Two more teens accused of murder are granted bail

Girls’ parents sign undertakings making them liable if daughters breach conditions

Two girls charged in the fatal “swarming” death of a homeless man were released on bail late Friday after two, separate daylong hearings.

Justice Maria Sirivar’s decision to release the girls from custody ahead of their trial follows another order the judge made Thursday that one of the girls not be stripped searched after court when she returned to the youth facility where she had been detained.

The youth released are among eight teenage girls charged with second-degree murder after they allegedly attacked 59-year-old Kenneth Lee in downtown Toronto. One other girl was previously released on bail. Five others are awaiting bail hearings that continue next week.

Their case is unprecedented in recent Ontario history, with the Ministry of the Attorney General confirming to the Star that it has no record, as far back as 2011, of girls as young as 13 being charged with homicide.

Evidence given in bail hearings cannot be published by law before the conclusion of the trial. Also, the identities of the young people accused are covered by a publication ban.

Justice Sirivar ordered the girls be released to their parents with a list of conditions they must follow, which essentially amounts to their being under house arrest and not having access to the internet (other than for purposes such as school), social media or cellphones. The girls will be allowed to attend school in person, if it is permitted by the school board, and any programming and counselling permitted by the court.

The girls’ parents signed undertakings to act as responsible persons under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. That is a higher burden than being a surety for someone, which is another form of release. It means the parents are liable if their daughter breaches her bail conditions and they themselves could face prison time.

The province has oversight over facilities they directly operate themselves and those that receive transfer payments and are licensed by the province to operate as youth detention facilities.

According to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services which oversees youth justice, there are three secure detention facilities for youth identifying as female in Ontario and two open, or less restrictive, facilities.

In response to Star questions about strip-searching youth, the spokesperson said in an email that these facilities “post clearly visible notices stating that all persons, vehicles and items entering or exiting the custody/detention facility may be searched in accordance with the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (CYFSA) and regulations.”

In a followup email, the ministry said it could not comment on specific cases.

An independent review of Ontario corrections practices ordered by the province and reported in 2017 found that “the use of strip searches in Ontario’s institutions is particularly troubling.”

While the Charter “strictly limits” the use of strip searches “due to their inherently humiliating and degrading nature,” the report said, “and most jurisdictions in Canada have legislative provisions that limit the use of these searches in correctional institutions. Ontario does not.”

The report continued: “In fact, ministry policy requires Ontario’s correctional institutions to carry out regular, routine strip searches of all inmates on a biweekly basis.”

Despite the findings of that report, legal advocates have argued not enough has changed.

In June, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association launched a challenge to Ontario’s strip search laws, claiming they are unconstitutional, a press release said.

“Ontario’s current law grants superintendents unfettered power to strip search prisoners at any time and in any situation,” the press release said. “Ontario is missing basic legal safeguards — safeguards that do exist in other provinces and federally.”