And speaking of court cases (see previous post), two awesome decisions were handed down today, one in the United States, and one in Canada.
In the state of New York, a key part of the NYPD’s controversial “stop and frisk” tactic has been ruled unconstitutional. Manhattan Federal Court Judge Shira Scheindlin's ruling focused on the NYPD's "Clean Halls" program and ordered police to cease making trespass stops outside of private residential buildings:
"While it may be difficult to say when precisely to draw the line between constitutional and unconstitutional police encounters such a line exists, and the NYPD has systematically crossed it when making trespass stops outside buildings," Scheindlin wrote in a 157-page ruling.
In Ottawa, Canada, the Federal Court ruled that Metis and non-status Indians are "Indians" under a section of the Constitution Act, and thus come under federal jurisdiction.The ruling affects more than 600,000 aboriginal people who are not affiliated with specific First Nations reserves:
"The recognition of Metis and non-status Indian as Indians under section 91(24) should accord a further level of respect and reconciliation by removing the constitutional uncertainty surrounding these groups," writes Federal Court Judge Michael Phelan.
While the decision does not go so far as to declare that the federal government has a fiduciary responsibility to the group, it says such duties would flow automatically now that their standing has been clarified.
"There is no dispute that the Crown has a fiduciary relationship with aboriginal people both historically and pursuant to section 35 (of the Constitution)," Phelan writes.
