May 28, 1997
by Scot Magnish
A woman fighting to have her father's murder conviction overturned came out of witness protection last night to tear a strip off Justice Minister Allan Rock.
At an all candidates debate for Etobicoke Centre, Tami Morrisroe, 26, lashed out at Rock for his refusal to re-visit her father Sid's first degree murder conviction in the 1983 slaying of a B.C. nightclub owner.
'Risking my life'
"I'm risking my life by coming here today, but I didn't know what else to do," said the mother of two who went so far as to marry an alleged mobster in order to get the evidence she needed to prove her father wasn't involved in the killing.
She ended up becoming the primary police source in at least nine west-coast homicides, and the RCMP's pipeline into a Vancouver cell of the Cali drug cartel.
"I ask you: When will you authorize the RCMP to re-open this case and move my father to witness protection?" she said as five other local candidates on hand to debate sat in stunned silence.
Rock, who at times had to shout his reply over boos and heckles from the 500 plus audience, said he can't order the RCMP to re-open the case - but said outside of that, he's doing all he can.
"Your father's application ... was investigated thoroughly a year-and-a-half ago." Rock said.
"He was convicted by a court and lost on appeal. There was no basis to conclude a miscarriage of justice. I drafted 76 pages of reasons personally."
'New identity'
But, Rock said, a new application to re-open the case - filed by Morrisroe two months ago through another MP who delivered it personally - is being dealt with "as quickly as I can."
Morrisroe, who was given a new identity and is expected to be a crown witness in an upcoming series of murder and drug trials, questioned Rock's commitment to her father's case and his willingness to deal with it.
"I must have called him 50 times over the last two months and didn't get so much as a message back from a secretary." she said, vowing to keep fighting and, if necessary, keep appearing in public to pressure Rock into action.
"Justice hasn't been served. if it had, my family wouldn't be where it is today."
THE END
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