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Page 4 The Canadian Statesman, Bowmanville, August 5,1998 ®ll t Cattabtan Statesman Former Publishers and Partners Rev. John M. Climie and W. R. Climie 1854 -1878 M. A. James, 1878 -1935 • Norman S. 13. James, 1919 -1929 G. Elena James, 1929 -1947 • Dr. George W. James, 1919 -1957 Produced weekly by James Publishing Company Limited Also Publishers of The ClaringtonICourtice Independent P.O. Box 190, 62 King St. W., Bowmanville, Ontario L1C 3K9 Tel: 905-623-3303 HOURS: Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Fax: 905-623-6161 Internet - statesman@ocna.org Publications Mail Registration No. 07637 For 144 Years, Our First Concern Has Been Our Community Publisher-John M. James Assoc. Publisher - Rick James Plant Manager - Rick Patterson Ad. Manager - Brian G. Purdy Editor - Peter Parrott Production Supervisor - Ralph Rozema, Suzanne Bennett, Tim Bowers, Kevin Britton, Sharon Cole, Laurens Kaldeway, Barb Patterson, Tyler Sellick, Jim Snoek, James Stephenson, Vance Sutherland, Jim Tuuramo Advertising Editorial Lavcrnc Morrison Brad Kelly, Lorraine Manfredo, Jennifer Stone Office Supervisor - Angela Luscher, Junia Hodge, Grace McGregor, Nancy Pleasance-Sturman, Marilyn Rutherford, Libby Smithson Naming the Accused One topic that receives more debate than any other in the editorial departments of.community newspapers is whether to name those accused of crimes. It arose again this week following following the murder charges laid in Bowmanville on Tuesday. Each week we receive requests from people asking us not to print their name after they've been charged by police for offences such as drunk driving, theft or income tax evasion. Although we listen to their request, it has little influence on whether we publish someone's name. Naming the accused is a far more controversial and complex issue that needs to be debated from a broad perspective rather than by an individual case. Just how controversial is it? We checked our provincial newspaper association's electronic bulletin board to see if any internet newsgroups had debated the issue. Sure enough, it had, yet there was little consensus on how to handle the subject. To give you a feeling of the difference of opinion across the country, we have included a number of the postings. Hopefully, it will provide a better understanding of why naming an accused criminal is not as simple as it may seem. A newspaper in Quebec started the debate by posting the following following question which led to a number of responses from community newspapers across Canada. We have a weekly police report -- accidents, robberies, arrests, etc. We get the information from the Surcte du Quebec, which gives us names of accused if they have appeared in court. Being a border paper, we also get reports from Vermont State Police. They release names as soon as an arrest has been made or a citation issued -- whether it's for DWI, shoplifting, or bad cheques. I feel there is a valid place for police/crime reports as both a means of telling readers what's going on in their community and what police arc doing to earn their pay. Naming names also acts (perhaps) as a deterrent, especially in small communities. The question is: should we name names in all circumstances -- the bad cheque, the DWI, the ridiculously small amount of pot? Or just the big' uns? And if so, where do you draw the line? • We name names weekly of those who have been charged. It is something our readers comment on regularly as a positive thing we do. Yes, if the person is found not guilty of a charge, we will publish the name as well and give it the same sort of play as the original story. But to be honest, I don't follow every charge through court and it is up to the people 1 have previously previously named to call me with their free and clear record. And when they do, I run the information. But again, that very rarely happens. happens. In the past 5 years 1 have been doing the cop stuff, I can recall only three instances. Like I said, we name up to 10 people people a week depending on the cop reports. We name names as well, and we serve a small town. I have been asked not to. I have had advertising threatened, but 1 have never been jumped in a bar. It's all in how you handle it. When someone asks you to keep their name out, you just have to explain that you can't. If you did that you wouldn't be -doing your job. The fact is the individual has been charged by police. Your job is to report the facts. And yes, if the charges are dropped or if the individual is found not guilty in court, it is your duty to report that. At our paper, it's happened a few times. Sometimes we catch it in court and sometimes we get calls from the individuals. You must mean, "if you don't'like the bad press, don't get charged for a crime. The comment you made shows that people people often confuse being charged with being convicted, and the difference between the two is too immense to approach with such a flippant attitude. People's reputations are at stake. This is not a clear cut issue with a straight black & white answer and is one that I sometimes struggle with, especially since it is our policy to name names (with certain conditions) and in the past year we have had some cases where the charged parties were later found innocent. In all cases we published the cleared names with the same prominence as the charged names. Strangely enough, I had this same conversation with a former former mayor of our town Thursday morning. I guess it depends on where you live, but in our little town of 4,000 people, the big desire for names comes only from the coffee shop crowd so they can fuel their daily character assassinations. Again, I have no problem naming names if you then are committed to using your manpower resources to ensure you don't miss one thing that happens to that person in court. 1 don't see how we can have it two ways - either complete coverage, coverage, or satisfy yourself with "A 23 year-old Etobicoke man" and then use his name when you run the story on his conviction. conviction. 1 tend to agree with the point of view of naming names only in most serious crimes. The question is: where do you draw the line? Murder. Habitual break-and-enterers? Rape (in a small town where everybody knows the victim)? Pot farm? Hydroponic do-it-yourself homegrown lab in the basement? Seems like that's jumping from a news judgment to a moral judgment. Re: news judgment or moral judgment. People aren't charged with moral offences, they arc charged with criminal offences. We don't have to make that judgment, the lawmakers have. By restricting identification of those charged to "a 23- year old Stanstead man" you call into question every 23 year old.in the village. I have no hesitation about naming the accused the moment a person is charged. My benchmark for naming names is the same as for everything else in the paper: Is it in the public interest? interest? The Crown doesn't press charges unless there is adequate evidence to take a case to trial, There are precious few cases instances where this is not in the public interest. Which you would find far more reasonable than having some guy kill himself for being wrongly accused of some crime in a small town where his life turns into a living hell? Again, no problem to name as long as you're committed to following following the case from beginning to end, but to do anything else is simply the lazy and the easy way out. Crap like this is what gives our industry a bad name. So, now that a number of editors across the country have debated the issue, where docs The Statesman stand on the issue of naming accused criminals? Not only do we not have the resources to follow every case through to its conclusion, but some cases just don't warrant naming names. When the crime is a petty one, naming names can have no benefit other than to feed the gossip mill. As well, in most of these cases, the police department will not release the name of the accused anyway, The Statesman names the accused only in serious cases -- violent crimes, accidents causing injury, crimes of large monetary monetary value or extraordinary circumstances. As with most policies, policies, there will he exceptions and we will use our discretion when needed. For example, we co-operated with the police by publishing the names of drunk drivers during last year's R.I.D.E. program. We have a right and duly to report criminal and police activity activity in the area and will continue to do so. But, as a community newspaper, we also have to always do what Is in the public's best interest. And that sometimes means naming the accused, and sometimes not. A Day At The Beach The view from Bowmanville's West Beach on a sunny Sunday afternoon. IF SQM XS-WgiSgi ?- -X ..JV» SEtàv ' ~ a *' ' V'iSLsV*! Letters to the Editor Educational Equality in a Democratic Society Dear Editor: Current Ontario government government policy provides for the full funding of a secular public educational system and for a Roman Catholic denominational educational system. Absolutely no funding funding is provided for students of families with religious world views that differ from the secular views taught in the public system or the Catholic religious teaching provided in the separate school system. This government government policy is obviously discriminatory against minority religious communities. communities. In 1985, the Shapiro Commission appointed by then-Premier William Davis considered the issue of public public funding for religious and private schools. The Commission concluded that the government policy was inequitable and strongly recommended that it should be changed to provide funding funding of religious and other private schools "in association" association" with public boards of education. Previous governments governments refused to implement Dr.. Shapiro's recommendations. recommendations. . This major inequity has not only continued but increased as the public educational educational system has been mandated by the government government to be virtually secular and has been stripped of nearly all meaningful reli gious instruction. While students students belonging to wealthy minority religious families may have the option of considering considering private religious education (if their community community has been able to establish establish a religious school), most minority religious families cannot afford such education or do not have the school to which to send their children. Thus, they are forced to send their children children to the secular public educational system where their children receive an education which is fundamentally fundamentally inconsistent with the beliefs and values shared by these families. Provinces such as Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have recognized the unfairness of such a system system and have provided funding (partial or complete) complete) for religious and other independent schools to ensure that all students have the legal opportunity of education education in accordance with their fundamental beliefs and values and in accordance accordance with the academic. standards expected in Canada. It is ironic that while Ontario is perhaps the most multi-cultural and multireligious multireligious of all Canadian provinces, it has been most resistant to recognizing the legitimate needs of diverse religious communities. The four western provinces have made commendable commendable attempts to do public justice to the fundamental fundamental principles of educational educational equality, parental responsibility, fiscal equity and institutional integrity. They do so in the context of diverse societies that seek to respect the plurality of faith - and values - perspective and communities active in these provinces' education systems. Ontario should follow suit and discontinue its discriminatory discriminatory policies against non-Catholic minority faith- communities. In 1996, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled (in Adler and Elgersma) that the Ontario government is constitutionally permitted to fund independent religious schools. Therefore, there is no constitutional barrier to include these independent schools within the existing educational funding structure. structure. Such inclusion on the basis of legal equality and fiscal fairness for all, without without discrimination based on creed, faith, ideology, religion religion or values, would be a major, historic step forward in the stmggle to ensure that all Ontario residents are entitled to educational justice. justice. Sincerely yours, Gerald Vandezande Government Relations Coordinator Thanks for Kind Gesture Dear Editor: A couple of weeks ago I was returning home from Kingston and because of a lot of stop and go traffic due to construction, I ran out of gas on the 401.1 barely managed managed to get off the ramp between Bowmanville, and Newcastle before my car died. It was after dark and I was 5 km. from Bowmanville. I tried to flag down a number of cars yet none stopped until a man in a van pulled up. Realizing I was taking a chance, I went to his window to ask for help. Immediately, I saw he had two young boys with him so I got into his van as he so generously offered to take me to Bowmanville and return to put gas in my car. Although we talked all the way there and back I neglected to get his name as my mind was occupied with what could have happened! I just want him to know how thankful I am for his kind assistance. He even poured the gas into my car in spite of the fact that it was leaking all over his hands. He refused to take any money and said he helped because he wanted to. What a fine example to his two sons! I wish you safe travel always and an angel to guard you and your family. How lucky they are to have you. Thank you sincerely. Marg. R. J>] ZtSOB) FROM COUCH TO COUNTRY CLUB -- Clarington's crooks appear to have tired of the the boob tube and developed a taste for the country club. Reports of stolen golf clubs have started to edge out reports of stolen TVs and VCRs on the police blotter. It is possible, possible, of course, that local thieves just can't abide summer summer reruns. Anyway, don't just keep your eye on the ball; keep your eye on your clubs. We hope this doesn't doesn't complicate your swing. BEING °A CHAMP TAKES PRACTICE -- Bowmanville's Mark Sullivan came home from Nova Scotia earlier this month with three top fiddle awards, one of them a trophy he earned in the championship class against approximately two dozen top-notch players players from across North America. It's a ground-breaking win for this modest 16-year old who has previously only competed within his age category, rather than in open classes. On August 7th, Sullivan travels to a fiddle contest in Shelburn, Ontario where he will defend his title as National Fiddle Champ in the 18 and under category. category. Sullivan will be warming up for the show-down during a performance with musical friends at Rotary Park in Bowmanville on Thursday, August 6th. Concert Don't be the Silent Majority "Never talk to strangers." That pat phrase continues to be handed down as a general safety rule by many generations of parents. No problem. Good rule. But, wouldn't this be an absolute utopia, if parents would mention an exception for little Johnnie or Janie? Tell them, when they grow up they should always talk to reporters (especially the ones at The Canadian Statesman.) Tell them to consider it their democratic duty. From this side of the notepad, it seems the world is divided in two distinct groups. Those who would do anything to get their comments in the paper, and those who would do anything to avoid it. Don't be part of the silent majority. Your story counts. If everybody ducked reporters, whose stories would you read in the papers? How would you know who your local heroes were? Whose tragedies would spur you on to political activism? More importantly, whose opinions would be out there for us all to mull over, and finally support, or lake issue with? Don't be thinking your two cents isn't worth hearing. hearing. I can tell you for a fact that we are always surprised at the refreshing diversity of perspectives whenever we are assigned to gather "pedestrian in the street" interviews, asking citizens at random what they think about everything from road safety, safety, casinos, the government's plan to make volunlccrism compulsory, V or just the price of coffee. The folks who kindly allow this paper to publish their views represent represent a small minority. For each one speaks, there arc three too humble humble to state their opinion. All those "no comments" get me grumbling. And jusi think. If nobody agreed to tell their talcs publicly, some media types will wind up fabricating news. Yes. Television show hosts feel pressured to pay off guests to stage wacky feuds. Or how about the case of the Boston Globe reporter who recently resigned after her editor discovered her quotes were made up, which to me is like stories on steroids; it's unfair and pointless. pointless. The thing that aroused the editors suspicion was that her quotes were "too perfect." Honest, straight-from-lhc-heart comments arc more often expressed in incomplete sentences, loose grammar, grammar, and simple words. So don't he embarrassed if you don't sound like you are giving a prepared speech when you talk. That's normal. News hounds are not out to make you look bad, We just want to hear you talk. And you certainly don't have to wait for a busybody busybody reporter to initiate a conversation. Feel free to .write us a letter or lip us off on the phone about your opinion or a fascinating someone whose story should be told. _ / Off Beat