The investigation found “no evidence” of emails between Crown prosecutors and the prime minister’s office

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A review of internal emails showed “no evidence” of email contact between the premier’s office and Crown prosecutors regarding the handling of cases related to the blockade of Alberta’s southern border last year, according to a release from the province’s justice ministry.

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The release stated that a “comprehensive” review of nearly one million incoming, outgoing and deleted emails “did not generate any contact records.”

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The review was carried out between last Friday and last Sunday by the non-partisan Public Service Commission and internal IT experts, who sought emails sent or received by what the release described as “relevant prosecutors and staff in the Prime Minister’s Office” over a four-month period.

He adds that no further review will follow unless further evidence emerges.

The review was of approximately 900 Alberta government email accounts belonging to prosecutors, their staff and employees of the premier’s office, according to an email from Alberta Justice.

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The department noted that there is “no ability” to search personal email accounts, although any message sent from a personal email to a government address would be caught in the search.

The investigation was prompted by a CBC News report last Thursday that caused an uproar alleging that an employee in Premier Daniel Smith’s office sent a series of emails to the Alberta prosecutor’s office challenging its assessment and direction of cases stemming from the border blockade of Coutts and protests.

The story has been updated since it was first published to note that CBC News had not seen the emails, but cited multiple anonymous sources who said they had.

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In a statement Monday, Smith said she remains confident in the integrity and professionalism of her staff.

“I have every confidence that the public service has carried out a thorough and comprehensive review,” she said.

“An independent Crown Prosecution Service, free from political interference, is integral to maintaining public confidence in the justice system.”

In a statement Monday, Kimberly Goddard, assistant deputy minister of the Alberta Public Prosecutor’s Office (ACPS), said the office was “fully co-operating” with the review over the weekend.

“It is wrong to suggest that the ACPS has been anything but ethical and appropriate in the performance of its duties,” Goddard wrote.

“ACPS continues to act independently while maintaining the highest ethical standards in its service to Albertans.”

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Reached by phone Monday, Chuck Thompson, CBC’s head of public affairs, said the organization stands by its story.

“This really isn’t an investigation”

The opposition New Democrats renewed their call on Monday for an independent inquiry into the matter on Monday, with MLA Rakhi Pancholi saying the weekend review did not go far enough.

“This is really not an investigation. Let’s be clear, what the Prime Minister has done is an IT review,” she said.

“An investigation will look at a number of questions … (and) look at things like, can they be sent from private emails?”

Pancholi cited last year’s investigation into former Justice Secretary Casey Maddow by retired judge Adele Kent as a precedent.

Madhu was removed from the cabinet, though later reinstated, after “creating a reasonable perception of interference with the administration of justice,” according to Kent, when he called Edmonton Police Chief Dale McPhee after receiving a traffic ticket.

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“It can be done quickly and it can begin to answer the myriad questions that Albertans rightfully have about whether this premier and her staff can be trusted,” Pancholi said, noting that Smith’s review did not include any interviews .

She also countered that the review only applied to “relevant” prosecutors when Smith hinted on his Corus radio show over the weekend that the review would cover all prosecutors.

“There are 400 crown prosecutors and I have 34 staff, so it will take the whole weekend,” Smith said on air on Saturday.

“Does that mean they only looked for those emails that would have been sent to the prosecutors currently assigned to charge Coutts?” Pancholi asked Monday.

“The Prime Minister should want to end this as quickly as possible,” she added. “If she has nothing to hide, she should call this inquiry to clear the air as quickly as possible.”

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Extraordinary meeting of the group

Smith also said on her radio show Saturday that she had called an emergency caucus meeting to be held later that day.

When asked if that meeting was called to lay off staff, Smith said she wanted her group to understand “the nature of the story.”

“I want my caucus to just be patient as we go through the process, and as soon as we see if the emails exist, then we’ll make sure we have a presentation to the public,” Smith said, adding that CBC News had not provided his office with names.

Her statement Monday follows a series of flip-flops about her interactions with prosecutors in recent weeks.

On two separate occasions, during an interview in December and again earlier this month, Smith said he regularly asks provincial crown prosecutors to consider whether such charges are in the public interest and whether they are likely to be convicted.

In a subsequent statement, the premier’s office denied that claim, saying she had only spoken with Justice Minister Tyler Schandro and Deputy Attorney General Frank Bosch, asking them to explore their options for pending cases related to COVID.

During a previous radio broadcast, Smith went further, saying he urged Shandro and his deputy attorney general to consider whether cases are in the public interest and have a reasonable chance of conviction before proceeding.

— with files from Lisa Johnson

mblack@postmedia.com

Twitter @ByMatthewBlack