Here's something the vote grabbing politicians in Ontario should read instead of advocate groups and prohibitionist's annual reports filled with fluffed up stats!
They languished behind bars for years, wrongfully jailed for crimes they did not commit.
But the high-profile ordeals of Donald Marshall Jr., David Milgaard and others have put a spotlight on what has been called the fallibility of Canadian justice.
These cases are likely not unique and certainly not isolated to Canada, although estimates of the actual number of wrongful convictions vary widely. Each miscarriage of justice, however, deals a blow to a society's confidence in the legal system, experts say.
"Wrongful convictions undermine the two prongs of the criminal justice system’s legitimacy," states a 1992 report prepared by the Library of Parliament. "If someone is wrongfully convicted, that person is punished for an offence he or she did not commit and the actual perpetrator of the crime goes free."
To make it worse, advocates say many who were ultimately exonerated watched their applications stall for years in the federal review board process.
In 2000, federal Justice Minister Anne McLellan announced plans to try to prevent such cases from happening again. The changes, since enacted in the Criminal Code of Canada, enable the justice minister to use his or her discretion to respond to persons who believe they have been wrongfully convicted.
Groups such as the Association in Defence of the Wrongfully Convicted have also advocated on behalf of those they say have been jailed unfairly.
CBC
critter cartoon
Saturday, August 8, 2009
I'm sure it's all a BIG misunderstanding!
It's true the SIU did actually charge a police officer!
This is how you write an article LapDOG Lamberti!
Cop charged after car chase
Officer accused of assault, dangerous driving
Aug 08, 2009 04:30 AM
Robyn Doolittle
Crime Reporter
In a rare move, the province's Special Investigations Unit has charged a Toronto officer with assault causing bodily harm and dangerous driving in connection with a car chase earlier this year.
Const. Ricardo Gomez, who has worked mainly out of 12 Division since joining the force eight years ago, was serving a stint with the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy, TAVIS, earlier this year.
On March 4, at 9:40 p.m., he became involved in a pursuit along Danforth Ave. The vehicle Gomez was trailing was involved in a collision and a Toronto man was injured, said SIU spokesperson Jasbir Brar.
Lawyer David Butt, representing Gomez, said the reason his client was pursuing the car will come out in court. "We respect the importance of (the SIU's) mandate completely and we are confident that a full review of this situation will show that PC Gomez engaged in no wrongdoing whatsoever," said Butt.
The SIU is a civilian agency responsible for investigating all cases of death, serious injury or sexual assault involving police.
According to its 2007-08 annual report, during the SIU's last statistical year, the agency investigated 246 occurrences, laying charges against 10 officers in connection with seven incidents.
The last time the SIU charged an officer was in June. An Ottawa officer, Const. Shyldon Safruk, was charged with assault causing bodily harm for allegedly assaulting a cab driver.
The agency has been the subject of three government-ordered reviews, the most recent released last year. In September, the Ontario Ombudsman's office released a review in which the SIU was accused of "police bias" by Ombudsman André Marin, a former SIU director.
Staff Sgt. Gary Mulholland, who works with Gomez at 12 Division, refused to comment on the rarity of SIU charges, but said Gomez was a skilled officer. "I guess he's one of the better young officers I had on the shift," said Mulholland.
Gomez was investigated by internal officers in connection to a 2005 incident where he fired his gun. He was cleared.
He will appear in court on Sept. 14.
The Toronto Star
This is how you write an article LapDOG Lamberti!
Cop charged after car chase
Officer accused of assault, dangerous driving
Aug 08, 2009 04:30 AM
Robyn Doolittle
Crime Reporter
In a rare move, the province's Special Investigations Unit has charged a Toronto officer with assault causing bodily harm and dangerous driving in connection with a car chase earlier this year.
Const. Ricardo Gomez, who has worked mainly out of 12 Division since joining the force eight years ago, was serving a stint with the Toronto Anti-Violence Intervention Strategy, TAVIS, earlier this year.
On March 4, at 9:40 p.m., he became involved in a pursuit along Danforth Ave. The vehicle Gomez was trailing was involved in a collision and a Toronto man was injured, said SIU spokesperson Jasbir Brar.
Lawyer David Butt, representing Gomez, said the reason his client was pursuing the car will come out in court. "We respect the importance of (the SIU's) mandate completely and we are confident that a full review of this situation will show that PC Gomez engaged in no wrongdoing whatsoever," said Butt.
The SIU is a civilian agency responsible for investigating all cases of death, serious injury or sexual assault involving police.
According to its 2007-08 annual report, during the SIU's last statistical year, the agency investigated 246 occurrences, laying charges against 10 officers in connection with seven incidents.
The last time the SIU charged an officer was in June. An Ottawa officer, Const. Shyldon Safruk, was charged with assault causing bodily harm for allegedly assaulting a cab driver.
The agency has been the subject of three government-ordered reviews, the most recent released last year. In September, the Ontario Ombudsman's office released a review in which the SIU was accused of "police bias" by Ombudsman André Marin, a former SIU director.
Staff Sgt. Gary Mulholland, who works with Gomez at 12 Division, refused to comment on the rarity of SIU charges, but said Gomez was a skilled officer. "I guess he's one of the better young officers I had on the shift," said Mulholland.
Gomez was investigated by internal officers in connection to a 2005 incident where he fired his gun. He was cleared.
He will appear in court on Sept. 14.
The Toronto Star
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Healthy fees for eHealth execs!
August 04, 2009
The Canadian Press
TORONTO (Aug 4, 2009)
More details are emerging about what critics have called shocking spending excesses by consultants and executives at eHealth Ontario.
* Consultants who were contracted by eHealth at up to $2,750 a day were also allowed to bill taxpayers for a $75 per diem to cover laundry and other incidentals, as well as car rentals, parking and furnished suites in downtown Toronto.
* One Alberta-based consultant, Allaudin Merali, was paid $57,750 for 21 days of work in December -- he billed seven days a week, but only half days ($1,375) for Sundays -- and was reimbursed another $10,000 for his expenses that month. His bills climbed to an average of $76,000 a month in January through March 2009.
The details sparked renewed calls by opposition leaders Tim Hudak of the Progressive Conservatives and Andrea Horwath of the NDP for Health Minister David Caplan to step down
The Spec
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No more taxes after HST...I promise!
They had No Choice!
They wore these or I took away thier toys for 7 days!
No kidding!
"Damn Street Racer"pays with Brusies
