The daughter of a Campbell River woman murdered by Robert Pickton has launched a civil lawsuit against the serial killer, his brother, the Crown, the RCMP and the Vancouver police.
Brittney Frey, 21, filed a notice of civil claim Friday over the death of her mother, Marnie Frey, who disappeared in August 1997.
Statements of claim were also filed Friday by Brenda Wolfe’s daughter, Angel Wolfe, and Georgina Papin’s daughter, Kristina Bateman.
Pickton was convicted in December 2007 of killing Wolfe, Frey and Papin, along with Mona Wilson, Sereena Abotsway and Andrea Joesbury.
The lawsuits target the City of Vancouver on behalf of its police department; the B.C. government on behalf of the RCMP and the criminal justice branch; Pickton; Pickton’s brother David; and several individual police officers.
None of the agencies or people named in the lawsuits have filed statements of defence. The B.C. government has filed a narrowly focused application that seeks to have allegations against the Crown thrown out on the grounds that prosecutors are protected from such lawsuits, but the province has not responded to any of the other allegations.
Marnie Frey’s DNA was found on the Pickton property after his arrest in 2002. Her daughter’s lawsuit is the ninth one launched by the families in the wake of former attorney general Wally Oppal’s report on B.C.’s missing women inquiry.
Oppal concluded that “blatant” police failures triggered by systemic bias against the poor, vulnerable women of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside allowed serial killer Robert Pickton to evade arrest for years.
Brittney Frey’s notice of claim — which contains allegations not proven in court — says Vancouver police and the RCMP failed to investigate reports of missing women and failed to warn women in the Downtown Eastside that a serial killer was at work.
“The failure to warn and provision of false assurances by VPD and the RCMP was a contributing cause of Marnie’s death,” Frey’s claim alleges.
“The VPD and RCMP owed and breached a duty of care to Marnie as a member of the public and as an individual within a group at heightened risk from a serial killer.”
Frey alleges Vancouver police and the RCMP failed to properly investigate her mother’s disappearance. Marnie talked to her parents for the last time on Aug. 30, 1997, her 24th birthday. They told her a package containing gifts, baking, clothing and a hand-drawn picture from Brittney had been sent by bus. The gifts were never picked up and Marnie was never heard from or seen again.
When Marnie’s stepmother tried to report her missing, she was told to call back in a few days. Lynn Frey called police again in October and November, but a missing persons file was not opened until December, the claim says.
Frey also alleges the Crown failed to protect the public from Pickton and to prosecute the serial killer after a near fatal attack on a sex-trade worker in March 1997.
The claim alleges police investigations were negligent and did not have enough resources to properly look into Pickton.
Frey also alleges David Pickton knew his brother was bringing sex-trade workers to the farm, torturing them and killing them. David Pickton lied to police about the March 1997 attack on a sex-trade worker, the claim says.
Frey claims the Crown, RCMP and VPD caused her aggravated psychological suffering and grief by failing to tell her about her mother’s death in a timely or appropriate manner. She says she suffered loss of affection and emotional support, loss of financial support and loss of guidance.
The claim describes Marnie Frey as “an ongoing and compassionate woman who loved animals” and “a loving mother.” She became a heroin addict in high school, the claim says. She lived in Vancouver and returned to Campbell River about once a month to visit Brittney. She called daily.
Frey could not be reached for comment.
With a file from The Canadian Press
