It is difficult to ignore the difference in how three recent child assault cases have been handled by the Canadian courts.
On the one hand, two individuals remain or have been quickly placed in custody following alarming allegations of attempted murder of six-year-old children.
If many average Canadians think a large swath of our judiciary is out of touch, I give you B.C. Supreme Court Justice David Crossin.
The “learned” judge weighed in last week that a section of the Criminal Code was unconstitutional because, uh, it treats everyone convicted of first-degree murder the same.
OTTAWA – A new independent commission tasked by the federal government with reviewing miscarriages of justice could discover that more people than expected are serving prison sentences for crimes they didn’t commit.
Other countries that launched similar commissions have found that “the degree of wrongful convictions certainly was much more significant than they knew,” said Sen. Kim Pate, a prominent advocate for the wrongfully convicted.
“I suspect we will see much the same.”
Canada’s highest court has put an end to a 12-year legal saga that pitted comedian Mike Ward against the family of a disabled Quebec singer whom he mocked in his routines.
The Supreme Court of Canada today rejected a request to hear an appeal by Sylvie Gabriel, who had been seeking to reverse a lower court decision that dismissed her lawsuit seeking compensation from Ward over his mockery of her son, Jérémy Gabriel.
As the second anniversary approaches of the vicious swarming death of Kenneth Lee, one of three girls who pleaded guilty to manslaughter is up on new charges in Peel.
But even the judge in the swarming case wasn’t told what they are.
Lucky for her, though, both the Crown and defence agree she should receive enhanced credit for the 93 days she spent in custody on those charges when Justice David Rose calculates how much, if any, time she should serve for her role in the senseless slaying of the homeless man shortly after midnight on Dec. 18, 2022.
Detective Erin McMullan, prosecution witness in the Detective Helen Grus case, promoted despite her record of neglect in a domestic violence case that ended in murder.
Ottawa Police Detective Erin McMullan’s promotion to Sergeant is raising questions, given that her neglect and inaction in a domestic violence case contributed to a tragic outcome. An October 17, 2024, CBC article details how McMullan’s failures may have played a role in the murder of an abused wife – a case that continues to raise concerns about Ottawa Police’s accountability in handling domestic violence situations.
Corrupt cop’s brother attacks Fantino in National Post.
I like and respect retired OPP Inspector Bill Van Allen although I’ve never met him. We do seem to have a difference of opinion about his brother, former OPP Detective Sergeant Jim Van Allen. Since Bill has publicly jumped into the discussion by launching Ad hominem attacks against former OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino and yours truly in the National Post, I’ll pick up gauntlet here and lead Bill through the overwhelming and irrefutable evidence that proves corrupt and illegal acts by his brother Jim.
The owners of the social media sensation Peanut the squirrel and a pet raccoon named Fred, who were “executed” after they were seized by New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation, are suing the state, claiming their rights were violated.
Mark Longo, the squirrel’s owner, provided WETM at Syracuse with a copy of his notice of claim, which must be filed before a lawsuit, seeking damages from the DEC and other local agencies.
The family of murdered black civil rights activist Malcolm X is suing the FBI, the CIA and the New York police department (NYPD) for $100m (£79m), accusing them of a having role in his death.
The lawsuit says the agencies were involved in the plot and failed to stop the killing.
“We believe that they all conspired to assassinate Malcolm X, one of the greatest thought leaders of the 20th Century,” Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney who is representing the family, said at a news conference.
In April, a Toronto man accused of sexually abusing his niece walked free. According to the Crown, the man allegedly started abusing her from the time she was four or five until she was 16, and he took pornographic photos of her that he used to extort her into performing sexual acts. The case was deemed a “priority” owing to the seriousness of the charges, but it was nevertheless subject to a series of delays which, in the end, meant that it would have been 31 months between the time that charges were first brought and the scheduled conclusion of the trial had it gone on.
Emily Quint says she would never have pursued the prosecution of the man she alleges sexually assaulted her nearly three years ago if she’d known what she’d go through.
“The whole process was horrific,” said Quint. “The way that it ended, my whole world went up in flames.”
A year ago, the sexual assault charge was stayed for an unreasonable delay after the trial failed to wrap before the time limit set in the 2016 Supreme Court decision R. v. Jordan.
It was a particularly brutal, shocking murder. Accenting the horror was the age and gender of the suspected killers.
There were eight of them, girls, aged 13 to 16, and they were allegedly on a mission of mayhem.
Nearly two years after the mobbing attack that left 59-year-old homeless man Kenneth Lee dead, the matter is still making its way through the courts.
Arkansas father arrested after allegedly killing man he found with his missing 14-year-old daughter
An Arkansas father was arrested after allegedly shooting and killing a man who was found in a vehicle with the father’s missing 14-year-old daughter.
Aaron Spencer, 36, reported his daughter missing on Tuesday, and Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to his home.
But as deputies were on their way to the residence, they learned that Spencer had found his daughter in a vehicle with Michael Fosler, 67. A confrontation ensued between the two men before Spencer allegedly shot and killed Fosler.
h/t DS
Kelowna man pleads guilty to multiple thefts, break ins
A Kelowna man with a criminal record spanning two provinces and two decades pleaded guilty on Monday to a new set of offences.
Saeed Abbas, 44, admitted to a four part crime spree, including break ins, the theft of two Dodge trucks, a couple SUVs and even a possession of weapons charge. The criminal acts took place between September 2022 and January 2023, the latter date being when he started his incarceration.
… In making her case, Miller told the court that Abbas has a criminal record that started in 1999 when he was a youth offender in Calgary and since then, has amassed 25 convictions for offences including arson, theft, fraud, robbery, and vehicle thefts. He also has 22 breach charges.
… Miller also pointed out that the pre-sentence report that highlighted the trauma, racism, and poverty Abbas suffered since his parents came to Canada as refugees from Palestine is important to weigh into the equation.
h/t SweetPea
In April of 2024, I posted You’re on you own: what to do about it. The point of that article was we really are on our own. Government is not able to protect us, and when government wrongs us, it’s going to move heaven and earth to avoid paying for that harm.
Yes, this means when we need them most, the police aren’t going to be there, and when we don’t want them at all, they just might, particularly if they’re the FBI. More about this shortly.
