Calgary city councilors and the city’s mayor are facing questions about the implications of a fellow colleague facing criminal charges.
Over the weekend, Edmonton police confirmed Ward 9 Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra was charged with mischief under $5,000 in connection with an alleged road rage incident on April 2.
Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she understood “everyone’s desire to know more about the situation,” but said she could not comment on the situation as the matter is before the courts.
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Calgary councilor faces criminal charges in alleged road rage incident
However, Gondek said she does not believe Carra can be removed from his role on the city council due to the nature of the complaint.
“From what I understand, there are charges within the (Municipal Government Act) that would disqualify someone from sitting on the council,” Gondek said. “As far as I can see, this is not one of those types of charges.”
According to Alberta’s Municipal Government Act, a councilor can be disqualified from their role if they are convicted of an offense punishable by imprisonment for five or more years or an offense under sections 123, 124 or 125 of the Criminal Code of Canada.
Those other offenses listed in the Penal Code include municipal corruption, sale or purchase of office, and influencing or negotiating appointments or trading in offices.
Alberta’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs confirmed to Global News that it is aware of the charge Carra is facing, but would not comment further.
“I understand that this was a matter of a personal nature and not one related to council,” Ward 11’s gr. Kourtney Penner said.
When asked about how Carra’s role on the council would be affected by the indictment, Penner said it was her understanding that there were no implications for him fulfilling his role as a sitting city councilman.
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Carra has been sanctioned by the City Council in the past in connection with other incidents investigated by the city’s integrity commissioner, including a social media post and failure to disclose his ownership of an Inglewood property. He was removed from his committee duties.
Ward 10 gr. Andre Chabot said that the council should wait to take any further steps to sanction Carra on the wrongful charge until the case comes through the courts.
“It’s one thing to be charged with something, a conviction is a whole different story,” Chabot told reporters. “Without having any real evidence to support the sanctioning of a member of the council for any reason, I see no reason why the council should take any action at this stage.”
In a lengthy statement released days after the incident, Carra described it as the result of a vehicle running a stop sign in Bridgeland that almost hit his dog.
Carra said he was able to “tap” the bumper of the vehicle with his foot, which he said prompted the driver to reverse and the two people inside verbally assaulted him.
The investigation into the incident was conducted by the Edmonton Police Service after the Calgary Police Service forwarded the case “in the interest of transparency and best practices.”
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Carra voluntarily stepped down from his role on the Calgary Police Commission following revelations of the incident, but later resigned from his role entirely as the investigation continued.
In a brief statement released over the weekend, Carra said he plans to fight the charge.
“I am shocked by these charges and intend to fight them,” Carra said in a statement. “I will make a statement as soon as we have received all the information we are owed.”
Lori Williams, a political scientist at Mount Royal University, said the situation raises more questions about several sitting council members who have faced sanctions during this term.
“There are questions being raised about the ability of councilors to represent people who have been offended by some of the actions they are involved in,” Williams said.
“It’s not a great situation for a democratic institution to be facing.”
Edmonton Police Service declined to comment further on the situation or if anyone else has been charged in connection with the incident.
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