An Ontario judge appointed by Premier Doug Ford’s government is facing criticism after refusing to impose a mandatory jail term on a five-time impaired driver who was high on fentanyl and driving the wrong way down a Mississauga street.
The decision contrasts with Ford’s own repeated denunciations of “bleeding-heart” judges and pledges to crack down on crime.
Justice Khatira (Kathy) Jalali, a former defence lawyer appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice in 2018, sentenced Joseph LeClaire in March to four months of house arrest for impaired driving, a decision she openly acknowledged was illegal under the Criminal Code.