Justice Minister David Lametti says he’s satisfied his department did the best job it could in finding, reviewing and disclosing thousands of government documents requested by Vice-Admiral Mark Norman’s defence team.
Norman’s lawyers argued the documents were crucial to his ability to defend himself, and they criticized the department for the lengthy, arduous process in disclosing them — criticism that was sometimes echoed by the judge.
Lametti also pointed to media reports that said it was evidence from members of the previous Conservative government given to the defence that appears to have swayed the prosecutors.
“I would add that if other people on the opposition side of the House had information, they should have given it to the RCMP a lot sooner,” he said. “Maybe Mr. Norman wouldn’t have had such a long ordeal. But the system worked, and there’s an ongoing responsibility on the part of a prosecutor to be open to new evidence.”
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