The Prosecution of Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh July 10

Significant Causes of Delay in MacIntosh Case1. Bringing Ernest FenwickMacIntosh Back to CanadaThere are a number of reasons that contributedto the length of time it took to extradite Mr.MacIntosh. They are:A. Extradition Principle of SpecialtyThe need to adhere to the extradition principle ofspecialty contributed to the delay.The Crown had to be careful to ensure thatall possible criminal charges were laid beforeproceeding with a request to extradite. Ultimately,under this principle, the Crown would only beable to prosecute charges laid prior to extradition.Although the first complainant came forwardin January, 1995, and the first charge was laidin December, 1995, the investigation was notcomplete until 2001. Statements from theremaining eight complainants were taken byMarch of 2001. In December of 2001, all possiblecharges were laid and an arrest warrant was issuedon those charges.B. PassportThe passport issue was a likely contributor todelay in bringing Mr. MacIntosh back to Canada.Despite having criminal code charges pending andan outstanding warrant for his arrest, Mr. MacIntoshwas able to renew his Canadian passport fromwhere he was residing in India in May of 1997.Proceedings were begun to have Mr. MacIntosh’spassport revoked but those proceedings werehalted. A letter from the Federal Departmentof Justice dated April 16, 1998 was sent to Mr.MacIntosh’s lawyer advising him that the decisionto revoke the passport had been withdrawn.No reasons were given. A letter, also dated April16, 1998, was sent from the Passport office toMr. MacIntosh providing the same advice andconfirming the “resumption of normal passportservices.” The provincial Crown Attorney wasunaware of this development at the time. Theseletters were filed in court proceedings in 2009.In 2002 the RCMP received confirmation that Mr.MacIntosh’s Canadian passport was again renewedfrom India. At that point all the RCMP could dowas to confirm that Mr. MacIntosh remainedred-flagged at Canadian borders. It was theirunderstanding that should he re-enter the country,the arrest warrant would be executed.The reasons why his passport was renewed twiceand never revoked have never been explained. IfMr. MacIntosh’s passport had been revoked in 1998,or not renewed in 2002, this may have forced hisreturn to Canada or perhaps facilitated his arrest inIndia by Indian authorities.C. Requirements for Sworn Affidavits ofthe Nine ComplainantsThe pursuit of sworn affidavits from thecomplainants added to the delay.In April, 2002 the Crown advised the IAG itwas ready to proceed with extradition. But theIAG advised that a sworn affidavit from eachcomplainant would be necessary. In addition, theIAG wanted them sworn before a judge as opposedto a notary public.Beginning in May of 2002, the Crown sentletters to the complainants requesting swornaffidavits. Hindering the situation was thegeographic location of some of the complainants.Complainants lived across the continent – Florida,Manitoba, Alberta, British Columbia as well as Nova16 Report to the Attorney General of Nova Scotia The Prosecution of Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh