Aaron Gunn -- The complete and utter carelessness of Canada’s Justice System never ceases to amaze me -- it's time to put victims, and their families, first

The justice system in Canada has let us down again!

On Sunday evening July 7th, two inmates with disturbing violent pasts, escaped from William Head Institutions, a minimum-security prison.  They roamed the streets for more than 48 hours, before being arrested in Esquimalt, BC.

But the real question isn’t how they escaped, but what they were they were possibly doing in a minimum-security prison, in the first place.

How would ANYONE with half a brain think this was a good idea??? Or in the best interest of the public? James Lee Bush, one of the escapees, was a repeat violent offender. 

First, he was arrested, convicted, and jailed for the raping of his own seven-year-old cousin. They he strangled his innocent neighbour to death, over a $20 debt, stuffing her body in a suitcase, and throwing it in the trash.

How would ANYONE with half a brain think this was a good idea??? Or in the best interest of the public?

And the other inmate, Zachary Armitage, isn’t any better. 

In 2011 he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for two brutal, violent, robberies which left one of his victim’s unconscious, and the other (Sean Dupuis’) a quadriplegic for life.

Just four years later, his family by his side, Shaun succumb to his injuries and passed away. His mother, devastated that his murderer would one day walk free.

How is it that these two animals were being held at a minimum-security facility, especially when, and you know this is hard to believe, that they both had previously tried and succeeded in escaping from prison.

And yet the government still identified them (quote unquote) as “low risk”. How stupid do you have to be?

Both of the individuals should not only have been in a minimum-security institution, they likely should have received sentences that ensured they’d never be released at all!

At what point are we, as a society, going to say, ‘Enough is enough’. That instead of giving criminals third and fourth chances, we start putting victims, and their families, first?

Mothers of murdered sons, like Shaun Dupuis’, deserve nothing less.


Aaron Gunn is an advocate for taxpayers and common sense. Throughout his work, and notably in his role as Spokesperson for BC Proud, Aaron has been a voice for citizens across British Columbia and Canada.

Prior to his work for BC Proud, Aaron worked for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF).