Hi All,

Canada - Reuters 
 
 
Ring-Stealing B.C. Lawmaker Gets 1-Yr Probation

Fri Aug 6, 5:25 PM ET  


VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Svend Robinson, Canada's first
openly gay member of Parliament, pleaded guilty on Friday to stealing a
C$64,000 ($49,000) ring -- a theft that forced him from office. 

Robinson, who is one of Canada's most controversial lawmakers, admitted in
a Vancouver court that he stole the ring from a public auction house on
April 9, in an incident he blamed on mental stress. 

He was sentenced to one year probation with a conditional discharge that
could leave him without a criminal record. The defense submitted letters
from political supporters and opponents asking for leniency. 

Robinson, a member of the left-leaning New Democratic Party from the
Vancouver suburb of Burnaby, took medical leave shortly after the incident,
and did not run in this year's federal election. 

Robinson, 52, was first elected to Parliament in 1979. In 1988 he became
the first member of Parliament to make public his homosexuality. 

He has drawn international attention for several incidents, such as
heckling U.S. President Ronald Reagan (news - web sites)'s address to the
Canadian Parliament. 


From the desk of...


   Michael
... A Canadian scandal is a hand in the till, not on the thigh.
- Roy MacGregor, The Ottawa Citizen 29 March 1989



--- Devil's Point System 6.66