Threats to defence lawyers in high-profile B.C. murder case prompt court safety concerns

WARNING: This article contains details of violent threats and suicidal ideations.

The voicemail threatens to knock lawyer Kevin McCullough’s teeth out, and as for his client, Ibrahim Ali, the anonymous caller says, “I’m gonna cut him.”

The Dec 1. recording was provided to The Canadian Press by Ali’s lawyers, who say it is among “a litany” of threats they have received for their handling of the high-profile murder case.

CBC News has not independently verified the recording.

Ali was convicted on Dec. 8 of first-degree murder for the killing of a 13-year-old girl in a Burnaby, B.C. park, and while the trial may be over, the fallout for McCullough and co-counsel Ben Lynskey continues.

They say they are afraid, amid allegations that someone brought a loaded gun to the last day of the trial — with the lawyers previously telling CBC News it was the father of the murder victim who allegedly brought the weapon.

The girl — and by extension, her father — cannot be named due to a court-ordered publication ban on the proceedings.

“I am fearful for my safety, the safety of my co-counsel, Mr. Lynskey, and the safety of Mr. Ali at all court appearances,” McCullough said last week.

Vancouver Police said last week an arrest was made in relation to the allegation a weapon was brought to the last day of trial. McCullough told The Canadian Press that Victoria Police told him of the incident two days later, saying someone brought a loaded Glock gun into court with an “intent to kill.”

“I just want the truth to come out in all respects,” McCullough said.

The threats have prompted calls from some defence lawyers and their associations for more safety measures, and suggestions that critics of the defence are overlooking important points about how justice is administered.

Richard Fowler, director of the Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers, said he was stunned by an apparent lack of response to the threats, after McCullough had asked for better security in court.

“I can’t imagine anything more upsetting to any lawyer than death threats, and then to learn there’s a possibility that a loaded firearm was brought into the courtroom is just absolutely scandalous,” he said.

“It’s outrageous that it was allowed to happen … it shouldn’t have happened and it can’t be allowed to happen again.”

Rebecca McConchie, the second vice-president of the Trial Lawyers Association of British Columbia, said that concerns with lawyers’ conduct should be dealt with through the proper routes, not through threats.

“Threats to defence counsel are really threats to the integrity of that adversarial system that we rely on to say that trials are a good way to achieve justice. If we don’t have defence counsel, we don’t have a justice system that has integrity,” she said. 

Vitriol stems from closing arguments

In the closing days of the trial, McCullough filed an affidavit describing more than a dozen messages sent to the lawyer, some with graphically violent threats.

“You think 13-year-old rape and murder victims are to blame. Your family will suffer before you meet a violent and brutal death. It will happen before Christmas. The last thing you will know is that your family suffers like the child suffered. I am suicidal due to childhood predators and looking for someone to cause pain to before I burn myself alive,” said one comment, which McCullough also shared in court without the jury present.

Much of the vitriol, both in online forums and directly sent to McCullough and his team, stems from his closing arguments, where he said it wasn’t “outlandish” to suggest the 13-year-old girl may have found Ali, who was 27 at the time of the murder, attractive.

Prosecutors said the girl was sexually assaulted and strangled in a Burnaby park in 2017, and that semen found inside her body matched Ali’s DNA.

The girl’s brother, who also can’t be named, accused Ali’s lawyers of dragging his sister’s “name through the mud” and read out a statement last week saying the family would be filing formal complaints “to see them disbarred.”

WATCH | Brother of murdered 13-year-old girl speaks out: 

The brother of a 13-year-old girl who was murdered in Burnaby, B.C., six years ago shared a message to his late sister outside of B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver Tuesday.

Fowler said that although he did not attend the trial, much of the public discourse around defence conduct missed an important point.

“The best defenders of the administration of justice in that context are the judge and the Crown, neither of whom raised concerns about Mr. McCullough’s closing,” he said.

Defence lawyers ‘doing their job’: law society

McCullough says the alleged threats make him “very worried for society.”

“It’s a sad day when defence counsel or people who are being zealously represented, and somehow that turns into a society where they want defence counsel to be hurt, killed, intimidated and threatened.”

Fowler, who is also the director of the B.C. Association of Legal Aid Lawyers, said the threats against the defence team were unacceptable.

“The justice system cannot operate fairly, cannot function properly, if people intimidate justice system participants,” he said, adding it is up to defence lawyers to challenge evidence and attempt to undermine it.

“Just because something is profoundly dreadful to hear in the context of a murder case does not mean that somebody has professionally misconducted themselves — not in the slightest.”

The Law Society of B.C., which investigates and responds to concerns of misconduct, said in a statement last week that defence lawyers should not be threatened for “doing their job” and “the safety of lawyers and of all legal professionals, both inside and outside of court, should be taken very seriously.”

Calls for more safety at courthouses

McConchie said the threats have renewed calls for more safety precautions, especially in high-profile cases.

“All justice system participants need to feel and be safe in a courthouse,” she said.

McCullough said he and Lynskey met with the B.C. Sheriff Service on Dec. 7 — the day before the alleged gun incident — and sought security measures, including using a metal detector outside the court room. He said they were told any decision would be made by the judge but that was not implemented.

In court on Dec. 8, McCullough asked Justice Lance Bernard if the proceedings could be moved to a secure courtroom in light of the threats.

But Bernard said he didn’t know if another courtroom was available. The allegation that a gun was present in the courtroom that day came later, and hearings last week were moved to a courtroom with a metal detector.

In a notice of appeal for Ali’s conviction, filed Dec. 11, McCullough accused the court of bias against Ali and the counsel that “materially affected” the trial. It said the court failed to “properly address the safety concerns against the defence in light of clear and specific threats.”

Fowler called the apparent lack of response to the threats “stunning.”

He said the case has brought up questions for defence lawyers about whether their safety is protected the same as other court participants. 

“If the Crown had been threatened by a witness or family member of the accused, would the response have been the same? I think most of us are saying ‘I very, very, very much doubt it,'” he said.

McConchie said cases of violence in courthouses are rare but have happened in the past.

“I think this incident has brought home the potential risks for counsel, especially those litigating in highly contentious matters and I’m hoping that it brings forward some meaningful change to help ensure the safety of everyone who attends court in British Columbia,” she said.

She suggested the attorney general introduce protocols for judges, police and sheriffs when threats are made against anyone involved in a court case.

“It’d be helpful to have some guidance from people who have the power to actually take concrete steps to protect people’s safety,” she said.

WATCH | Ibrahim Ali searched following arrest: 

Video shows police bringing Ibrahim Ali, suspected of killing a 13-year-old girl, into the Burnaby RCMP detachment on Sept. 7, 2018.

Asked about the reported gun incident and threats to Ali’s lawyers, a spokesperson for B.C.’s Ministry of the Attorney General said it will review the facts after the police investigation has concluded “to determine what, if any, further measures need to be taken to ensure the safety of all personnel and the public.”

“Each case is different and is assessed on its own merits,” the statement said. “Because of security reasons, the ministry cannot provide further details on specific cases.”

If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where to get help:

• Canada’s Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call or text 988.

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868. Text 686868. Live chat counselling on the website.

• Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre.

This guide from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health outlines how to talk about suicide with someone you’re worried about.