The Municipality of Chatham-Kent is looking to the Ontario government for support after the Provincial Offences Court in Blenheim was reduced to one court day per week.
Since the municipality assumed operation of the Provincial Offences Court on Communication Road in 2000, the court has operated twice a week on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. However, due to a critical shortage of Justices of the Peace across the province, the court has experienced cancellations on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month beginning in 2022.
Earlier this year, the municipality was notified by the Regional Senior Justice of the Peace that due to a retirement, Chatham-Kent would not have a Justice of the Peace assigned to the area resulting in the cancellations of the year’s remaining Wednesday court sittings, effective September 1, 2023.
The municipality has also been informed that the reduced court days will continue into June 2024.
According to Provincial Offences Court Manager Christine Jackson, who provided an information report to Chatham-Kent Council on Monday, the reduction with result in a “critical backlog,” with 2,500 cases currently pending before the court.
“These court closures have and will further impact a defendant’s right to timely access to justice,” said Jackson in the report. “The Charter guarantees the right to be tried within a reasonable time and failure to do so can result in the court dismissing the matter for delay.”
Jackson added that the court closures will also have a negative impact on revenue.
“With the conclusion of matters being significantly delayed, revenue will be deferred and possibly lost if matters are dismissed due to delay,” she said.
CK administration said it will be contacting Chatham-Kent Leamington MPP Trevor Jones for suggestions and to seek support.