“’There has been much criticism about the restorative justice process. Some critics and students have argued that it was hurried to control any more damage to the school and a proper investigation of exactly who was involved was never conducted. Last week, four of the female students released an open letter saying they will not participate in the restorative justice process, expressing concern that the university was pressuring them into it and “silencing our views, isolating us from our peers, and discouraging us from choosing to proceed formally.” Mr. MacIntosh is also critical of the process. In his statement, he writes, “… both perpetrators and victims alike were prematurely enticed into a restorative justice system which started with acceptance of guilt. “To be clear, my client agrees restorative justice is an invaluable legal and social tool for those guilty of unprofessional conduct. However, that tool should only be used after there has been a due diligence finding of guilty conduct, not assumption of guilt by association with others.” He added that Mr. Millet, as well as the 12 other students, has “been publicly pilloried and secretly convicted, without due process or the right to be heard. theglobeandmail/news/national/dalhousie-dentistry-student-blew-the-whistle-on-facebook-group-lawyer/article22514270/
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 20:58:35 +0000