Alberta MLA resigns from PC caucus after arrest in Minnesota prostitution sting

[VanessaofBC]

SOURCE: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...minnesota-prostitution-sting/article13263373/

Alberta MLA resigns from PC caucus after arrest in Minnesota prostitution sting
CARRIE TAIT AND KELLY CRYDERMAN
CALGARY — The Globe and Mail
Published Tuesday, Jul. 16 2013, 6:46 PM EDT
Last updated Tuesday, Jul. 16 2013, 11:36 PM EDT


A Progressive Conservative MLA in Alberta has resigned from caucus after being arrested during a prostitution sting in the United States when he allegedly tried to solicit sexual services through a classified advertising website.

Mike Allen, who now represents a riding in Fort McMurray as an Independent, was arrested in St. Paul, Minn., on Monday. He was in the U.S. Midwest as part of an Alberta government contingent to drum up trade. Police allege Mr. Allen used the website backpage.com to engage in prostitution, prompting him to resign from government caucus Tuesday.

“He agreed to meet some undercover officers – of course, unbeknownst to him, they were officers – and agreed to meet them and exchange cash for sexual services,” police spokesman Howie Padilla said. “He would have been the john in this situation.”

The two undercover officers were women. Mr. Allen was arrested by the human trafficking unit, and he was taken into custody and booked into the Ramsey County Jail.

“He was booked into the jail on suspicion of engaging in prostitution which, in Minnesota, is called a gross misdemeanour,” Mr. Padilla said.

Mr. Allen was released on Tuesday. He has not been charged, but police said the investigation is continuing. He was not targeted, Mr. Padilla said, noting it was part of a regular sting operation. Thirteen people were arrested Monday.

The first-term backbench MLA for Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo released a statement saying “pending resolution of this incident,” he resigned from the government caucus and legislative committees. Mr. Allen said he informed the government whip he was involved in a “legal incident.”

“I made this mistake as a result of a profound lapse in my personal judgment,” he said in a statement on his MLA letterhead, released through the government whip. “It is a mistake for which there are no excuses and for which I accept full responsibility.

“This is a deeply embarrassing moment,” the statement said, as he apologized to everyone from his family to “all Albertans” and asked for forgiveness.

Mr. Allen was in St. Paul as part of an Alberta delegation meeting with U.S. legislators at the annual Midwestern Legislative Conference. His job was to discuss “cross-border trade, movements of goods and upgrades of gateways within the region,” according a previous Alberta government news release.

Official Opposition and Wildrose Party Leader Danielle Smith called for Mr. Allen to resign from the legislature. “For an MLA to behave in this manner while travelling abroad on government business is unacceptable,” she said in a statement.

Alberta Premier Alison Redford’s office declined comment on the allegations against Mr. Allen.

Mr. Allen and his family moved to Fort McMurray 20 years ago, where he purchased Campbell’s Music and “was able to combine his business administration background and career as a professional jazz musician to create a successful and thriving business,” according to his official legislature biography. He served two terms as president of Fort McMurray’s Chamber of Commerce.

Government Caucus Whip Steve Young said while it’s important to respect the principle of innocence before being proven guilty, Albertans expect the highest ethical and moral standards.

“I don’t care if he was there on a fishing trip … standards are a concern. You’re an MLA.”

 

[wilde]

He should've pointed out that prostitution in and of itself is not illegal in Canada so it's really not that big of a deal.

 

[Smilf]

Yeah one of my clients told me about it this morning.

 

[VanessaofBC]

Hey girl. Yeah its a couple of days old the story. He's a badass!

 

[hacktheplanet]

Figures he's a conservative. What's up with MN? The cops there take out full escort entrapment ads lol. I assumed this guy was dumb enough to drive around and pick up a cop wearing a dress but turns out he responded to an ad. Amazing their police have nothing better to do than pose as escorts online.

 

[PlayfulAlex]

"...after being arrested during a prostitution sting in the United States when he allegedly tried to solicit sexual services through a classified advertising website."

Maybe this guy should have just stuck to pooning at home. I'm sure there's more than one lady on this board who's been visited by local politicians. Oh yeah, big crime...NOT!

 

[VanessaofBC]

Some people are smart but not "smart".

 

[Bartdude]

Some people are smart but not "smart".

Obviously has little to no experience - he thought he could get a duo for $200/hour? what an idiot!

 

[SFMIKE]

"...after being arrested during a prostitution sting in the United States when he allegedly tried to solicit sexual services through a classified advertising website."

Maybe this guy should have just stuck to pooning at home. I'm sure there's more than one lady on this board who's been visited by local politicians. Oh yeah, big crime...NOT!

Big crime, small crime, it matters not. What is legal in one jurisdiction it not necessarily legal in another
Case in point would be prostitution in Nevada. Nowhere else in the US is it legal. Same when somebody crosses over from Canada into the US.

 

[storm rider]

Obviously has little to no experience - he thought he could get a duo for $200/hour? what an idiot!

That was my exact thought when I heard the latest new today vis-a-vis the pricing.About the only place
you can get a duo for $200 is Annie's massage parlour in Bangkok and actually it is far less than $200
and a hell of a lot better than any $2000 duo you could get in Canada

As for the MLA he has merely resigned from the PC caucus and some committies he has NOT actually
quit his job and vacated the seat in the legislature and unless there is some law on the books right now
that forces him to should he aquire a criminal record he wont resign.If he actually works hard for his constituents and puts this past him he may have a slim chance of keeping his job come the next election.
The only thing that really kills a career in politics is being caught with a LIVE boy or a DEAD girl.

That being said the guy is an idiot for pooning in unfamilair territory that has a zero tolerance policy
for prostitution.

SR

 

[VanessaofBC]

That was my exact thought when I heard the latest new today vis-a-vis the pricing.About the only place
you can get a duo for $200 is Annie's massage parlour in Bangkok and actually it is far less than $200
and a hell of a lot better than any $2000 duo you could get in Canada

As for the MLA he has merely resigned from the PC caucus and some committies he has NOT actually
quit his job and vacated the seat in the legislature and unless there is some law on the books right now
that forces him to should he aquire a criminal record he wont resign.If he actually works hard for his constituents and puts this past him he may have a slim chance of keeping his job come the next election.
The only thing that really kills a career in politics is being caught with a LIVE boy or a DEAD girl.

That being said the guy is an idiot for pooning in unfamilair territory that has a zero tolerance policy
for prostitution.

SR

Hmmmmmm, you sum it up quite well.

 

[Master69]

Another pooner with a bad backpage experience

 

[vancity_cowboy]

so if a pedophile from canada can be convicted in canadian courts for the crime of sexual assault with a minor in countries where that law doesn't exist, what happens to a politician that gets convicted of a crime in another country that is not a crime in canada?

fair should be fair, after all

 

[Smilf]

This is all quite reminscent of Bill clinto getting a BJ .. who gives a shit!

 

[VanessaofBC]

Another pooner with a bad backpage experience

Another reason NOT to TOFTT......ound:

 

[badbadboy]

so if a pedophile from canada can be convicted in canadian courts for the crime of sexual assault with a minor in countries where that law doesn't exist, what happens to a politician that gets convicted of a crime in another country that is not a crime in canada?

fair should be fair, after all

Their laws to not carry forward into Canada as ours do not carry forward into the USA. The activity is illegal in the USA and it doesn't matter which country you are a citizen. He broke their laws.

The only case that I recollect that contradicts this is Marc Emery case where US DEA were present in Vancouver for his arrest for selling marijuana seeds via the internet into the USA. Their agents had no business directing the case and extradition to the USA.

 

[vancity_cowboy]

Their laws to not carry forward into Canada as ours do not carry forward into the USA. The activity is illegal in the USA and it doesn't matter which country you are a citizen. He broke their laws.

The only case that I recollect that contradicts this is Marc Emery case where US DEA were present in Vancouver for his arrest for selling marijuana seeds via the internet into the USA. Their agents had no business directing the case and extradition to the USA.

i think that was just a foreshadowing of things to come:

Cross-Border Policing Plan Still in Legal Limbo

Published: February 7, 2013 by Embassy Magazine


The following is from the 6 February 2013 edition of Embassy Magazine.

Program to allow US agents on Canadian soil was set to launch last summer.

Canadian and United States officials are facing continued delays in secretive talks to allow American law enforcement agents to cross the land border and pursue people onto Canadian soil, Embassy has learned.

Legal experts have warned for months that the unprecedented effort under the Canada-US perimeter plan raises serious questions about police accountability, national jurisdiction, privacy, and sovereignty.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association in particular has raised red flags and says it will scrutinize closely any deal for compliance with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Opposition NDP has also raised concerns.

But while a similar plan to permanently entrench cross-border policing on Canada-US shared waterways was achieved relatively quickly in 2012, getting a land-based version off the ground is proving to be more difficult.

The program, officially known as the Next Generation of Integrated Cross-Border Law Enforcement, was supposed to be tested through two pilot projects by last summer, but as of Feb. 1 the pilot is still on hold, according to Public Safety spokesperson Jessica Slack.

‘A long list of legal hurdles’

The Harper government made the marine version of the program permanent as part of its spring 2012 budget implementation bill that, among other changes, amended the Criminal Code’s definition of “peace officer.”

Canada has since deployed two permanent joint teams with American agents along the shared waterways in Ontario-Michigan and British Columbia-Washington State. These marine operations also include aerial police surveillance over land.

Now Public Safety, Justice Canada, the RCMP, the US Department of Homeland Security, and the US Department of Justice are locked in negotiations to export the plan from the waterways to the land border.

The new version will allow American agents, such as front the Federal Bureau of Investigation or the Drug Enforcement Administration, to cross the border into Canada, the RCMP has said. It is supposed to extend the same changes to Canadian agents who want to cross into the US.

The government, however, is staying mum about any details in the talks.

“At this time, it would be inappropriate to comment on the issues being discussed given that negotiations remain ongoing,” wrote Ms. Slack in an email in response to further questioning.

However, the government has raised the concept of legal issues three times in connection with the talks.

First, in September 2012, Public Safety spokesperson Jean Paul Duval told Embassy the pilot was on hold “while the legal and governance framework for the program is finalized.”

Then in a December progress report, the Harper government reported that it was still behind schedule on cross-border policing, and chalked it up to “challenges” over “operational and legal requirements.”

Ms. Slack then wrote on Feb. 1 that “the legal and governance framework for the program are still under negotiation.”

John Edward Deukmedjian, associate professor of criminology at the University of Windsor, wrote in an email that if the two countries are trying to work out a similar system as the marine-based program, where the definition of peace officer was changed, it would be difficult.

“I can give you a long list of legal hurdles that would have to be overcome, but are by their nature nearly insurmountable,” he wrote.

Charter safeguards

The CCLA has warned that Canadian law enforcement should not be allowed to use American counterparts to do an end-run around domestic legal safeguards, or carry out surveillance on one group of citizens on behalf of the other country’s agencies, when it would normally be prohibited.

“We want to make sure that any activity that occurs either by Canadian forces or in Canadian jurisdiction is compliant with the safeguards in the Charter and the highest international legal standards,” said Sukanya Pillay, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association’s national security program director, in an interview.

The group also gave a lukewarm response to a Joint Statement of Privacy Principles released at the end of June 2012, one that was designed to guide Canada-US talks on future perimeter initiatives, such as cross-border policing.

NDP Canada-US border critic Brian Masse, who first raised accountability concerns over cross-border policing in an April 2012 interview, is looking into the matter further as a result of the continued delay, his office confirmed. Mr. Masse was travelling and unavailable for comment before press time.

The government, however, has said repeatedly that it will respect the Charter, as well as sovereignty concerns. It says a designated Canadian officer will accompany American law enforcement officials in joint patrols. It has also said the plan is an important partnership between the two countries, and improves the border’s safety, efficiency, and effectiveness.

RCMP officials have indicated they recognize sovereignty concerns. In May 2012, two top RCMP officers told a Senate committee that the force was planning on easing Canadians into the idea of American agents in Canada through “baby steps” because they understood the sensitive nature of the talks.

http://www.crossborder.net/article.cfm?id=73

 

[PlayfulAlex]

Big crime, small crime, it matters not. What is legal in one jurisdiction it not necessarily legal in another
Case in point would be prostitution in Nevada. Nowhere else in the US is it legal. Same when somebody crosses over from Canada into the US.

I knew that. I thought I made my point rather clear; he'd have been OK if he'd stuck to pooning on this side of the border. That's all...

 

[VanessaofBC]

Good morning, old sports.

In the United States you can walk free if you kill an unarmed teenager (George Zimmerman case); you will also walk free if you kill your ex-wife and her friend (O.J. Simpson case) . . . but GOD HELP YOU if you should ever be charged with buying sex from an escort! You are human garbage if you do that! That is just GAWDDAMNFREAKING WRONG, OLD SPORTS!



Good night, old sports.

WHEN will it END?!?!​

 

[SFMIKE]

Hopefully some here remember Larry Craig. US Senator from Idaho. Busted also in Minnesota, at the MSP airport.

The only mistake he made was "tapping his foot" in a rest room stall.

Now the former US Senator.