OPP charge two former Mcguinty aides in gas plant scandal
by The Canadian Press
Charges include breach of trust, mischief and misuse of a computer to commit an offence
TORONTO—Ontario Provincial Police have laid criminal charges against two former Dalton McGuinty aides, David Livingston and Laura Miller, in connection with the deletion of documents related to two cancelled gas plants.
Each is charged with breach of trust, mischief in relation to data and misuse of a computer system to commit the offence of mischief.
UPDATE: 10:30 AM, Dec. 17
David Livingston, McGuinty’s former chief of staff, and Laura Miller, the deputy chief who went on to work in the office of British Columbia Premier Christy Clark, are each charged with breach of trust, mischief in relation to data and misuse of a computer system to commit the offence of mischief.
The charges stem from the deletion of thousands of government emails related to the Liberals’ decision to cancel two gas plants prior to the 2011 election, which the auditor general found will cost ratepayers up to $1.1 billion.
Both Livingston and Miller are scheduled to make their first court appearances in Toronto on Jan. 27, 2016. Lawyers for both the accused have denied they did anything wrong, and none of the charges has been proven in court.
Documents released during the police investigation last February showed Livingston and Miller compiled a list of senior Liberal staffers in the then-premier’s office whose computers would be purged.
They hired Miller’s partner, Peter Faist, to wipe clean dozens of the hard drives on a weekend.
The OPP said the force will not comment further on the evidence “in order to protect the integrity of the investigation and the ensuing court process.”
