![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6971466.1721473775!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
investigation Prominent Vancouver lawyer accused of moving criminal cash dies before hearing
Vancouver lawyer Michael Bolton likely defended thousands of people over 50 years of practice. But in the end, he would not get a chance to defend himself.
A judge has declared that four Canadian men being held in Syrian camps are entitled to the federal government's help to return home.
In a ruling Friday, Federal Court Justice Henry Brown effectively directed Ottawa to request repatriation of the men as soon as reasonably possible and provide them with passports or emergency travel documents.
Brown said the men are also entitled to have a representative of the federal government travel to Syria to help facilitate their release once their captors agree to hand them over.
The Canadians are among the many foreign nationals in Syrian camps and jails run by Kurdish forces that reclaimed the war-torn region from the extremist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
They include Jack Letts, whose parents John Letts and Sally Lane have waged a public campaign to pressure Ottawa to come to his aid. The parents say they have seen no evidence that their son became a terrorist fighter, adding that Jack stood against ISIL and was even put on trial for publicly condemning the group.
"We are overjoyed at today's ruling and believe we will finally get to see our son again after what has been a very long, arduous struggle against the Canadian government," Lane said.
"While we are concerned about the lack of time-frame appended to the judge's declaration on the men's repatriation, we trust that the government will adhere to his exhortation to bring them home as soon as possible."
Global Affairs Canada had no immediate comment Friday.
Family members of the men, as well as several women and children, had argued in court that Global Affairs must arrange for their return, saying that refusing to do so violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The government insisted that the Charter does not obligate Ottawa to repatriate the Canadians held in Syria.
Lawrence Greenspon, a lawyer for all of the applicants but Letts, reached an agreement this week with the federal government to bring home six Canadian women and 13 children.
"This is what we were hoping for," Greenspon said Friday.
"With the agreement of the Canadian government, the women and children are going to be brought home. And now, as a result of this judge's order, the four men that are in northeastern Syrian prisons will be brought home by Global Affairs Canada as well."
In his ruling, Brown said the Canadian men are not able to return home "in part because their government seems never to have formally requested their repatriation."
They are not able to enjoy "a truly meaningful exercise" of their Charter right to enter Canada unless and until the federal government makes a formal request to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria on their behalf, he wrote.
"Canada must make a formal request for their repatriation because otherwise the Court is asked to construe the Charter in an 'unreal world."'
Brown said the conditions in the camps holding the Canadian women and children who were part of the court case "are, to say the least, very poor."
"In my view they are dire. These individuals live in crowded and unsanitary conditions. They are held without charge or trial, and lack adequate food and medical attention."
None of the men have been heard from since 2019, Brown noted, but indications point to even worse circumstances for them.
"While women and children live in tents, at least some of the men and perhaps many are held in small rooms or cells that are overcrowded and unsanitary."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2023.
Vancouver lawyer Michael Bolton likely defended thousands of people over 50 years of practice. But in the end, he would not get a chance to defend himself.
Brian McConnell's daughter, Florence McConnell, died after a liposuction surgery complication in Morocco. Now, he warns others against undergoing cosmetic surgeries abroad.
Standing on the edge of an open aircraft hatch, a smokejumper in a pale yellow suit steadies himself before rocking back then swinging out the door and vanishing as gravity takes over.
Health Canada issued recalls for various items this week, including steam cleaners, hedgehog pet food, kids' bike helmets and multivitamins.
Amid the cost-of-living crisis, many Canadians are looking to find ways to save money, such as downsizing their home. But one Ottawa broker says there are several signs to consider before making the big decision.
A mail carrier was fatally shot while walking a route in Chicago, authorities said. Investigators at the U.S. Postal Service are offering up to US$250,000 for tips that solve the case.
The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) and the union representing 10,000 of its workers reached a tentative agreement Saturday, clearing the way for stores to open Tuesday.
A polar bear died in its enclosure at the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo on Friday.
No one quite knows what the process of picking a new nominee would be if Joe Biden did step aside – but many Democrats say that any process is likelier than ever to quickly end with Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee.
It's been more than a month since their good friend was seriously hurt in an accident and two teens from Riverview, N.B., are still having a hard time dealing with it.
Halifax bridges have collected thousands of coins from around the world.
A donated clawfoot bathtub has become the preferred lounging spot for a pair of B.C. grizzly bears, who have been taking turns relaxing and reclining in it – with minimal sibling squabbling – for the past year.
A pair of cemetery investigators are cleaning and preserving as many gravestones they have permission to work on, as they conduct their research and document gravestones.
After more than three years, a B.C. woman has been reunited with a lost family heirloom.
One of Edmonton’s main contributors to Google Street View is a man who dresses up as an alien.
Nearly 10 years after it was first proposed, an interactive piece of public art is officially open in Vancouver's Hastings Park.
An event July 22 at Dynamic Earth in Sudbury will mark the 60th anniversary of the iconic Big Nickel, the largest coin in the world.
Cyclist Jagjeet Singh cruised through Montreal on Sunday morning as he rides across the country to raise money for a children's charity.