A councillor who was sentenced to six years in prison for shooting and wounding a man in the United States has been urged to quit.Oh? And who is calling for that?
Is it the people who voted for him? Is it his political opponents?
Not entirely. Other have dipped a toe in this water too:
Stephen Govier was elected as a Labour Party councillor in Southwark in May 2010 but has had the whip withdrawn for not disclosing his conviction.The Howard League for Penal Reform..?
The Labour and Lib Dem group leaders and the Howard League for Penal Reform have called on him to resign.
Are you kidding? I thought they were the ‘everyone deserves a second chance’ bunch? So what gives?
He was suspended from the party in December after it emerged that, while living in California in the late 1990s, he shot and seriously wounded a man and was jailed.Ah. Now it’s all clear.
Mr Govier said the man was an intruder in his home.
If Mr Govier had been a bank robber, they’d be all over him. As it is, he’s a man who took action against a criminal.
And that can’t be allowed to be rewarded…
Councillor Anood Al Samerai, leader of the opposition Lib Dem group, said Mr Govier should resign and put himself up for re-election to see if the public still backed him.I don’t recall you suggesting that about all those MPs caught submitting dodgy expenses. Funny that.
The councillor himself is scathing about the form he was required to complete (perhaps drawn up by all those lawyers Labour boasted it had in the cabinet?):
He continued: "This issue turns on the application form to be answered by those seeking selection for the Labour Party.Clearly, Mr Govier is technically correct, though he must have been out of the country a very, very long time if he didn’t realise that a man who stood up to a home intruder was no longer welcome in the party of the progressives…
"It included the question whether there was anything in my past which was prejudicial to the Labour Party.
"The question was purely subjective and I answered in the negative."
Being a member of the Labour Party is more damaging to his reputation than the shooting.
ReplyDeleteThe Howard League must have spotted your post, Julia! They've had a correction put on the Beeb source.
ReplyDelete"Correction 4 February: This story has been amended to clarify that, while the Howard League for Penal Reform believes Mr Govier should have disclosed his conviction, it is not calling for his resignation."
If they'd had any sense, they wouldn't have commented in the first place. :-)
Facts when sparingly applied, JuliaM, make sensational topics.
ReplyDeleteMr Govier was originally charged with cocaine possession and attempted murder in the United States - but after plea bargaining, the single charge of assault with a deadly weapon was made against him and other serious charges were dropped. He was deported here after serving three years of his six-year sentence.
Whilst I have little sympathy for the Labour Party, he did mislead them and the local electorate. It is only proper that he steps down. Mr Govier's excuse that he did not reveal details of his conviction when he applied to become a councillor as he did not believe it would be prejudicial, is hogwash and exposes a dishonest character.
He is "guilty" of whatever he was convicted of. Nothing more.
ReplyDeleteSomeone who has been charged with a crime, but not convicted; is arguably more innocent than those who have never been investigated.
@ Zaphod.
ReplyDeleteMr Grovier already admits failure to disclose seriously prejudicial matters in his past. The Labour Party's application form specifically asks for such details and the applicant's written response to that important question, was in the negative.
An honest answer from Mr Grovier required the details of the background to his conviction and the more serious charges. If you were part of the selection panel which accepted him, would you not conclude Mr Grovier's application had intentionally set out to mislead you?
Mr Grovier's selection was based entirely upon his own dishonesty and it is for this reason alone he should step down.
A minority will nevertheless contend that there are insufficient rogues in public office.
If his ward is a high crime area he should call their bluff. Most of the voters probably wish they were able to take similar action. On the other hand there's that whole cocaine thing. Hmmm. This is one of those ones where I think I probably hate everyone involved. Can we start again?
ReplyDeleteMTG,
ReplyDeleteI know nothing of him except what I've read here.
In law he is guilty of what he has been found guilty of. And not guilty of anything else.
If the Labour party have (well defined?) rules to avoid choosing real people as candidates, that's up to them. I'm neither a member nor a voter.
Suspicions, gossip, charges, court appearances; are not convictions. You can choose to take the former into account in your appraisal, I can choose not to. We can both be "right".
Superb post, Julia.
ReplyDeleteDid he have a license to own a gun in California? Most unlikely.
ReplyDeleteDoes California have the "Castle" law?
Again, most unlikely.
"Better to be tried by twelve than carried by six." R.A.Heinlein.
"Being a member of the Labour Party is more damaging to his reputation than the shooting."
ReplyDeleteGood point!
"If they'd had any sense, they wouldn't have commented in the first place."
Heh!
"...and exposes a dishonest character."
Not sure how that makes him unsuitable for ANY party, never mind the Labour one.
"If you were part of the selection panel which accepted him, would you not conclude Mr Grovier's application had intentionally set out to mislead you?"
Or would you perhaps say 'Bring me the idiot who failed to make this application form watertight so I can whack him around the head with a rolled up copy of it'..?
"This is one of those ones where I think I probably hate everyone involved. "
ReplyDeleteIt's probably the only time I'm likely to go to bat for a Labour councillor, that's for sure..
"Did he have a license to own a gun in California? Most unlikely.
Does California have the "Castle" law?
Again, most unlikely."
Yup, the fact that it's 'LA LA Land' swayed it for me too.
Sure you can own a gun in California (getting a concealed carry permit is next to impossible, mind.) And while there may be no Castle Doctrine, as long as you can show reasonable self-defence, you'll not be charged (and certainly not convicted.) There's more to this than meets the eye.
ReplyDeleteGood morning! Dear Julia my name is Martin Deluca,im the person who was shot from Stephen Govier..I know today after almost 20 years I faund is nothing I can do because status of limitation is over! I been told in the year 2000 that Govier die in JAIL from HIV I forgot about all this!i whant to keep leaving a happy life,but I was living a lie I been a conspiracy where Govier get pay to make me desapierd!!this was a conspiracy I like Stephen Govier pls to say the true!who send or who pay hem to SHOT ME POINT RANGE BLANK!i know who ewas enbolve here in USA,Cyril Palacios told me 1 month ago you don't deserve to live that why we happen this to you!!was another witneas he also desapierd,2011 all change after a interview to the BBC 2011 im star my investigation,Richard Cammano who was helping govier change my cloth !wow all of this people set me a Consparacy and nothing I can do!becouse the status of limitation is finish that was the last word of Cyril Palacios you deserve to die!Richard Cammano call me crazy!becouse I ask hem why you got all that money and a big bag of cocaine!Richard Camanno is a witness or a complece?pls help me here because I can't defense my self!!
ReplyDeleteMartin Deluca/Guillermo Deluca