Ottawa, ON – Raquel Dancho, Conservative Shadow Minister for Public Safety, released the following statement after members of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU) agreed to adopt a Conservative motion to study the tragic events of the mass killing on the James Smith Cree First Nation:

“Many questions surrounding this horrific tragedy remain unanswered. Our goal is to examine the decisions of the courts, the parole board, and Corrections Canada to repeatedly release the perpetrator from custody despite his 59 previous criminal convictions, including assault, assault with a weapon, uttering threats, assaulting a police officer, and robbery.

“We also need to know why, for three months prior to this attack, the perpetrator was unlawfully at large after he stopped meeting with his caseworker.

“Far too often, Canadians have experienced the violent consequences of a justice system that facilitates a revolving door for repeat offenders. Canadians deserve a justice system that keeps them safe from dangerous criminals. The families of James Cree First Nation deserve to know why our justice system so horrifically failed them and how Parliament will ensure it never happens again.

“Our expectation is that all parties at SECU will support a thorough investigative study into the failures of our justice system to protect the innocent. Canadians deserve no less.”