Ontario Superior Court Justice Edward Morgan spent most of Thursday morning with a furrowed brow and an incredulous look on his face. But his demeanour was at first subdued as he heard the case of Ricardo Scotland, an immigration detainee with no criminal record who is arguing that his indefinite detention in a maximum security jail is a violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.After the morning break, when the government’s lawyers stood to argue why the court should not release the native of Barbados, Morgan’s apparent confusion with the case became too much to contain.“Why is this man in prison?” he said bluntly, interrupting Bernard Assan, a lawyer representing the Department of Justice. Assan stammered. The judge continued.“Why is he incarcerated? He has no criminal record. He has no convictions of anything.”Read the Star’s Caged by Canada seriesRead the Star’s Caged by Canada seriesAssan mentioned the fact that Scotland — who is in the midst of a refugee claim — had faced criminal charges in 2013 that were later stayed.“That means he’s innocent,” Morgan interjected. “He’s innocent until proven guilty. That’s elementary.”Scotland’s case is just the latest to put Canada’s immigration detention system — by which the federal government jails non-citizens, often in maximum security institutions, for an indefinite length of time, typically while it tries to deport them — under increased scrutiny.Scotland, a single parent to his 13-year-old daughter, has been held in maximum security jail for a total of 18 months in two stints over the past two years. He has been detained at the Niagara Detention Centre in Thorold, Ont., since October.Scotland’s case is unusual for several reasons — including the fact the government is actually arguing for the man’s release in a separate court proceeding. The ...
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