Alberta Premier Clarifies Comments Made About COVID-19 Prosecutions

EDMONTON—Alberta Premier Danielle Smith took to the airwaves on Jan. 14, using her weekly radio show to clarify earlier comments she made about talking to Crown prosecutors about cases involving alleged COVID-19 health violations, comments that caused uproar from the opposition.

“Of course, I’ve never called a Crown prosecutor. You’re not allowed to do that as a politician,” Smith said on the radio show “Your Province. Your Premier.” that broadcasts every Saturday morning.

The premier said her language might have been “imprecise,” but she was referring to the Justice Department in her comments made on Jan. 12. She also noted that “my contacts there have always been through the attorney general Tyler Shandro and his deputy.”

“I may have used some imprecise language,” said Smith, “but my contact with the Justice Department has always been through the appropriate channels, and that’s the attorney general.”

“The department has confirmed that I have not talked to Crown prosecutors, and the association itself has issued a statement saying I have not talked to to Crown prosecutors,” she added.

She was referring to the Alberta Crown Attorneys’ Association, which has issued a statement confirming Smith’s clarification, stating it was “not aware of any case where an elected official has attempted to contact a specific Crown prosecutor to inquire about a prosecution.”

“Prosecutorial independence is fundamental to the role of Crown prosecutors,” the statement said.

The association’s statement noted that the Crown applies a two-part standard to every case that proceeds to trial: “whether there is a reasonable likelihood of conviction, and whether proceeding is in the public interest.”

Prosecutors must follow the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service’s Code of Conduct, which requires them to “perform their duties independent of political or other improper external influences,” the association said.

Prior to the association’s statement, the Justice Department had also issued a statement stating, “The premier has never spoken with any Crown prosecutors about any particular court/legal matter they deal with.”

“The premier had met to discuss prosecutions at a high level with the attorney general and deputy attorney general,” said spokesperson Jason Maloney.

Obtaining Advice

Smith’s comments had been interpreted as being interference with the judicial system, with Alberta’s Opposition NDP Leader Rachel Notley stating to reporters on Jan. 13: “She’s scrambling. She is either lying now or she was lying then. Clearly lying is happening. There is a lot of lying going on.”

“The deputy attorney general, when it comes to individual matters that are before the courts, does not meet with the premier to have the premier try and coax him into changing what happens with respect to decisions,” Notley said.

The NDP called for an investigation.

During her radio program, Smith said she obtained legal advice after taking office because she was concerned about the prosecution of Albertans who had been charged during the COVID-19 pandemic for violating public health orders.

Smith said she wanted to obtain information on “what options were available with respect to outstanding COVID-related cases.”

During Smith’s campaign, she promised to change laws to prevent discrimination against individuals based on their COVID-19 vaccine status. On Jan. 12, Smith told reporters, “The way our system of justice works is we do have an independent Justice Department and independent Crown prosecutors.”

She said some of the cases were being dropped and some failed, “but I do want to make sure they have an independent process for assessing that.”

“But I ask them on a regular basis, as new cases come out, is it in the public interest to pursue and is there a reasonable likelihood of conviction?”

Smith did not indicate at the time whom she was referring when she said “they” and “them.”

Those comments from Jan. 12 were similar to ones she made to Rebel News in an interview in late December 2022.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.