March 10, 2010
There was outrage from the House of Commons Tuesday over a plea bargain for former Conservative M-P Rahim Jaffer. He pleaded guilty to a charge of careless driving and was fined 500 dollars. Prosecutors dropped charges of impaired driving and possession of cocaine saying there was no reasonable prospect of a conviction. Jaffer, who is married to Grey-Simcoe M-P Helena Guergis, was charged last fall after police pulled him over for speeding in Palgrave. The Liberals demanded the Conservatives order an appeal of the case, accusing the government of being hypocritical in terms of its get tough on crime agenda. Prime Minister Harper's office will only say the case was prosecuted under provincial law and Ontario's Attorney General says it's not out of the ordinary for the Crown and defence to strike a plea deal in some circumstances.