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Tim McLeod, Saskatchewan’s justice minister and attorney general, is responding to the Crown’s decision to stay charges against Romana Didulo.
Didulo, the self-proclaimed “Queen of Canada” was previously facing charges of failing to comply with an undertaking condition and intimidation of justice system participants in relation to her time in Richmound.
Read more:
- Charges stayed against ‘Queen of Canada’ cult leader Romana Didulo in Saskatchewan
- Prosecutors didn’t see reasonable chance of conviction in ‘Queen of Canada’ case
- LISTEN: Cult expert discusses social phenomenon around ‘Queen of Canada’
“The decision by public prosecutions to stay those charges is certainly one that we respect the independence, and public prosecutions to do their work and evaluate their case and the strength of their case,” McLeod said.
“If there’s no reasonable likelihood of conviction, it’s not uncommon for them to direct the stay of proceedings.”
McLeod explained that evidence is gathered by police, who later present that information to prosecutors.
“At that time, based on the strength of the evidence, they make the decision to proceed or not proceed. But that evaluation of the evidence is ongoing, and certainly as things evolve, as new evidence is gathered, the public prosecution is constantly reevaluating its case. And in this case, I understand that they have recently come to the conclusion that there is no longer a reasonable likelihood of conviction, so they’re not pursuing.”
McLeod also had some words for the Village of Richmound after a challenging two years with the Kingdom of Canada group led by Didulo occupying the former school.
“My understanding is the school in Richmound is still under the public health order and therefore uninhabitable,” McLeod said.
“Nobody will be returning to that facility anytime soon. We certainly encourage the community to look at some of the resources and the tools that we’ve put in place with the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods legislation that specifically targets and helps communities address the problem of nuisance properties that may be used for criminal activity. We want to ensure the community that those pieces of legislation are there for their use.”
The Crown also stayed charges against three other members of the Kingdom of Canada group, but Ricky Manz, the owner of the former Richmound School, which the group occupied for two years, still faces several charges.
