Posted by Max Riveron on 7/8/2004, 5:10 pm, in reply to "Shoplifting won't hurt NDP nationally, fellow caucus thief MP says of Robinson" Thursday, July 08, 2004 Michael Bolton said Robinson ''has indicated from the outset he'll be accepting full responsibility for his actions.'' Asked if that meant he will plead guilty, Bolton said: ''That's what that means.'' Robinson faces a charge of theft over $5,000. His case was put over in provincial court Thursday to Aug. 6. Bolton said Robinson wants to get the matter over with as soon as possible. ''I expect Mr. Robinson will be present at the next court appearance,'' he said. The case was put over after special prosecutor Len Doust told Judge Dennis Schmidt that more time is needed to complete the disclosure process. Robinson, 52, shocked the Canadian political world and his suburban Vancouver constituents in mid-April by announcing tearfully that he was stepping aside. In a dramatic news conference, Robinson admitted ''pocketing'' an expensive ring while at a public auction on Good Friday. He called it an act of ''utter irrationality.'' ''Something just snapped,'' he said, adding he turned himself into police after a tortured Easter weekend of self-examination. The auction company, Federal Auction Service Inc. of Brampton, Ont., said the theft was recorded on video and police had been contacted. The company issued a statement Tuesday saying the ring was valued at $64,500. ''We feel the police and the justice system are dealing with this matter appropriately,'' the statement said. ''We are pleased to see the process is moving forward and that the courts will soon be seized of this matter.'' Robinson was charged in late June, a week before the federal election, after the RCMP investigation was forwarded to a special prosecutor. The maximum penalty for theft over $5,000 is 10 years in prison. Law experts say first-time thieves rarely get jail time. Robinson had represented the riding of Burnaby-Douglas for 25 years. His former constituency assistant, Bill Siksay, retained the riding for the NDP in the June 28 vote. First elected to Parliament in 1979, Robinson has been a lightning rod for controversy throughout his political career. He was Canada's first openly gay MP, declaring his homosexuality in 1988. He became an outspoken advocate for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people.'' Robinson's support of environmental causes got him arrested during a B.C. anti-logging blockade in the 1980s. The gesture earned him the aboriginal name White Swan from a local First Nation. He championed the right to die and was present when Sue Rodriguez, suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease, committed doctor-assisted suicide in 1994. In 2001, Robinson was ridiculed in the Commons after complaining that a police rubber bullet had torn his pants during demonstrations at the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City. He was demoted from his international affairs critic's role two years ago after travelling to the Palestine's West Bank, staging his own televised detention at an Israeli checkpoint as he attempted to visit PLO leader Yasser Arafat and then accusing the Israeli military of murder and torture. Robinson, who lives with his partner Max Riveron, was severely injured in a hiking accident in 1997, which he blamed in part for the ''extreme stress and emotional pain'' he said he's been suffering. © Canadian Press 2004 http://www.canada.com/national/story.html?id=e8677f76-e040-4e55-b7d8-bb766edfd22d
Robinson to plead guilty to theft: lawyer
Canadian Press
Svend Robinson
RICHMOND, B.C. -- Longtime New Democrat Svend Robinson will plead guilty to stealing an expensive diamond ring, his lawyer said Thursday.
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