In a Vancouver courtroom built for one of the country's most fraught terrorism trials, a question has arisen about how a grieving father may stand at the edge of justice after his daughter's killer was found guilty. A man whose child was taken in 2017 now faces an allegation, not yet tested, that he carried a loaded gun into the courthouse on the day of the verdict, and the people who must argue before the bench are weighing fear against the open doors that justice is supposed to keep. Nothing has been proved, and no charges have been laid, yet the case shows how the search for a fair ending c
Ali's Lawyers Fear Victim's Father, Who Is Under Police Probe Over Alleged Gun at Courthouse
A 13-year-old girl was murdered and her body found in a Burnaby park in July 2017; courtroom participants say they feared for their safety after the alleged gun incident.
A target on your back and a coin toss away from shots fired
Mark
Why are Ali's own lawyers boycotting hearings? That's unusual.
Mimi
They say they fear the victim's father. They were told he allegedly brought a loaded Glock into court on the day of the verdict, and they won't attend while he might be present.
Luke
Careful with sourcing there. The "loaded Glock" and "intent to kill" come from McCullough's account of what Victoria Police told him. Police haven't publicly said that, and no charge has been laid.
Mark
What has been confirmed, then?
Mimi
Vancouver police confirmed an arrest on Dec. 12 and an investigation into a weapon allegedly brought into the law courts. Items were seized Dec. 9, and he's due in Surrey next month about their disposal.
Luke
And a prohibition order, per the prosecution service. But that order can cover many things, not only a gun. It doesn't tell us what was seized.
Mark
What is the father actually asking for?
Mimi
Not a seat in the room. Just an interpreter on the phone relaying proceedings, plus access to materials.
Mark
Why did the judge give him standing?
Mimi
The Crown supported it, and he's the victim's father. Justice Bernard has not decided whether he can listen at all.
Luke
Worth noting Russell's argument that the father is in the position of the accused on this application. That's the defence framing, and the judge hasn't endorsed it.
Le Pouls
- A loaded Glock allegedly entered a courthouse on the day of a murder conviction, and the courtroom has not yet forgotten the fear that followed.
- Defence lawyers have stayed away from post-trial proceedings, refusing to share a room with the man they say threatens them.
- The judge has granted the father standing but has not decided whether he may listen to the hearings, leaving the question unsettled.
- Police investigation, a no-contact undertaking and a prohibition order now surround the father, while the next court date in Surrey hangs over the process.
In a Vancouver courtroom built for one of the country's most fraught terrorism trials, a question has arisen about how a grieving father may stand at the edge of justice after his daughter's killer was found guilty. A man whose child was taken in 2017 now faces an allegation, not yet tested, that he carried a loaded gun into the courthouse on the day of the verdict, and the people who must argue before the bench are weighing fear against the open doors that justice is supposed to keep. Nothing has been proved, and no charges have been laid, yet the case shows how the search for a fair ending can strain against the grief that drives it.
On Wednesday, in a high-security Vancouver courtroom, a lawyer argued that the father of a murdered 13-year-old girl should be kept out of the proceedings that follow his daughter's killer's conviction. The girl's identity is protected by a publication ban, so her father cannot be named.
The dispute centres on an allegation that on Dec. 8, the day Ibrahim Ali was convicted of first-degree murder, the father brought a loaded gun into the courthouse. He has not been charged, and his own lawyer told the hearing he is under police investigation. Ali's defence lawyers are refusing to attend post-trial proceedings, citing safety concerns, and they want the father barred from any form of involvement. The allegation rests on what police told the defence, and it has not been tested in court.
Police have since issued a no-contact undertaking that keeps the father away from the courthouse and nearby streets, and he is due in Surrey Provincial Court next month over items seized from him the day after the verdict. He also faces a prohibition order that could bar him from possessing firearms.
His lawyer argues that the father seeks only a narrow role, with an interpreter relaying information by phone. The defence counters that everyone in the courtroom that day was a victim, and that fear would be reasonable. Justice Lance Bernard has granted the father standing but has yet to decide whether he can listen in. Ali, who has not yet been sentenced, faces a mandatory life term with no parole for 25 years. The girl's body was found in a Burnaby park in July 2017.
On Wednesday, in a Vancouver courtroom built for the Air India terrorism trial, a lawyer stood to argue that the father of a murdered 13-year-old girl should be kept out of the proceedings that follow his daughter's killer's conviction. Courtroom 20 is a high-security room, and bulletproof glass separates it from the public gallery. The father cannot be named, because a publication ban protects the girl's identity.
The allegation at the center of the dispute is that on Dec. 8, the day Ibrahim Ali was convicted of first-degree murder, the father brought a gun into the Vancouver courthouse. The man's own lawyer, Brock Martland, told the hearing that his client is the subject of a police investigation. He has not been charged. Ali's defence lawyers, Kevin McCullough and Ben Lynskey, are refusing to attend post-trial proceedings, citing safety concerns about him.
McCullough said in an interview last month that Victoria Police told him about the incident two days later. According to McCullough, police said the man had brought a loaded Glock to court with an "intent to kill." That account comes from the defence lawyer's recollection of what police told him; the allegation has not been tested in court. McCullough and Lynskey want the father excluded from Ali's post-trial hearings in any form, and they object to a Mandarin interpreter translating for him.
The paper trail so far is limited but specific. An email from Vancouver Police to Ali's lawyers on Dec. 11 said the father was subject to a no-contact undertaking with the lawyers and "must not enter" the vicinity of the Supreme Court in Vancouver. It told the lawyers to call 911 immediately if he breached it. Martland said the undertaking restricts his client from the courthouse and an area within a few blocks of it. On Dec. 12, Vancouver police confirmed a man had been arrested and that an investigation into allegations a person brought a weapon into the Vancouver Law Courts during the Ali trial was underway.
Court documents show the father is due in Surrey Provincial Court next month on the disposal of items police seized from him on Dec. 9, the day after the verdict. A spokeswoman for the BC Prosecution Service said he also faced a prohibition order, a Criminal Code measure that can bar someone from possessing firearms, crossbows, ammunition, explosive substances and similar items.
Martland told the BC Supreme Court that no charges have been proved or laid over the allegation. He said his client seeks only a narrow form of involvement. He does not want a ruling letting him into the courtroom. Instead, an interpreter attending by phone would relay information to him, and he wants access to materials in the application. If the defence has a complaint about a breach of the undertaking, Martland said, it should go to police, as the emailed police advice also said.
The defence sent colleague Tim Russell to argue the application, since Lynskey and McCullough are staying away. Russell said the question was whether their fears are reasonable. "To have a target on your back and realize you were a coin toss away from having shots fired would instil the most reasonable fear in anyone," he told the court, adding that anyone in the courtroom on Dec. 8 was also a victim. He said the defence does not want to undermine the open court principle, but wants Ali to have a fair trial with counsel who can make submissions without fear, intimidation or distraction. On this application, he argued, the father stands in the position of the accused, and his status as a victim in the larger trial has no bearing. Crown lawyer Daniel Porte supported the father's request for standing.
Justice Lance Bernard granted the father standing on Wednesday but has not ruled on the broader request to bar him from listening in. Ali appeared by video. He has not been sentenced and faces a mandatory life term with no chance of parole for 25 years. The girl's body was found in a Burnaby park in July 2017. The man's son did not immediately respond to a voice mail request for comment.
Two things to watch: Bernard's ruling on whether the father can follow the hearings, even indirectly, and the Surrey court date next month over the seized items.
Citations marquantes
No charges have been proved or laid in an investigation about an allegation that he had a firearm in the court.— Brock Martland, lawyer for the victim's father
To have a target on your back and realize you were a coin toss away from having shots fired would instil the most reasonable fear in anyone.— Tim Russell, defence lawyer for Ibrahim Ali
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