have quietly slipped by, in the mainstream reporting of the Gabriel Wortman screw-up, rather like a dash of prussic acid in your morning smoothie.

One of the worst is whenever the HRM and RCM police spokesperson says (and they have had ever increasing reasons to say it) that “we reviewed the information received about Gabriel Wortman allegedly threatening someone withe his alleged stash of illegal guns and we “JUDGED” we couldn’t get a search warrant to look for them”.

Its not just today’s police spokesperson who has gotten good practise in dripping this invidious term down our throats.

On their Wortman PROs (complaint wrap-up forms), various generations of HRM and RCM police must have gotten really good at using the poisonous “J” word.

Let us recount the cases we know of so far —— with no thanks from either force.

So keep those tips coming in citizenry, because the paper shredders are in overdrive at  various PD HQ.

And before we start, shall we agree, HRM & RCM police smurfs, that the forces always knew that on each occasion that it was alleged GW had a stash of guns, that GW had no gun registered in Canada?

And  further can we agree, smurfs, that in the Fall of 2001 GW pleaded guilty to a violent attack on a child and was forbidden to own guns - for a few months ? So the guy had “form”, had “priors” , was “previously know to the police”, etc.

(My speculation as to exactly WHY Gabriel declined to register even an innocent little .22 short carbine, to act as useful cover for his illegal stash, is for another post.)

*June 2010, after RCMP members of GW’s family call the RCMP re GW’s guns and a threat to kill his mom and dad, the RCMP “judge” they couldn’t get a search warrant.

*Sometime earlier in 2010, after an (unknown) police member learned GW threatened a burglar with an illegal shotgun, they “judged” they didn’t have enough for a search warrant.

*May 2011, both forces learn  from an informant that GW is carrying a sidearm between his homes in Portapique and Dartmouth while hiding more illegal weapons behind his flue. PS : he wants to kill a cop, he is so mad had how a police member handled his burglary complaint. Both forces “judged” still not enough to get a search warrant : a two-for-none deal !

*Summer 2013, RCM police get a information from GW Portapique neighbour Brenda Forbes, who has seen and heard GW threatening people with his various illegal guns. Once again, RCM police “judged” there not enough there for a search warrant.

* Possibly in 2004, RCM police got wind from somebody in Portapique area that GW threatened John Hudson with his stash of guns, if he dared to step on his property.

 Not sure if the Hudsons reported this directly to police themselves. (Perhaps because in rural Nova Scotia, traditionally good neighbours, unlike bad neighbours like Brenda Forbes, don’t fink on death-threatening neighbours with guns.) If they did hear about it, clearly they again “judged” not enough in it to get a search warrant.

Now to be fair to the police, it is not just them that love to pull out the “J” word whenever they also lack the gonads to put the blame where it lies : upon themselves.

Prosecutors hint at this all the time : “we really wanted to convict (this bastard) (we really had the goods on him) but we judged the judge won’t convict him - (so it is all the judge’s fault if he goes out and kills again.)

In philosophy this a classic example of Bad Faith : putting words into others’ mouth that they never said - to deflect the blame away from yourself.

If police and prosecutors are as good as they claim they are at predicting the reactions of a judge and jury at trial, why do we taxpayers bother then with the expense of judges, juries and trials ?

I hope - and pray - a judge with a heightened sensitivity to the rights of judges and juries and trials is put in charge of the public inquiry on the Gabriel Wortman multi-decade police cock-up : someone who will tartly, and repeatedly, remind the police that it is the judges’ job - their only job - to make judgements.

And that if the police had only allowed judges to do their job, 24 people might still be alive today...