A lawyer appointed to a committee tasked with recommending new judges in Alberta has resigned after CBC inquired about his recent comparison of a future COVID-19 vaccine to Auschwitz tattoos and posting of a video that called Black Lives Matter a “leftist lie” controlled by a Jewish philanthropist.
A lawyer appointed to a committee tasked with recommending new judges in Alberta has resigned after CBC inquired about his recent comparison of a future COVID-19 vaccine to Auschwitz tattoos and posting of a video that called Black Lives Matter a “leftist lie” controlled by a Jewish philanthropist.
Criminal defence lawyer Leighton Grey’s numerous online posts included opinions that legal and anti-racism experts said should disqualify him from being on the Provincial Court Nominating Committee (PCNC).
“I do not accept this resignation decision lightly. Mr. Grey is a successful Indigenous lawyer with an exemplary record of service,” Alberta Justice Minister Doug Schweitzer said in a statement Friday.
“I also do not make judgments on Mr. Grey’s ability to carry out his professional duties in practising law.”
CBC asked several legal and anti-racist experts to review Grey’s social media posts and blogs, including Tom Engel, who chairs the policing committee for the Edmonton-based Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association in Alberta.
“My overall impression is that Mr. Grey is on the outer fringe of the right wing and just has no place on a committee … that is in charge of screening,” Engel said.
Bernie Farber, chair of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, said he was “disturbed on the basis of just pure humanity” when reviewing Grey’s commentaries and posts.
“Our expectation is that our government will go through a process to pick the people that are most fair, that are most equitable,” Farber said. “The views posted in Mr. Grey’s blog, in my view, are extreme.”
CBC News reached out to Grey and his law firm several times in recent weeks, but he did not reply to requests for comment.
Lawyer says he’s libertarian
Grey has previously been criticized online for his views, and responded to defend his positions.
“I have nothing to do with the alt right. I am a libertarian, which means I may disagree with what you say, but would defend to the death your right to say it,” Grey responded online to one critique on LinkedIn in the last week. “I therefore disagree with your criticism of me, but respect your right to voice it.”
The justice minister declined an interview. In his statement on Friday, Schweitzer said Grey offered his resignation voluntarily so as not to distract from the committee’s work.
“Work on the Committee is far from a full-time job, and members are not required to surrender their right to personal views or commentary,” the minister’s statement said.
Schweitzer said he was only recently alerted to posts Grey made after his appointment on April 29. However, CBC identified blog posts written by Grey prior to his appointment and shared those with the minister’s office weeks ago.
Engel said the fact that Grey made such comments prior to his appointment suggests Alberta officials either did not do adequate background checks, or were not concerned when they did.
“The whole process for screening candidates for the judiciary, the provincial court, has in my view been corrupted,” Engel said. “This is an example of it.”
Schweitzer appointed Grey to a three-year term on the Provin