Opposition challenges involuntary care laws after Lapu Lapu tragedy; Eby pledges inquiry pending criminal trial

At the legislature, provincial politicians focused their debate and discussion on the mass killing in Vancouver.

Outside the B.C. legislature, a memorial with flowers and candles to honour the victims of the Lapu Lapu festival killing has emerged.

Inside the legislature, there were expressions of sorrow from politicians on both sides of the aisle for the 11 lives lost and dozens injured in the violent attack.

“All of us with a knot in our stomach about the senselessness of this tragedy,” remarked a sombre Premier David Eby, in the house chamber on Tuesday morning.

“It’s unimaginable to think that a tragedy like this could happen, and unfortunately, it’s changed all of us,” said BC Conservative Leader John Rustad.

With that grief, there were also calls for action, amid revelations that the accused has a history of mental health issues and was being supervised under the Mental Health Act.

“The system failed and people were killed,” said BC Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko.

Eby says an independent commission will be held to provide guidelines for ensuring future public events are safer, and a public inquiry into the attack will be called if sufficient answers don’t come from the criminal trial.

“We’d call one right now, but for the fact that it would intervene with the criminal investigation and criminal trial,” he said Tuesday.

The opposition say that’s not good enough. “We have seen more and more frequency of events associated with significant mental health events in this province, and we do not think we should be waiting for a process from the legal process,” said Rustad.

The BC Conservatives want more aggressive laws for involuntary care—a legal challenge to B.C.’s current laws is already coming next month. Rustad says the province should push back hard on any legal challenges.

“We have to be prepared on behalf of the people of British Columbia to step up and fight that, if necessary, use the notwithstanding clause,” he said. “We need to get help for these people—it’s just the right thing to do.”

Eby’s office says he’s open to reviewing the law on involuntary care. On Tuesday Eby emphasized that the new treatment beds for involuntary care being opened, as well as the importance of awaiting all the facts in this horrific case.

“It’s premature to draw conclusions about the particular circumstances of the murderer of children and seniors at the Lapu Lapu Day event,” he said.

What is certain, the heartbreak of the tragedy is adding political pressure to ensure it doesn’t happen again.