Posted by Dan McIntyre on 10/27/2009, 10:26 pm, in reply to "Re: Apartment licensing would end crack houses"
Ken - I have decided to let your last post stand for now. Let us start with an agreement. Neither of us wants crack and drug dealers selling their garbage in apartment buildings (or anywhere else).
However, this Board is here to help tenants and Legal Aid does a great job in helping some tenants. Like just about every one else (except some web site operators) they have people they are responsible to and guidelines and policies which they follow. This Board is not the place to take any complaints related to that - we are here to help tenants and work collaboratively to defend legitimate rights and processes.
I will add two things. I have never in my 27 years helped or represented any drug dealer. I don't know any one who has, but I do know there have been issues of protecting children and innocent members of households - which I won't get into any detail here on. You disagree with me on the facts. Let us just accept that we disagree as gentlemen and move on.
: --Previous Message--
: Fortunately, I do not know any drug dealers.
: Here are the facts. Legal Aid has income
: criteria. I am on the Board of a Legal Aid
: clinic in Toronto. Duty Counsel has
: limitations. Dealing drugs is illegal and
: therefore evictable. To be fair, I only
: work in Toronto and I am not the watchdog of
: duty counsel. However, it is a fundamental
: right of every one in Canada to be presumed
: innocent and have the right to a fair
: hearing. You and I can't change that and
: having observed a few landlords, I certainly
: don't want them to have judge like rights to
: evict.
:
: As I tried to say....nobody wants crack
: dealers...but it is totally unfair to
: suggest that it is our role or the role of
: legal aid to condone drug dealing. Legal
: Aid lawyers do have a responsibilty as do
: all lawyers and para legals to ensure
: procedural fairness. So does the LTB.
:
: I can not possibly get into an anecdotal
: analysis of what might have happened in a
: case you were involved in.
:
: And here is a little note for Lewis the
: Landlord. This Board is permitting landlord
: posts that are helpful to tenants or discuss
: issues of mutual concern - such as the
: presence of crack dealers in apartment
: buildings. It is not for landlords to
: attack tenants, tenant rights or human
: rights -we stand for the elimination of
: discrimination in rental housing. We are
: not here to debate the human rights code. We
: are here to abide by it. The HR Code has
: been around for decades. The recent report
: highlighted some of the problems in rental
: housing. The code has not changed.
:
: And now a note for all those landlords who
: spend their time reading this board. I made
: a thanksgiving resolution - I could not wait
: for new years - to stop reading your
: discussion board. Boy, do I feel better -
: been 13 days now.
:
: I do want to thank you though. Some of your
: stuff is pretty funny, but most of it is
: rather sad. You have strengthened our
: resolve for landlord licencing, for better
: rent control, and for stronger enforcement
: of the human rights code.
:
: I do feel very sorry for your tenants, and
: am more resolved to do good work for them.
: Your unfairness, your meanness, your
: nastiness and your vulgarity have demeaned
: your business. Your facts are so wrong so
: many times - and that is the laughable part.
: I sure wish I made the salary you think I
: make. And yep, I stayed in a cheap motel
: for a month when I came to Toronto as my
: family continued to live in our home in
: Ottawa ntil my kids completed their school
: year.
:
: Even Bob seems to have lost interest as he
: has not responded to my e-mails, nor was he
: trying to stop the violations of your own
: rules such as no personal attacks, no
: re-posting etc. You have even tried to give
: credibility to the most un-credible source
: in Toronto. An unemployable man, who nobody
: listens to (except some of you) on his
: obsessive crusade against the good people
: who have found his behaviour so
: objectionable that he has been kicked out of
: just about every group he ever joined. I
: gave your founder the facts on him.
:
: Heres to fairness ladies and gentlemen. That
: is all tenants want and what we pay rent
: for.
:
: --Previous Message--
: Most suspected drug dealers i'm aware of
: also
: collect social benefits. All do not have a
: very high reported income. Most qualify for
: legal aid. Also i know in my areas where i
: own property, at the tribunal hearings there
: is no income test to have legal counsil
: represent you before the board. They do not
: ask to see your notice of assment or income
: tax report before representing you, check it
: out it's true.
:
: --Previous Message--
: There is no responsibility to defend by
: legal
: aid unless a tenant meets strict low income
: criteria as set out by Legal Aid Ontario
: (LAO). The crack dealer does not have a
: right to legal aid representation at the
: LTB.
:
: Under Canadian law, any one accused of
: anything is entitled to defend and to be
: represented. In civil matters, as I said ,
: legal aid can only represent low income
: people, and these crack dealers probably
: dont qualify. The right to representation
: does not condone criminal activity, but
: seeks to ensure that every one's rights are
: protected - and like it or not - that
: includes criminals - that is the will of
: parliament.
:
: A legal aid clinic or our hotline or duty
: cousel (also part of LAO) is obliged to give
: factual information on the law. The fact is
: that carrying on criminal activities is an
: evictable offence.
:
: The whole sad and sick issue of drugs does
: affect every one. Brighter (much)minds than
: I have not been able to stop it - but we all
: have our opinions. Let us all hope that our
: future is brighter and that kids stop
: getting hooked on the stuff. No demand - no
: supply.
:
:
:
:
:
: --Previous Message--
: I agree landlords should not neglict their
: obligations as we must all do our part to
: stop crime. Drug dealers have no place in
: any neighbourhood and landlords should do
: everything in their power to get rid of
: these low lifes and not just sit by and let
: it happen. However, Even crack dealers
: facing eviction have the right to tenant
: advocacy/legal aid at the tribunal and i
: know first hand how hard it can be to get
: these problem tenants out. The tribunals
: goal will be to remedy the situation
: basically get drug dealers to stop dealing
: but
: If jail time doesn't scare away crack
: dealers why would fear of a eviction?
: The second problem is this "Don't
: Snitch" culture which in my humble
: opinion (IMHO) is utter BS. If landlords are
: willing to stick their necks out and take
: these dealers to before the tribunal we need
: the help of tenants.
:
: I not too sure how enforcement with proceeds
: from licensing will force landlords into the
: VERY difficult tasks of evicting dealers as
: this is not a by law issue for enforcement
: officers to deal with. This is the duty of
: the police and the criminal code first and
: foremost, then the duty of the landlord
: (once the drug dealing tenant posts bail) to
: take the police report and apply for the
: eviction. What is legal aid`s obligation in
: this case to the drug dealing tenant being
: evicted.
:
:
:
: --Previous Message--
: Maybe, but that is not the intent of
: licencing. The intent is to have sufficient
: funds to ensure that apartment buildings are
: managed and maintained to a reasonably good
: standard.
:
: --Previous Message--
: Maybe someone could convince the city that
: they could make money towards the budget
: deficit with licensing.
:
: --Previous Message--
: There is a great article in todays Star
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/713410--fiorito-how-to-fix-crack-house-conundrum
: by Joe Fiorito where he shows that
: apartment licensing would just about end the
: possibility of crack houses being run out of
: apartments, something that without it police
: have never been able to do.
:
: Support apartment licensing!!!
:
: Contact Mayor Miller and ask him why this
: has not been brought before city council to
: vote on.
: mayor_miller@toronto.ca 416-397-CITY (2489)
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