When Enough is Enough?
In R v Dumas, 2020 MBCA 28, a 48-year-old attempted to appeal indeterminate sentences imposed onto him for 2 separate sexual assaults. One being the sexual assault of a 30-year-old man, and the other being the sexual assault with a weapon on a 15-year-old girl. As all citizens do, the accused indeed has a right to a fair trial, and in this case, he argues that a 20-year determinate sentence followed by a 10-year supervision order should have been ordered.
The Effects of Evidence and Procedure Upon a Fair Trial
Although unrelated to the original intention in investigating the case, R v Dowd brings up some interesting concepts in relation to the jurisprudence surrounding evidence in trials. One of these includes the concept of trial by ambush. For some context, the case of R v Dowd involves a former police officer accused of sexual assault (indecent touching) on a nine-year old girl.
R v Friesen
One of the basic values of Canadian society is protecting those who are vulnerable and who cannot protect themselves. Children are one such category of vulnerable persons and they make up a large portion of Canada’s overall population. Children often have no ability to protect themselves and they must rely on the adults around them to keep them safe.
Judiciary Compromised by Biased Assumptions
Does there not need to be consistency in decisions by a body like the Canadian Judicial Council? How can you reconcile judicial decisions where the Council recommends removal of judges for victim-blaming comments with decisions where comments of a similar nature, reinforcing the same stereotypes, did not result in the same outcome?The purpose of this commentary is to compare and contrast two high profile cases, R v. Wagar, and R v. Ewanchuk.
UNBELIEVABLE: The Funnel Effect of Rape Attrition in the Criminal Justice System
While perusing Netflix over the past couple months, you may have come across a mini-series called Unbelievable, and its name truly lives up to its premise. Based upon the true story of an American woman pseudonymously known as “Marie”, the show follows the victim of a serial rapist who reported her rape to the police and was both disbelieved and criminally charged with a gross demeanour for false accusation in Lynnwood, Washington.
