Dead mice, broken equipment among problems for Burlington, Ont. courthouse in disrepair, officials say | CBC News

A criminal lawyer says the Burlington courthouse is in such bad shape it’s “embarrassing.”

“I’ve gotten offers to resolve matters from crowns (crown attorneys) that I would never would have had if it wasn’t for the delays caused by the caused by the courthouse,” said Brendan Neil, a criminal lawyer based in Milton, Ont.

Neil, who has been practising law in Halton since 2005, also referred to conditions at the courthouse as “ridiculous.”

“I happen to have an associate from the United States come up and toured them through one of our courtrooms and literally they started laughing, asking how we could possibly work in this situation,” he said.

Neil told CBC Hamilton the Burlington courthouse is the only one in Halton with CCTV for vulnerable witnesses, but the system is “not reliable,” and has resulted in many of his cases being delayed.

Machinery malfunctions and pests are some of the issues at the courthouse

The problems include poor internet connectivity, equipment malfunctions and worse, Neil says.

“We run into problems of just not being able to conduct court, because it’s just not appropriate to do. And that’s without having to pull a dead mouse out of the courtroom every now and then,” he said.

In 2020, the Halton County Law Association released a letter to the Attorney General of Ontario outlining the various issues with both the Burlington and Milton courthouses.

Ken Kelertas, former president of the Halton County Law Association, wrote the letter and condemned the cancellation of the Halton Region Consolidated Courthouse project, which would have seen a new courthouse in the region.

“Everyone had agreed that Halton, being one of the fastest growing areas in the country, requires a new consolidated courthouse,” said Kelertas.

The letter sent by Kelertas in 2020 says the Burlington courthouse has an “inadequate” number of courtrooms.

“The Burlington courthouse is just too small. I mean, it was always meant to be a satellite court. So, I don’t think anyone disagrees that there was a need [for a new one],” he told CBC Hamilton on Thursday.

‘Justice delayed is justice denied’

Kelertas called problems at the courthouse an “access to justice issue.”

“Justice delayed is justice denied,” he said.

Neil agreed, saying the courthouse does not hold a “safe psychological space” for people.

He said the courthouse is “incredibly small” and only has one public hallway, one public entrance and one set of bathrooms for the public.

“It’s not laid out all well for an adversarial system where people may be for very valid reasons wanting to not be in contact with other people involved in the case,” said Neil.

Neil said situations like those lead to people not wanting to partake in the trial process.

“[That] goes completely against everything that the justice system is trying to do to, encourage the reporting of offenses when they occur, and to not re-traumatize people when they go through the system,” he said.

Ford government made ‘significant investments’, spokesperson says

Justice Scott Latimer wrote, in a decision released July 18, that a sexual assault case that should have been a “one-day” trial was postponed for over a year due to issues at the courthouse.

The second trial date, set for May 30, 2022, had to be postponed because of an HVAC unit that failed on a hot day, making the temperatures “unworkable,” Latimer wrote.

“I am embarrassed that the people of Halton … have to come here and be told that this aging, antiquated building cannot physically sustain their trial,” read a transcript from that day.

The trial was then set for Nov. 14, 2022. Then, an issue with the closed-circuit testimonial equipment made it so the trial had to be postponed again.

Maher Abdurahman, a spokesperson for the Ministry of the Attorney General, told CBC Hamilton in an email that the government has made “significant investments in Halton” to improve the courthouse.

“Renovations are taking place to upgrade security, technology and building functionality as well as support in-person, virtual and hybrid matters,” said Abdurahman.

“Technology is being upgraded in all courtrooms at both courthouses, with the upgrades to Burlington courtrooms already completed in February 2023.”

He said upgrades in security systems, new wayfinding and signage and renewing fixtures and finishes are some of the “major projects” planned for the Halton region.

Neil says the changes are not “major projects” and the government should, instead, focus on putting the new courthouse “back in play.”