Family members of the victims of B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton are once again left disappointed in their fight for justice.
They learned last week they were denied status at court proceedings on the B.C. RCMP’s plan to destroy evidence gathered during the investigation.
Justice Frits Verhoeven of B.C. Supreme Court ruled against the families’ application for standing on July 17.
Lorelei Williams, whose young cousin Tanya Holyk was one of Pickton’s victims, says the judge made a mistake.
“They are sending a horrible message to predators out there that they can get away with murder,” she told a news conference in Vancouver reacting to the decision.
Lawyer Sue Brown of Justice for Girls, who was also at the news conference, says the RCMP’s plan to dispose of evidence only 20 years after the investigation began
“[It] sends the message that missing and murdered women’s cases are closed, despite the majority of them being unsolved,” she said.
“Let’s be clear. Not only is this an affront to justice and a devastating blow to the families of these women, allowing those who disappear and murder women and girls to do so with impunity is a human rights violation.”
The RCMP are seeking direction from the court on how to proceed with evidence destruction.
Pickton was convicted in 2007 of six counts of second-degree murder but is suspected of killing more women who went missing from the Downtown Eastside.
He died in May of injuries sustained after an attack by another inmate in his Quebec prison.
The judge did say the families are to be notified of any RCMP applications to dispose of evidence. At that time, the court may grant them “a limited right of audience, if deemed necessary and appropriate.”
Psychologist Sasha Reid, who has assembled the world’s largest database on serial killers, has studied the Pickton investigation.
“Through our investigations we have uncovered the fact that this is not a complete case,” she said at the news conference. “This is, as far as I’m concerned, an open and ongoing investigation that requires thorough adequate and complete investigation.
“If we fail to stop these applications to dispose of evidence we essentially vitiate any chance of bring additional perpetrators to justice.”
Added Reid: “This sends the message that space in RCMP buildings is worth more then answers and justice for the horrific atrocities that took place.”
The RCMP have not yet applied to dispose of any evidence, court heard.
