Dear Editor:
As a relatively new resident of New Westminster I have followed the discussion of Judge Begbie’s legacy with keen interest.
Much of it has focused on his reputation as the “Hanging Judge” – a moniker Begbie received after presiding over the murder trial in 1864 of five Tsilhqot’in men who were part of the Chilcotin War. In 2014, the British Columbia government exonerated the Chilcotin leaders. It is rarely mentioned, however, that the imposed sentence was mandatory at the time for a verdict of murder. More worrisome is the lack of historical perspective in most of the discussions I have read. The truth is that Begbie treated Indigenous and other “non-white” people with a degree of fairness that was uncommon at that time. The following excerpt is taken from Wikipedia:
“In 1860, Begbie found a white Californian man by the name of William Marshall guilty of assaulting a First Nations man based only on the testimony of First Nations people, the first time this had ever occurred. He spoke several languages and is said to have been able to conduct trials in several Aboriginal languages without the use of an interpreter. He also allowed people of other cultures to swear an oath of truth on an object sacred to them in place of the Bible.”
I sincerely hope that any decision on the future of his legacy will be made with the full knowledge of his proven respect for the people he is accused of treating so poorly.
Donald Dunbar, New Westminster
