Dean Del Mastro found guilty in election spending case - Politics - CBC News
A judge has found Peterborough, Ont., MP Dean Del Mastro guilty of spending too much in the 2008 federal election and falsifying a document to cover it up.
Del Mastro now faces the prospect of losing his seat in the House of Commons and possibly being sentenced to up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.
The prosecution had argued that Del Mastro ordered $21,000 in voter identification, voter contact and get-out-the-vote services from a now-defunct company called Holinshed, but claimed only $1,575 in services because the campaign realized that claiming the full amount would put it over the limit.
Del Mastro, however, said the $21,000 he paid out of his personal chequing account was for a separate set of services that Frank Hall, Holinshed's owner, never delivered.
In her decision, Judge Lisa Cameron said that in her view, from the timing of the contract and its language, it "is plainly a contract for election services."
She also said that she found Del Mastro wasn't credible, "frequently obfuscated" during his testimony and that there were a number of inconsistencies.
Del Mastro sat stone-faced until the judge accepted the testimony of Hall, whom the defence sought to discredit, and discounted Del Mastro's own evidence. Then his face started to show some emotion at the pending decision.
Del Mastro, who was elected under the Conservative Party banner and once served as Prime Minister Stephen Harper's parliamentary secretary, has been awaiting the decision since closing arguments in early September. The MP has been in Ottawa regularly and has taken part in the daily question period.
He now sits as an Independent MP.
Del Mastro could lose seat
It will be up to the House of Commons to determine how to proceed.
"Anyone convicted of having committed an offence that is considered to be an illegal practice under the act is not entitled to be elected or sit in the House of Commons for a period of five years from the date of conviction," Michelle Laliberte, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Commissioner of Elections, told CBC News.
Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Del Mastro indicated that he has no plans to vacate his seat.
"I intend to still occupy it. I've got a mandate from people in the city of Peterborough."
The judge's ruling "was not a final decision," he added.
"I've in no way broken any of the laws governing elections."
He seemed unfazed by the judge's finding that his testimony wasn't credible.
"I know what the truth is. That's her opinion. My opinion is quite different."
Del Mastro also suggested that he intends to appeal the ruling.
"We're going to take a very hard look at this ruling and we'll come up with a plan going forward," he said.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government accepts the court's decision.
"Mr. Del Mastro has not been a member of the Conservative caucus for some time," Jason MacDonald told CBC News by email.
Del Mastro and Richard McCarthy, who was Del Mastro's official agent in 2008, were charged with:
A judge has found Peterborough, Ont., MP Dean Del Mastro guilty of spending too much in the 2008 federal election and falsifying a document to cover it up.
Del Mastro now faces the prospect of losing his seat in the House of Commons and possibly being sentenced to up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.
The prosecution had argued that Del Mastro ordered $21,000 in voter identification, voter contact and get-out-the-vote services from a now-defunct company called Holinshed, but claimed only $1,575 in services because the campaign realized that claiming the full amount would put it over the limit.
Del Mastro, however, said the $21,000 he paid out of his personal chequing account was for a separate set of services that Frank Hall, Holinshed's owner, never delivered.
In her decision, Judge Lisa Cameron said that in her view, from the timing of the contract and its language, it "is plainly a contract for election services."
She also said that she found Del Mastro wasn't credible, "frequently obfuscated" during his testimony and that there were a number of inconsistencies.
Del Mastro sat stone-faced until the judge accepted the testimony of Hall, whom the defence sought to discredit, and discounted Del Mastro's own evidence. Then his face started to show some emotion at the pending decision.
Del Mastro, who was elected under the Conservative Party banner and once served as Prime Minister Stephen Harper's parliamentary secretary, has been awaiting the decision since closing arguments in early September. The MP has been in Ottawa regularly and has taken part in the daily question period.
He now sits as an Independent MP.
Del Mastro could lose seat
It will be up to the House of Commons to determine how to proceed.
"Anyone convicted of having committed an offence that is considered to be an illegal practice under the act is not entitled to be elected or sit in the House of Commons for a period of five years from the date of conviction," Michelle Laliberte, a spokeswoman for the Office of the Commissioner of Elections, told CBC News.
Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Del Mastro indicated that he has no plans to vacate his seat.
"I intend to still occupy it. I've got a mandate from people in the city of Peterborough."
The judge's ruling "was not a final decision," he added.
"I've in no way broken any of the laws governing elections."
He seemed unfazed by the judge's finding that his testimony wasn't credible.
"I know what the truth is. That's her opinion. My opinion is quite different."
Del Mastro also suggested that he intends to appeal the ruling.
"We're going to take a very hard look at this ruling and we'll come up with a plan going forward," he said.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the government accepts the court's decision.
"Mr. Del Mastro has not been a member of the Conservative caucus for some time," Jason MacDonald told CBC News by email.
Del Mastro and Richard McCarthy, who was Del Mastro's official agent in 2008, were charged with:
