Evidence note: NewsForBC verified the Instagram caption and CTV report. The accessible CTV article and Instagram caption did not name the judge. CanLII search was blocked by CAPTCHA and no public B.C. court reasons for the media application were located in this review. This article therefore discusses the reported ruling without naming a judge.
What is reported
CTV Vancouver reported that a judge ruled a controversial video of two of the three men convicted in the murders of Arnold and Joanne De Jong cannot be broadcast. The Public Safety BC Instagram Reel reposted the core of that story and quoted the family’s frustration.
CTV reports Kushveer Toor, Abhijeet Singh and Gurkaran Singh were convicted of the 2022 first-degree murders of the De Jongs. The disputed 46-second video is reported to show Toor and Gurkaran Singh in a vehicle, with Singh holding a bat. CTV reports a similar-looking bat recovered from the defendants’ vehicles still had Joanne De Jong’s DNA on it when seized by police more than six months after the killings.
Sandra Barthel, one of the De Jongs’ daughters, told CTV the video was shocking because it made it look like the men took pride in what happened. CTV reports the prosecution described the clip during closing as the “smile of a murderer.”
The open-court issue
CTV and another media outlet sought unlimited access to the video based on the open-court principle. That principle generally favours public access to court proceedings and exhibits, but it is not absolute. Courts may still consider fairness, privacy, safety, the integrity of proceedings, appeal context, misuse risk and other administration-of-justice concerns.
CTV reports defence lawyer Donna Turko opposed release, saying the video connected to commentary was inflammatory, neither informative nor educational, and could be distorted or weaponized online. Turko told CTV the judge’s decision was “basically to protect the integrity of the court from that commentary associated with that video.”
Why the family wants it public
CTV reports the De Jongs’ daughters are concerned about the decision and believe the public has the right to see the video. Heather Hoogland told CTV it was “infuriating” that the video would not be seen by the public. The CTV story also reports the three convicted men have filed constitutional challenges seeking consideration for early parole under the so-called faint hope clause.
What is still missing
The judge’s name, a written ruling, the style of cause, and the formal legal test applied to the broadcast request were not available in the accessible sources NewsForBC reviewed. That matters. Public anger at a “judge” can quickly turn into misidentification or harassment if the source trail is incomplete. NewsForBC will update this item if a public court order, written reasons, court file number or mainstream source identifies the judge and ruling.
NewsForBC view
This is exactly the kind of case where the public needs more source material, not less context. If a video was shown in open court and is central to public understanding, the reason for limiting broadcast should be easy to find and quote. If the legal concern is misuse or prejudice, the public should be able to see the court’s reasoning in clear terms.
Source trail
- Public Safety BC Instagram Reel — social lead and caption.
- CTV Vancouver / Michele Brunoro article — main corroborating source.
- CTV video page: Judge bars release of murder trial video.
- NewsForBC source note.