Rant written sometime in 2000 -- definitely before we had as much evidence as we now do regarding the scuzziness of Saskatchewan lawyers. This was written before Ed Holgate found the lost notes which certainly could have saved us a lot of grief. This rant was written to reconsider the use of the word "hate."
They really are a scuzzy lot, Saskatchewan lawyers. When we first launched our website in the summer of 1998, we featured an essay called "Why we hate lawyers." Hate is a succinct word and we have paused to consider whether it was "appropriate" from time to time. Yes, it is appropriate. We hate lawyers like we hate the Ku Klux Klan or any other group of people distinguished by its ability to feed on its own ignorance.
Of course most professions fall easily into that category. Doctors certainly have shown themselves to be protective of members of their organization who fall from grace. One must note that they have not come to the defence of those in their ranks who sexually abused their patients. They have demonstrated that they can recognize "unprofessionals" and weed them out. (Although it remains to be seen whether Schneeberger will set up a practice somewhere in the country when he gets out of jail.) Not so with Saskatchewan lawyers. They seem only to go after members of the group who genuinely stand up for their clients. (After Robert Borden complained about prosecutors to a StarPhoenix he received many complaints against him.)
Let's start with the Crown prosecutors. Matt Miazga and Sonja Hansen, the original proesecutors against Ross, Ross and White and Klassen and Kvello finally quit when they realized their child witnesses were telling obvious lies on the stand and the case against the Klassens and Kvellos was falling apart. They had, by this time, convicted Ross Ross and White but those convictions were overturned by the Supreme Court of Canada. Peter Klassen was also innocent of the charges involving the Ross children.
