independent inquiry into complaints about controversial provincial judge Bruce McDonald. McDonald had been suspended from the bench in May 1993 after the Winnipeg Free Press ran a series of investigative articles into his handling of family law cases, drawing particular attention to prejudiced statements he had made about women and indigenous Canadians. He later resigned from the bench just as a judicial review into his conduct was scheduled to begin. Vodrey argued that McDonald's resignation obviated the need for a public review, and said that further concerns could be raised during a planned overhaul of the judicial council the following year. In December 1994, Vodrey announced that future judicial reviews could be permitted to continue even if the judges in question decide to resign. The Filmon government imposed ten unpaid Fridays per year on provincial judges as a cost-cutting measure in the early 1990s. Several judges criticized this decision, arguing that it created an unacceptable backlog in the system. In July 1994, the Manitoba Provincial Judges Association filed legal papers alleging that the government had threatened to withhold a pay raise if the judges proceeded with a planned lawsuit over the matter. Vodrey declined to comment, but opposition parties accused the government of treating judges like civil servants. Vodrey appointed Judith Webster as Chief Justice of the Provincial Court of Manitoba in December 1993. Webster was the first woman to hold this position. Other In February 1994, the federal and provincial governments joined with indigenous groups to establish a new funding formula for police services in aboriginal communities. In supporting the pact, Vodrey said that it would allow aboriginal input into the allocation of funds. Critics noted that it did not provide for the immediate restoration of native-run police agencies, most notably the Dakota Ojibway Tribal Council (DOTC) force that had been dismantled the previous year. Later in the year, Vodrey signed an interim agreement to provide for the DOTC force's return. Vodrey announced a provincial gun amnesty program in May 1994, in which Manitobans were encouraged to turn in illegal firearms without fear of arrest. The project yielded 500 weapons, including explosives and three machine guns. Later in the same year, Vodrey granted the Brandon police force permission to carry semi-automatic handguns. On October 23, 1995, Vodrey gave Winnipeg Mayor Susan Thompson $2 million to hire forty new police officers for the city. Some skeptics noted that this event