ELLIS' ARREST THREE MONTHS AFTER RELEASE FROM PRISON IS FRUSTRATINGrn
OSOYOOS TIMES-March 11, 2009
At a time when so many are complaining about the troubled state of our judiciary system, it's hard not to look at the continuing saga of Rock Creek's Michael Ellis and wish some judge or lawyer would have taken a harder line in the past.
Last week Ellis, 35, was arrested with two other people near Midway after allegedly ramming a police vehicle with a Ford F-250 which police identified as stolen from Surrey.
The Mountie driving the police vehicle ended up firing his weapon through the windshield in response to the ramming.
Ellis has been charged with possession of stolen property, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, assaulting a police officer and driving while disqualified in relation to the incident and he will next appear in Rossland provincial court on April 7.
Now none of these charges have been proven in court.
But it's difficult not to feel a sense of frustration considering this arrest involves a man who was just released from prison in December after pleading guilty in September to charges including possession of cocaine for the purposes of trafficking in relation to a June 12, 2007, incident in Penticton, breaking and entering in relation to an Aug. 13, 2007, incident in Vernon and theft, dangerous operation of a vehicle, escape and being at large in relation to a police chase that happened on Osoyoos's doorstep on Aug. 20, 2007.
Ellis has also been linked to other local crimes dating back to 2005.
Should Ellis plead guilty or be convicted of these new charges, the cracks in our legal system would likely mean he wouldn't be put away for long, if at all.
And since he operates in this area, it's hard not to imagine that, even though no one has been hurt or killed so far, when car chases and shoot-outs are happening on our streets, someone's going to end up injured or dead soon.
