Pubdate: Wed, 24 Nov 2010
Source: Regina Leader-Post (CN SN)
Copyright: 2010 The Leader-Post Ltd.
Contact: http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/regina/leaderpost/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/361
Author: James Wood, Saskatchewan News Network; Postmedia News

REPORT CONDEMNS LECLERC

Former Saskatchewan Party MLA Serge LeClerc engaged in "unethical and 
unlawful" conduct while in government, says a damning report by the 
legislature's ethics watchdog.

But the former Saskatoon Northwest MLA, who resigned his seat at the end of 
August, continues to deny any wrongdoing.

LeClerc, a self-proclaimed former career criminal who touted his 
transformation "from lawbreaker to lawmaker," left the government caucus 
and went on medical leave in April after CBC reported it had received a 
package of Internet chat room transcripts and a recording of an individual 
who sounded like LeClerc discussing marijuana and cocaine use in early 2009.

In a report released Tuesday, provincial conflict of interest commissioner 
Ronald Barclay rejected LeClerc's assertion that, while the voice was 
likely his, the recording had been doctored.

Barclay sent the recording for forensic analysis to the RCMP, with police 
experts determining all the audio clips were from the same original 
recording of a conversation, were not composites and were not spliced 
together or edited from other recordings of LeClerc.

"According to the content of the recordings, it is my opinion that Mr. 
LeClerc smoked marijuana during the time period he was an MLA, and that he 
had an unidentified person bring cocaine to his residence during the time 
period he was an MLA," wrote Barclay, whose office was not commenting on 
the report.

The report said the recording was LeClerc's end of a conversation conducted 
by telephone or over the computer. Transcripts included in the report show 
him recounting that men who had come to his home for sex had brought the 
drugs. At the time, LeClerc was married, but his wife died shortly thereafter.

RCMP experts had also examined computers used by LeClerc and his 
constituency assistants during the time he was an MLA. While four of the 
computers had not been used for Internet chats, LeClerc told Barclay he had 
thrown away the hard drive of his government issued laptop, which the 
commissioner noted rendered "any forensic analysis entirely impossible."

"Mr. LeClerc destroyed the one vital piece of evidence that may have 
assisted in exonerating, or implicating, his participation in the chats," 
wrote Barclay, who noted when relevant evidence is destroyed, "a 
presumption arises that the evidence would have been unfavourable to the 
party who destroyed it."

Barclay, a retired judge, said he would resist making that presumption, but 
said "LeClerc's actions do impact his credibility." The report also noted 
there were several discrepancies in LeClerc's comments relating to the 
computers.

The commissioner's investigation was launched by a motion of the 
legislative assembly after Regina police announced in May it had concluded 
the investigation that had been asked for by the government and would not 
lay charges against LeClerc.

But LeClerc, who is now gravely ill with colon and bowel cancer, dismissed 
Barclay's conclusions as opinion and said there is no evidence he had used 
drugs.

"All I can tell you is that I don't recall a conversation such as that, I 
never had that conversation as far as I know, as far as I remember, or any 
type of that conversation. I don't know who the other party was, I don't 
know what the other side of the conversation was. But I haven't done drugs, 
marijuana or cocaine since 1986. End of story," he said by telephone from 
the Ontario hospital where he is receiving treatment.

LeClerc has written a book and made a career as a motivational speaker 
about overcoming his past as a gang leader, drug addict and prisoner.

He received a pardon in 2000 and came to Saskatchewan in 2002 to head the 
local chapter of Teen Challenge, a faith-based drug and rehabilitation 
program.

LeClerc left that post to enter politics, winning Saskatoon Northwest by 
more than 2,000 votes in the Sask. Party landslide of 2007.

Premier Brad Wall said the report was "very serious," but it did not 
reflect more broadly on either himself or his government.

"I don't know what every MLA on either side of the aisle does on their own 
time. I can't know and neither would any other member. But ... the conduct 
of MLAs is pretty clearly prescribed so we need to hold to that standard," 
he said.

"What process catches this? Unless you're psychic, unless you know 
someone's heart and mind," he added.

Wall said he believed the work LeClerc had done as a speaker and counsellor 
still had value, but said he could not answer when asked whether he thought 
LeClerc had been sincere in his rehabilitation.

"I don't know. I could say that the Serge I knew, the answer is yes ... But 
I don't know what everybody's doing every hour of every day."

NDP caucus chair Judy Junor said LeClerc's involvement with the Sask. Party 
is a commentary on Wall's leadership.

She said beyond bringing LeClerc in as a candidate, Wall ignored other "red 
flags" over LeClerc's behaviour.

Prior to the allegations of drug use, the NDP alleged LeClerc had made an 
obscene gesture at and had threatened Opposition leader Dwain Lingenfelter.

LeClerc had also faced questions over how he had represented what he called 
an "unprecedented national pardon" for his criminal activities when it 
appears to be a standard federal pardon.

Junor said she was pleased by the strong stance Barclay took in his report.

"I think it answers many questions and it doesn't leave any room for 
anybody to second-guess whether he should have done this or that or gone 
further or left any stone unturned. I think he pretty much did a very 
thorough investigation," he said.

At the same time he was looking into the audio recording and computer 
issues, Barclay was also conducting an investigation requested by the NDP 
to look into whether LeClerc had improperly used his constituency office 
for business purposes.

A separate report on that issue released by Barclay Tuesday found LeClerc's 
constituency assistants had done work for his public speaking business 
during constituency office hours and using government equipment. However, 
that was not a violation of the Member's Conflict of Interest Act, found 
Barclay, who said he had no jurisdiction under the law to make findings on 
whether the government "subsidized" LeClerc's business.

The Sask. Party's Gordon Wyant won the Saskatoon Northwest seat in a 
byelection last month. 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D