Canadian crimes
Michael Newton
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Girl's ordeal haunts mom
Accused admits taping up child's hands; mom
blames CAS for missing signs
By LISA LISLE, Ottawa Sun
THE MOM WHO handed over care of her young daughter to a
woman now accused of stuffing the helpless child into a dryer is
filled with guilt and fear. But the mother of four says the Children's Aid
Society should share the shame because case workers who investigated
reports of child abuse came up empty-handed.
"I close my eyes at night and see her in that dryer," she said. "I let her
go there because I was drinking and I wasn't the best mom."
The 38-year-old accused, Cathie Doyle, is an ex-girlfriend of the
victim's father. She faces criminal charges, including assault
causing bodily harm, forcible confinement, criminal negligence
causing bodily harm, failing to provide necessities of life and child
abandonment. Doyle told the Sun yesterday that CAS caseworkers were in and
out of her home after the little girl moved in and found nothing wrong. She
said the child protection agency interviewed her on Dec. 23, 1999, four
months before the police investigation began, and grilled her about the
accusations. "I admitted to them that I taped her hands," she said,
describing how she would bind the little girl's mittens to her hands and
then wind the tape around her body leaving just enough room for movement.
GOT IN DRYER
The 18-year-old son of the accused stands by his mom and says he
was never beaten, only spanked when it was deserved. The teenaged son added
the little girl got in the dryer "on her own," to eat chocolate and then
urinated. Doyle's west-end neighbour, Brandi Saunders, said she would be
surprised if the charges were true.
"She was always very nice," Saunders said. "I've been here a
couple of years and I've never seen anything unusual." Other neighbours
last night banded together in support of Doyle. Several were posted outside
a nearby home where Doyle was staying to shield the accused woman from the
media and what they deemed to be unwanted questions. CAS officials refused
to comment on the case specifically, but assistant director of family
services and child protection Carmela Savoia said evidence of abuse can
sometimes be hard to detect. "Kids aren't always willing to disclose
information at the time," she said. But the victim's mother believes the
CAS could have done more. "They didn't protect my child," she said.
Regional police began an investigation after the CAS probe
wrapped up in April. After interviewing the victim and the daughter of the
accused, along with several other witnesses, police believe the girl was
beaten and locked in the dryer for weeks at a time between January 1996 and
December 1997.
Little girl recalls her life in the dryer
Gary Dimmock
The Ottawa Citizen
Police allege that a 38-year-old woman forced her stepdaughter, aged 7 at
the time, to live in a clothes dryer for up to three weeks at a stretch,
over a four-month period. Police also allege that she duct-taped the girl,
strapped her in a high chair for hours at a time, handcuffed her to a bed,
and locked her in a broom closet, her
neck chained to a railing above. The stepmother is charged with assault
causing bodily harm, forcible confinement, failing to provide the
necessities of life and abandonment. The stepmother denies the criminal
charges, saying the alleged activities simply
never took place.
Yesterday, in the presence of the girl's birth mother, the Citizen spoke to
the girl, now aged 9. In her own words, this is her story.
-
"I remember one time I got let out of the dryer for my birthday. But there
was a problem. I could hardly walk. I had to be helped up and down the
stairs because I would just fall. "It's because I used to cross my legs in
the dryer. I tried to make more space by crossing my legs. "I would just go
to sleep. Sometimes, I would stay up all night. I would just play with my
thumbs and talk to myself, pretending there was a friend with me.
"It was light blue inside in the day. At night, it was dark. They would
bring me down water and juice, mostly water. Sometimes Kraft Dinner, and
anything they had. "I wasn't allowed to go to the bathroom. "I would be
locked in the dryer, with a rope put on the handle. But I could get out.
Then the dryer was turned around the other way against the wall so I
couldn't get out and steal chocolates or food. I wasn't fed a lot.
"Sometimes I was allowed to eat but only with my fingers, no forks or
spoons. "One reason I was in the dryer was because I wasn't listening at
school sometimes. One time, I had a dream. I did a chore, but my
stepbrother would
just keep making a mess, and I would have to keep cleaning up. That was my
dream.
"A couple of times I got out of the dryer. One time, I snuck upstairs. I
checked to see if she was asleep. I was careful because the floor makes a
cricket noise. "I tip-toed. I took a slice of bread and the peanut butter
out and made a sandwich. "I remember lots. You know those bike chains with
the plastic on them. That
would be around my neck and then chained, and roped to the coat hanger
thing in the closet. It was hard to sleep. Mostly, I would stay up all
night because I knew I could choke. "I been handcuffed on a bed. The
mattress was taken off. I was in a high chair in the closet. I could get
out of the high chair when I learned to unbuckle
myself. I didn't know how to get out at first. My mouth and hands were
taped. When I got a treat, there was sand on it and I had to eat it anyway.
"Sometimes I wasn't allowed to go to the bathroom, but I had to go badly.
I couldn't get out of the room, there were two baby gates on top of each
other. "I wasn't allowed to go to school sometimes. I didn't really like
school back then. I do now.
"I did a smart idea one day and ran away. I got a person, she missed her
bus. She helped me across the street. She asked if anyone had a phone and
they called 911. "They asked me where I lived but I told them a lie and
said I didn't know because I didn't want to go back."
-
The girl's story, and that of an independent witness, are key in the
prosecution's case against Cathie Doyle, 38. In an interview with the
Citizen, Ms. Doyle said: "It just didn't happen. How can I explain
something that didn't happen?" "She was a problem child and I tried my
best. That girl had behavioural problems before she entered my home," the
accused said. Ms. Doyle was arrested Sunday afternoon at her tidy rowhouse
in Ottawa's west end. Ms. Doyle, a mother of three children who volunteers
at an Ottawa-Carleton
District School Board elementary school, was released from jail Monday
morning on conditions, among them to stay clear of children's organizations
and not babysit other people's children. Ottawa-Carleton police launched
the probe about two months ago. The alleged activities against the girl,
who is now living with her birth mother, occurred between Jan. 1, 1996 and
Dec. 31, 1997.
The alleged abuse ended after the girl ran away from home twice in one
week. The first time, she was returned to her stepmother; the second time,
she was placed in foster care, where she remained for two years until being
returned to her biological mother in December 1999. "She's getting a lot
better, but we've got a long way to go," the girl's birth mother said
yesterday. The girl's biological father lives in Orleans. He separated from
the stepmother in 1995.
The girl spent yesterday cooling off with friends in a back yard swimming
pool. Today, while she appears normal, the girl sometimes climbs into the
clothes dryer, as if out of habit.
She also duct-tapes her dolls to the legs of the living room coffee table.
In her time of alleged abuse, the girl missed several weeks of school.
Still, she continued to live with her stepmother until December 1997. In a
1995-1996 report card, Lynne McCarney, principal of Christie Public School,
said it was impossible to fully assess the girl's progress. According to
Ottawa-Carleton District School Board records, the principal wrote: "(The
victim) has unfortunately missed a great deal of her final term at school.
It has therefore been quite difficult to assess her progress fully."
The principal concluded the report with "Have a great summer!"
Father tried to stop girl's alleged abuse
Gary Dimmock
The Ottawa Citizen June 29
The father of an Ottawa girl who was allegedly forced by her stepmother to
live in a clothes dryer for up to a three-week stretch, says he first heard
the allegations three years ago and has been praying for justice ever
since. In visits supervised by the Children's Aid Society in 1997, the
father recalled yesterday that his daughter, now aged 9, spoke of being
forced into a clothes
dryer in the basement.
The father, who lives in Orleans with another woman, separated from the
girl's stepmother in April 1995, about a year before police allege the girl
was terrorized. The girl was left in the care of her stepmother, and the
father says he had trouble seeing her. "I tried to get her out of the home
in 1997, but I had no rights, my hands were tied. I'm just happy she's at a
safe place now. I know she's safe and that makes me happy. I knew there was
trouble, but not to the degree of what has transpired," the father told the
Citizen.
"It's something that you don't want to believe, but I believe it, and I
believe justice will prevail. I've been praying for the truth to be known.
It makes my heart heavy forever that she (allegedly) went through this. It
makes my heart heavy for any child to endure this kind of torment," the
father said.
The girl, who is now living with her birth mother, escaped the alleged
abuse by running away in December 1997. The girl was then placed in foster
care, where she remained until being returned in December 1999 to her birth
mother. The birth mother reported the alleged abuse to Ottawa-Carleton
police about two months ago.
Police, disturbed by the allegations, have since obtained taped statements
from the alleged victim and an independent witness.
Police allege the girl was abused between Jan. 1, 1996, and Dec. 31, 1997.
Police say that while in the care of the stepmother, the girl was
duct-taped, and left bound for hours at a time. The girl was also locked in
a broom closet, her neck chained and tied with a
rope to a railing above, police allege. The stepmother allegedly handcuffed
the child to her bed for hours at a time. At other times, the stepmother
allegedly locked the girl in her room, and refused to let her go to the
bathroom.
Cathie Doyle, a 38-year-old welfare recipient and mother of three children,
is charged with assault causing bodily harm, forcible confinement,
abandonment, and failing to provide the necessities of life. Ms. Doyle, who
volunteers at an elementary school, was arrested Sunday afternoon. She was
released from jail Monday morning with conditions, among them to stay clear
of children's organizations and not to babysit other people's children.
Ms. Doyle denies the allegations. "It just didn't happen. How can I explain
something that didn't happen?" The accused said the girl was a problem
child who threw wild temper tantrums. "She was a problem child and I tried
my best. That girl had behavioural problems before she entered my home,"
the accused said. Ms. Doyle said the girl would urinate in odd places and
hide food throughout the house. "She would do anything to get attention.
She had moods; other times she had great days. But she had a lot of
behavioural problems she
couldn't control."
The girl's birth mother charges that her daughter's alleged suffering may
take a lifetime to overcome. "This didn't have to happen to my girl," said
the birth mother. "She's doing much better now but we have a long way to
go," said the mother, noting that
her daughter sometimes tries to climb into the dryer, and duct-tapes her
dolls to the legs of the living room coffee table as a form of punishment.
The birth mother says her daughter lived in fear and adds that she'll never
trust anyone to take care of her again.
The birth mother acknowledges her daughter is a troubled child. She gave up
custody of the girl in 1994 because she was too hard to handle. She
recently regained custody of her daughter, and says she'll never give up on
her again. The girl, in the presence of her birth mother, spoke to the
Citizen earlier this week. In the dryer, the girl claims that she would
cross her legs to make more space,
and created imaginary friends to pass the time. "I would just go to sleep.
Sometimes, I would stay up all night. I would just play with my thumbs and
talk to myself, pretending there was a friend with
me." The girl says she wasn't allowed to go to the bathroom and was barely
fed. She ran away from home in December 1997, according to Ottawa-Carleton
District School Board records. "I did a smart idea one day and ran away. I
got a person, she missed her bus. She helped me across the street. She
asked if anyone had a phone and they
called 911. "They asked me where I lived but I told them a lie and said I
didn't know because I didn't want to go back." School board documents show
that the girl missed several weeks of school during the time of alleged
abuse. The Childrens Aid Society says cases are confidential, so they can't
comment on this story. Ms. Doyle is to appear in court July 17.
********
MATTHEW HALL (24) PEDOPHILE, DANGEROUS OFFENDER APPLICATION
Hall held for psychiatric assessment (published June 28)
By LINDA RICHARDSON, The Sault Ste Marie Star
Convicted sex offender Matthew Hall will undergo a psychiatric assessment
in Toronto _ one of the steps to determine if the 24-year-old man should be
imprisoned indefinitely as a dangerous offender. A judge ordered Hall
remanded Tuesday for a 60-day period for the assessment, to be conducted at
the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. Ontario Court Justice James
Greco made his decision after hearing defence and Crown submissions last
week on who should be appointed to conduct the battery of tests.
The date for the assessment was to be set this morning, but Greco was told
Tuesday that the testing may not occur until mid-September because of
summer holidays and the selected psychiatrist's
involvement in other court cases. The assessment is the first step in the
process of seeking dangerous-offender status for Hall, who has been
convicted of dozens of child porn offences and numerous sex-related
charges. If the Crown's dangerous-offender application is successful, Hall
could be behind bars indefinitely. Defence counsel Michael Bennett said
his client has been in custody for three months since entering guilty pleas
and has not yet been sentenced. ``That is a matter of some concern,'' he
told the judge.
Hall was convicted in April of 43 charges after he pleaded guilty to
distributing, importing and possessing child pornography, as well as a
number of sex-related offences involving children. He also admitted
sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl and sexually touching an
eight-year-old boy in Haileybury in 1997.
As well, he entered guilty pleas to seven counts of invitation to sexual
touching involving a number of young local girls.
In his decision Tuesday, Greco said the application for such an assessment
can be brought only by the Crown, not by the accused, who has no right to
dictate who should be selected. He said he had invited comment from the
defence about the various persons recommended by the Crown and allowed the
defence to make its own representations about who should do the assessment.
Greco said he had taken that route, not because he was compelled by law or
because the accused had a right to participate in the selection process,
but because he felt if both the Crown and defence were satisfied there
might be more co-operation from the accused.
But after noting the delays and disagreements that had transpired, Greco
said proceeding in that manner had been a mistake. ``A big mistake indeed.
I will not repeat that mistake again,'' he concluded. ``Never.''
The charges against Hall stemmed from a four-month undercover Internet
investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police Pornography Unit (Project
P). During the trial, the court spent two days viewing hundreds of graphic
``and explicit images of young children'' police seized from Hall's
computer and disks and heard details of the sex-related charges.
The hundreds of computer images showed adults, often MEN MASKED TO HIDE
THEIR IDENTITIES, ENGAGED IN ORAL SEX, INTERCOURSE AND OTHER SEXUAL ACTS
with children, some as young as TODDLERS IN DIAPERS.
A Project P investigator called the pornography collection ``one of the
worst series'' he has come across in his work.
********
COUPLE MURDER CHARGE: STUFFED SOCK IN INFANT'S MOUTH TO QUIET
HIM WHILE THEY WATCHED PORN
June 28, 2000
Couple sent to prison for causing baby's death
Gagged with a sock
Mike King National Post
MONTREAL - A Montreal-area couple has been sent to prison after being found
guilty of causing a sick baby's death by gagging him with a wool sock to
quiet his cries while they watched a porn video.
Chantal Bourgeois, 26, of Brownsburg, was sentenced yesterday to five years
behind bars while her boyfriend, 30-year-old Serge Mallette, was given a
seven-year term for the incident that led to the death of Bourgeois'
nine-month-old son in October, 1998.
But because Bourgeois spent 52 days in custody following her arraignment on
a charge of criminal negligence causing death, she will have four months
removed from her jail time. Mallette, who remained in custody eight months
awaiting his fate, still has to serve slightly more than 5 1/2 years after
receiving double credit for his pre-trial custody.
Jean Marchand, the defence lawyer representing Bourgeois, found Quebec
Court Judge Carol Richer's sentence too severe and told The Gazette that he
will study the possibility of appealing the jail term. "She never wanted to
kill her baby," Mr. Marchand said in a telephone interview from
Saint-Jérôme, where Judge Richer handed down her 28-page decision. He noted
that Bourgeois was seven-months pregnant when she and Mallette tied the
sock around the mouth of infant Cédric Bourgeois-Cadieux, who was suffering
with an ear infection, on the night of Oct. 20, 1998.
The couple found him dead the next morning in their home, about 60 km
northwest of Montreal. Mr. Marchand described his client as an
"undercultured, poor woman" who had a very difficult childhood -- including
being violated by a known pedophile in the area when she was 16.
Mr. Marchand had recommended that Bourgeois receive an 18-month sentence,
arguing that she wouldn't benefit from being in prison.
Her four-year-old daughter, and the son Bourgeois had shortly after her
arrest, are in the care of child welfare authorities.
********
EARL SKIDMORE (MODEL TEACHER???) CLEARED
'Model' teacher cleared
Judge says restraint used in discipline of schoolboy
By Sarah Sacheli Windsor Star June 28 2000
The criminal case against a teacher who grabbed a pupil by the throat and
hit him on the head with a clipboard should never have come to court, says
a judge, who suggests schools have an impartial board to hear such
disputes. "The heavy machinery of the criminal justice system was not
necessary in any way," said Justice Saul Nosanchuk in dismissing the
assault charge against teacher Earl Skidmore in the Ontario Court of
Justice in Leamington Tuesday.
"There are disturbing implications to this case. A dedicated
teacher has been hauled before the criminal court on charges
of assault," Nosanchuk said, going on to call Skidmore "an outstanding
model and mentor." {NOTE: this has got to be the
Catholic school board ....]
"What this case illustrates is the necessity of some process ... for
alternate dispute resolution." The assault charges stem from an incident
following a gym class Skidmore was teaching Nov. 16, 1999, at St. Louis
Catholic elementary school. A group of three boys who were supposed to be
participating in a volleyball game were giggling, laughing, yelling,
screaming, kicking the ball, hitting it into the lights and celebrating
their bad behaviour with high fives.
One of the boys, the complainant in the case, ignored the teacher despite
repeated reprimands by Skidmore. Nosanchuk, looking toward the boy and his
parents seated in the courtroom, called the boy's behaviour that day
"deplorable."
Nosanchuk said the teacher showed "incredible restraint" when he grabbed
the 13-year-old boy by the arm, grabbed him by the throat, "put or pushed"
him against a partition wall in the gym and "accidentally" hit him in the
head with a clipboard. Skidmore's actions "simply involved detaining" the
boy said Nosanchuk. He said
Skidmore used force "as way of correction," allowed under the Criminal Code.
He then referred to the Education Act which states students must be
"courteous and "obedient," saying the complainant was neither.
Nosanchuk said the boy's father was "consumed" with getting the police
involved and never asked his son what he had done to provoke Skidmore's
actions. The boy's parents were visibly angry with Nosanchuk's ruling.
"I'm shocked to learn it's OK for a teacher to choke a kid and break a
clipboard over his head," said Lisa Najim, the boy's stepmother. Shaking as
she talked to reporters, she said, "you can't record what I really want to
say."
Skidmore said he was relieved. Although he seemed relaxed and confident
throughout the two-day trial earlier this month, leaning back in his chair
and smiling back at the supporters sitting in the public gallery behind him
during the proceeding, he said he was worried the judge would find him
guilty. "It should have never gotten this far," he said, echoing the
judge's words.
Susan Wood, local president of the Ontario Elementary Catholic Teachers
Association, said teachers were "very, very pleased" with the judgment.
"Teachers were saying if this happens to Mr. Skidmore...what about the rest
of us?"
She said she was especially pleased the judge referred to the
responsibilities of students as well as those of teachers.
But Cheryl Milne, lawyer for the Canadian Foundation For Children, Youth
and the Law, said "I don't think it's acceptable to grab a child by the
throat." In another court challenge, Milne's group is trying to have the
section of the Criminal Code Nosanchuk used in his ruling struck down. The
section allows parents and teachers to use "corrective" force. A ruling in
that case is expected July 7.
"I'm concerned about a finding that says taking a child by the throat is
corrective," Milne said.
********
CLIFFORD BROWN BEATEN BY WIFE'S BROTHERS
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 VIGILANTE ATTACK
Bike courier rescues wife-killer from beating
By KEVIN MARTIN, CALGARY SUN
Bike courier John Carter didn't know he was rushing to the
rescue of a wife-killer yesterday when he stopped a "mugging" in
the shadows of Calgary's courthouse. "This guy was on the grass being
knocked down by these characters ... and one guy was putting the boots to
him," Carter said. "I started screaming at them. I said, 'That's how you
kill people,' " Carter said. On the ground being pummelled was accused
murderer Clifford Brown. Brown, 45, who is out on bail, was waiting outside
Calgary's Court of Queen's Bench while jurors decided his fate. The
four-man, eight-woman jury retired for the night and will resume
deliberations this morning on whether Brown is guilty of murder or
manslaughter in the Dec. 21, 1998, strangulation of his estranged wife
Janice. Carter said he was driving along 6 Ave. S.W., when he saw the
attack just after 3 p.m.
As he ran to Brown's rescue, he was approached by one of the
assailants. "One guy came up to me and said, 'He murdered our sister.' I
thought he was going to nail me," said Carter, a courier for Elite Fleet.
Carter said he then turned to flag a passing police cruiser as court
security officers arrived on scene. When informed who the victim was,
Carter said it didn't justify the conduct of his attackers.
"I just don't want to see anybody get their life taken away,
whether they're guilty or not," he said. Defence lawyer Mary Brebner, whose
client went to hospital to be examined, said the incident was inexcusable.
"This is wrong. The courts are taking care of this matter and this is a
form of vigilante justice which cannot be tolerated in our society," she
said. But Janice Brown's brother, Al Short, condoned the violent outburst.
He said the assailant "just did what I wanted to do." Gary Wayne Short,
43, of Calgary has been charged with assault causing bodily harm in
connection with the attack. Earlier in the day, jurors were told by
Justice Peter Martin that they should find Brown guilty of manslaughter if
they find that his wife provoked his homicidal outburst -- an argument made
by Brown's defence lawyer. Brown confessed to police after killing his wife
in their Cochrane
home, saying she taunted him by claiming her new lover was
better than him in bed. Crown prosecutor Harold Hagglund argued Brown
simply murdered his wife out of anger and wasn't pushed into strangling the
victim with an electrical cord.
*******
SAMUEL NG SAW 'MONSTER' IN MIRROR
June 28, 2000 Man saw 'monster' after killing pair
Accused killer tells court he looked in mirror after
stabbing aunt, niece
By TONY BLAIS, Edmonton Sun
A 22-year-old city man who stabbed his aunt and her three
daughters - killing two of them - looked in a mirror after the
bloody rampage and saw a monster. That's what Ka-Fai (Samuel) Ng said
yesterday while testifying in his own defence at his Court of Queen's Bench
double-murder trial. The slight, spectacled aspiring businessman, who was
born in Hong Kong and came to Edmonton in 1993, said he saw himself in a
mirror after he'd stabbed both his aunt, Sandra Law, and his then
14-year-old cousin, Grace Law. His face was covered in blood. "It was like
a shock," said Ng. "It was like looking at a monster."
In almost four hours of testimony, which had Ng nearly in tears,
the young man spoke of hearing a voice beside his ear, having
thoughts of "chaos" and being out of control. And despite stabbing his aunt
and cousins and hitting his uncle with a hammer in the Aug. 16, 1998,
attack, Ng said he loved his relatives and never meant to hurt anyone. He
said his intention was to go to the Laws' 15019 51 St. house, which was
next door to his family's home, and use a knife to scare his aunt and get
her to stop trying to hurt his family by driving a wedge between his mom
and dad. He said he walked over and went into the basement with his aunt
and asked her what she was going to do with his family. She insulted his
father and talked about making up a sexual-assault charge against him.
He pulled out a knife and she started laughing and slapped his
face. Then he lost control, he testified. "I was feeling chaos and the next
thing I know is I'm stabbing in the red," he said. "I had no control of
myself. It was like I was in a movie." His cousin Grace came downstairs and
he said he remembers attacking her and throwing her in a bathtub, stabbing
her repeatedly. "I don't know why. I don't have a clue why I'm attacking
her," he said. "I tried to stop, but I couldn't." Despite earlier evidence
that he then stabbed his two other cousins, killing 12-year-old Toby and
wounding then 11-year-old Winnie, Ng said he has no memory of it and only
remembers next attacking his uncle, Peter Law.
Under cross-examination, Ng came close to crying as he was
forced to look at Sandra Law's autopsy photos and detail what he
remembered about the seven stab wounds. "So you killed Sandra Law,
correct?" asked Crown prosecutor Jason Track. "Against my will, yes,"
replied Ng. "I couldn't control it. I was out of my mind."
The ongoing trial heard earlier that the two families had severed
relations due to a rift caused by Ng's father's refusal to invest in a
travel agency Sandra Law wanted to set up.
*******
STEVEN BRO ALONE WITH MOTHER'S BODY 2 DAYS
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Son alone with body
Mother beaten, stabbed
By MIKE D'AMOUR, CALGARY SUN
A son accused of killing his mother spent two days alone with
the body before paramedics made the grisly discovery, the Sun
has learned. Steven Bro made his first court appearance yesterday after he
was charged in the brutal slaying of his mother, Pat Bro, 64. Bro's beaten
and stabbed body was discovered in her home at
Unit 5 of the Midfield Mobile Home Park, 954 16 Ave. N.E.,
about 12:30 p.m Monday. It is believed she was killed days before her body
was discovered, a source close to the investigation said.
"There is an indication (the accused) was there for two days with
the body," the source said. Steven, 36, was quickly arrested after police
arrived at the scene and was charged late Monday with second-degree murder.
He showed no emotion and didn't speak a word yesterday as he walked into
the prisoner's dock of Courtroom 101 of provincial court. His case was
remanded until this morning when it is expected he will be required to
undergo a 30-day psychiatric assessment. Pat Bro was a cabbie who'd driven
for 40 years.
********
JUSTICE OF THE PEACE RELEASED HADLEY
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 JP 'content' to free killer hubby
Crown pleaded for safety of abused wife
By SAM PAZZANO, TORONTO SUN
A justice of the peace said she was aware of the "profound
tragedies" of domestic disputes but decided she had no good
reason to detain murder-suicide gunman Ralph Hadley . "I'm content that Mr.
Hadley has shown cause why he should be released ... under very, very
severe terms," JP Brenna Brown ruled at a Feb. 28 bail hearing, court
documents show. Hadley, 34, took captive his wife, Gillian, at her
Hillcrest Rd. home in Pickering last week. Hadley killed his estranged wife
and mother of three before turning the gun on himself. The murder-suicide
occurred after Hadley's second release on bail after assaulting and
stalking his estranged wife.
At the most recent hearing in February, Crown attorney Frank
Giordano opposed Hadley's release, noting Hadley had recently
threatened his wife in a telephone call. "After what you've done to me,
wait 'til I get through with you, and what I'm gonna do to you is ...,"
Giordano quoted Hadley as saying. "And then she hung up on him once again,
not hearing where that line ended up going."
Giordano conceded to the JP: "This isn't the most persuasive
Crown's case you've heard for detention. "The concern is obviously for the
protection of the safety, privacy and rights of (the victim)," said
Giordano. "Ultimately, I'm in your worship's hands as to how that's best
addressed." In her decision, Brown said: "There are situations which this
court is very mindful of, where people who, for perhaps reasons of their
own insecurity, need to control situations and even to the point where
there are profound tragedies." However, she said, Hadley and his parents
had made persuasive arguments for his restricted release.
Hadley's mother and retired father promised the court their son
would have "no ability whatsoever to be in touch with his wife, to
harass her in any way or to cause her any harm." WEAPONS BAN
Brown banned Hadley from having any weapons, from contacting
his estranged wife in any way, prohibited him from travelling to
Pickering except commuting along Hwy. 401 and he was restricted to his
parents' home except to go to work. His parents were ordered to report any
breach of those conditions to police. Since December 1999, Hadley was on a
peace bond for a charge of criminal negligence causing bodily harm to his
six-year-old stepson, who is blind, deaf and confined to a wheelchair.
********
DWAYNE PRESS, DOWN'S SYNDROME GIRL
Wednesday, June 28, 2000
Sexually abusing Down's sufferer earns
man top provincial jail term
By DON MURRAY, London Free Press
Rejecting house arrest and prison, a London judge sentenced a man
who sexually abused a girl with Down's syndrome to the maximum two
years less a day in provincial jail. Superior Court Justice Doug McDermid
said yesterday he didn't "lightly reject" sending Dwayne Press, 30, to
prison as sought by the Crown. The minimum two-year prison term makes an
offender ineligible for a conditional sentence, better known as house
arrest. In her victim impact statement, the girl wrote Press "scared me out
of my hair." The court also heard the girl is terrified Press is coming to
get her.
While rejecting a prison term, McDermid appeared to have less trouble
rejecting defence lawyer Jack Hardy's bid for a conditional sentence. The
judge said only time behind bars will provide the denunciation Press's
"abhorrent" and "distasteful" crime deserves.
The judge said "the ends of justice are best served" by a maximum
reformatory term followed by the maximum three years of probation.
That will keep Press under supervision for almost five years, he said. A
jury convicted Press in April of sexual interference with the 11-year-old
daughter of his live-in girlfriend between July and December 1998. McDermid
noted that the sexual activities, involving vaginal penetration and oral
sex, left the now 13-year-old girl terrified of Press.
At trial, the girl testified from behind a screen to block her view of the
accused. McDermid noted when she walked to and from the witness box she hid
her face from Press. In seeking a conditional sentence, Hardy said his
client has only a minor criminal record and an admirable work and tenant
record. Press, who has asthma and epilepsy, did well on bail, said Hardy,
and with a supportive family and new relationship with a woman is unlikely
to reoffend.
Hardy said the denunciation aspects of sentencing could be met with
stringent and punitive conditions to house arrest. Assistant Crown attorney
Mary Potter said only prison fits the crime. The victim's "whole life has
been a struggle because of her handicaps," she said. "This makes it worse."
The girl, who functions at the level of a 10-year-old, was especially
vulnerable to Press's approaches. Compounding the offence, he ordered the
girl not to tell, Potter said. The abuse came to light after the mother
broke up with Press, the family moved to a housing complex and a child
advocate became concerned by the girl's answers to play questions.
*******
HARVEY ANDRES, RAPES, MURDERS
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Killer to stand trial for rapes, murder
By PETER SMITH, CALGARY SUN
Convicted sex killer and three-time jail-breaker Harvey Andres
was yesterday committed to stand trial on a Calgary murder and
string of rapes from 1982. Andres, 52, will face 23 charges stemming from a
string of rapes which terrorized Calgary 18 years ago.
He'll stand trial for first-degree murder in the death of Shirley Ann
Johnston, 17, whose body was found in the burned-out debris of
her Penbrooke home in He was also committed on two charges of arson, five
counts of rape, six counts of unlawful confinement, two counts of assault
causing bodily harm, three break-and-enter charges and four robberies.
"Eighteen years of excellent work by a large number of people has led to
this stage," said Staff Sgt. George Rocks of the homicide unit. Andres was
convicted in 1977 of murdering Shirley Baker, 33, in Winfield, near
Kelowna, B.C. During three prison escapes, Andres was shot and wounded by
police several times and he shot and wounded three police officers and
another escaping prisoner.
******
BOLIVER, RAPIST "SCOLDED"??
Halifax Daily News June 28 2000
Rapist scolded
A judge at Halifax provincial court had harsh words yesterday for a man who
raped a teenager after forcing his way into her home.
"I'd like to know what you might think if somebody did this to your
granddaughter," Judge John MacDougall told Gordon Scott Boliver.
MacDougall sentenced Boliver two years in federal prison for his attack on
a 15-year-old girl, whom Crown attorney Mark Scott described as "somewhat
challenged." Boliver, 51, of 2406 Barrington St., pleaded guilty May 2 to
unlawfully entering the girl's Halifax home to commit sexual assault. In
exchange for the plea, the
Crown withdrew a charge of sexual assault. Scott said Boliver knew the
teen, whose name is banned from publication. At around 8 p.m., Aug. 10,
1998, he showed up at her door while her father was
out. MacDougall said a victim-impact statement the girl filed in May shows
she is not as sophisticated as most 17-year-olds. He accepted the Crown and
defence's joint recommendation of a two-year sentence. - staff
*******
WILLIAM SHRUBSALL
Wednesday, June 28, 2000
Evidence `compelling' in Shrubsall case - Crown
Jury to deliberate assault, robbery charges
By RACHEL BOOMER -- The Daily News June 28 2000
A Nova Scotia Supreme Court jury will begin deliberating the fate of
William Chandler Shrubsall today in a case the Crown argues is as tight as
a "vise." But defence lawyer Lonny Queripel countered in his closing
argument yesterday that the Crown has failed to prove beyond a reasonable
doubt that Shrubsall is the man who beat store clerk Tammy Donnison so
severely that her skull fractured in dozens of places. Found Donnison's
wallet "While every one of us has, and should have, sympathy for Miss
Donnison and what she has been put through, convicting my client does not
make that situation better. Two wrongs do not make a right," Queripel told
the jurors.
Although police found Donnison's wallet in Shrubsall's closet months after
the Feb. 12, 1998, attack, Queripel argued that doesn't prove Shrubsall's
guilt. Thieves often discard stolen wallets or sell them, he said. He
contended police didn't properly investigate Danny Myette, a schizophrenic
who confessed to the assault after seven hours of police interrogation.
"You cannot be certain my client committed these crimes so long as you
cannot be certain that Danny Myette did not," Queripel said.
Police arrested Myette but never charged him. Instead, Shrubsall, 29, is
being tried for aggravated assault, robbery and possessing a baseball bat
as a weapon. Crown attorney Rob Fetterly said Donnison's wallet is a
"compelling" piece of evidence that helps prove Shrubsall's guilt. Pointing
at Shrubsall, who sat calmly, Fetterly said witnesses identified him as the
blue-clad man they saw carrying a baseball bat on the waterfront that day
near Great Northern Knitters, where Donnison worked. None of them picked
Myette from police lineups, Fetterly said. Was working alone
"The evidence as a whole encircles the accused in a grip so tight that it
becomes a vise from which he cannot escape, and it proves his guilt,"
Fetterly argued. Donnison, 24, was working alone when she was beaten with a
blunt object. She was in a coma for days, and medical experts testified she
could have died.
*******
PLUNGING CRIME RATE UNEXPLAINED
June 28, 2000
Plunging crime rate unexplained
Experts puzzled by 22 per cent drop since 1991
By Elaine Carey
Toronto Star Demographics Reporter
Canada's crime rate continues to tumble, baffling the experts who can't
explain it and the public who don't believe it. The crime rate has fallen
22 per cent since 1991 to its lowest rate in 19 years in 1998 - 81 Criminal
Code offences per 1,000 people - the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics
said yesterday in an analysis of that year's crime data. The same
phenomenon is happening across the United States, where the crime rate has
dropped for the eighth straight year, as well as in England and Wales, it
says. The report echoes a new Toronto police study which found the crime
rate is at its lowest level since the mid-'70s. Yet a 1998 Environics poll
found three-quarters of the Canadian public feel crime is
getting worse. Violent crime in Canada is comprised largely of minor
assaults, accounting for six out of every 10 violent incidents.
But experts are at a loss to explain why it's happening, said Rosemary
Gartner, director of the centre for criminology at the University of
Toronto. In the United States, they talk about changing patterns of
policing or shifting daily routines as possible reasons, she said, ``but
the point is, none of those things can
account for the fact this is happening across North America. I don't think
we know why.'' One factor is that the population is aging and most crime is
committed by young people 18 to 25; but Statistics Canada estimates that
accounts for only 25 to 30 per cent of the dropping crime rates. The rates
peaked so high in the '70s and '80s - when the baby boomers were in the
peak crime years - they may just have had to come down, she said. The
murder rate in Canada - there were 555 homicides and 738 attempted
homicides in 1998 - has been falling since the mid-'70s. Despite growing
concern about the use of firearms, the percentage of violent crimes with a
firearm declined from 6.5 per cent to 4.8 per cent in 1998. They were used
in a third of murders, 29 per cent of attempted murders and 10 per cent of
aggravated assaults.
Fewer robberies involved firearms than at any time in the '90s. The rate
has fallen 44 per cent in the past seven years and robberies with a firearm
now account for only 18 per cent of all robberies, down from 25 per cent a
decade ago. Several highly publicized cases of extreme violence by young
offenders may account for the increased concern among Canadians about
violent young people, the study
says. Yet the youth crime rate has dropped for seven consecutive years, led
by an 8 per cent drop in the number of youths charged with property crimes.
But despite the declines, the public doesn't believe it because fear of
crime is not driven by statistics, but by exposure to information about
crime, said Gartner. ``Information on crime is much more widely available
than it was 20 or 30 years ago -
the daily news is much more likely to feature crime stories prominently,''
she said.
But some experts are predicting that crime rates may soon soar again as the
children of the baby boom - the echo generation - hit the prime crime years
starting in 2003, she said. Ontario Attorney-General Jim Flaherty was far
from upbeat about a new police report
that shows Toronto with its lowest over-all crime rate since the mid-1970s.
``I didn't take much comfort from that report that I saw this morning,''
he said. ``Violent crime is up. Domestic violence (with weapons) is up.
Violent youth crime is up.'' Violent crime must be fought by strengthening
the fight against organized crime and stopping the importation of weapons
into Canada, Flaherty said.
``We need to toughen up our borders . . . and see where the guns come from,
these little revolvers. These aren't registered weapons held by someone who
has a firearms acquisition certificate in Canada. These are being brought
into Canada from other places illegally. And that's a very serious concern,
especially these little handguns which are easily concealed.'' With files
from Dale Anne Freed
********
SHERYL GALWAY JONES, HOUSE ARREST, DRUGS INTO KINGSTON PEN
Took drugs to KP, now stuck at home
Arthur Milnes Kingston Whig Standard June 28 2000
A Kingston woman who attempted to smuggle drugs into a local penitentiary
will spend the next six months under house arrest.
Sheryl Galway-Jones, 34, pleaded guilty to bringing a package containing
cocaine, marijuana and 62 tablets of Diazepam into Kingston Penitentiary on
Oct. 29, 1999. She was to visit a prisoner she met while volunteering with
the John Howard Society. Prison security officers were there to meet her
and the drugs were
found. Her lawyer, Stephen Zap, told the court Galway-Jones was the victim
of strong-arm tactics by prisoners. He said she had received an anonymous
phone call the day before, telling her to pick up a package at the bus
station.
"She was informed that if she didn't, something would happen to the
particular inmate she was visiting," he said. Zap also said she thought the
package might contain nothing more serious than marijuana. He asked the
judge to consider imposing a conditional sentence, to be served in the
community, as well as community service. Federal Crown attorney Dave Crowe
agreed. "She was obviously being used by federal inmates," he said. Mr.
Justice Masse gave Galway-Jones an opportunity to address the court
before sentencing. "I would like to apologize for my actions and assure you
it will never happen again," the woman said. The judge then gave her a
six-month conditional sentence, during which she
can't leave her home from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. During working hours, she is
only allowed to go outside for medical reasons or to buy groceries."For no
other reason," Mr. Justice Masse said after outlining the restrictions
she'll have to live under. She will also have to perform 75 hours of
community service and has also been placed on nine months' probation. "Now
if somebody asks you to pick up a package at the bus station, you know
better," Mr. Justice Masse said.
********
JOYCEVILLE INMATE DEATHS
Drug-related death still under investigation
Rob Tripp Kingston Whig Standard June 28 2000
Lethal doses of morphine may have killed one Joyceville Institution convict
and sent another to hospital, The Whig-Standard has learned.
Police and prison authorities will not confirm that tablets of the
painkilling narcotic were found during searches of the prison.
"I can't comment on that," said Lynn Lajoie, an assistant warden at
Joyceville. Lajoie and Det. Sgt. Rick Myers, head of the police unit
investigating the incidents, said pills were found but test results on them
are not available. The Whig learned that authorities suspect inmates were
poisoned by taking much larger doses of morphine than usual. It is unclear
if they knew the potency of what they were taking.
Inmate John Paul Bolyantu, 37, died Sunday night and inmate Paul
Iwaszczenko, 31, was taken to hospital, where he was listed Monday in
guarded condition. Myers said the two inmates, who were confined in the
same cellblock, suffered suspected drug overdoses. Both were vomiting blood
and convulsing when they were found. Another inmate, who is believed to
have a quantity of drugs hidden in a body
cavity, is in a special isolation cell at Joyceville. Anything he excretes
can be recovered.
"There [is] an inmate that was transferred to segregation [Monday] for
security reasons as part of our investigation," Lajoie said.
Late yesterday, Corrections staff were still scouring the cells of each of
Joyceville's 427 prisoners, looking for hidden drugs, weapons and money.
Myers is waiting for toxicological test results on Bolyantu's body. "That
could take some time," he said.
Police ruled out any connection between the two suspected drug overdoses
and the death of inmate Richard David Hamilton, 30, although the three
incidents happened in a roughly four-hour span Sunday evening.
Hamilton apparently committed suicide by hanging himself from a conduit on
the ceiling of his cell with a nylon cord. His body was found in his cell
at 12:10 a.m. Monday.
"That was just an incident that happened, unfortunately, at the same time,"
Myers said.
Hamilton left a note. "There was some documentation found that led us to
believe that was a self-inflicted injury," Myers said.
Police also ruled out foul play in Bolyantu's death. "It's a non-criminal
issue, that's for sure," Myers said. "It's an inquest issue." When someone
dies in custody, an inquest is mandatory.
DRUGS IN PRISON
- Considered major cause of violence inside federal prisons
- Visitors are suspected to be major source of smuggled drugs
- 1998 survey of 350 Joyceville inmates found that 24 per cent (85
prisoners) claimed they were using intravenous drugs in prison
- 25 per cent (21 of these inmates) claimed they began to use intravenous
drugs after entering prison
- Prisons employ random urine testing, high-tech scanners, drug-sniffing
dogs and regular searches to stop drug use
********** BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO ******
# SMITHS FALLS OPP IMPAIRED CHARGE
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Cop faces impaired charge
By JASON CUMMING, Ottawa Sun
A senior Smiths Falls-based OPP officer has been charged following a 10-day
drunk-driving probe. Major cases Det.-Insp. Robert Carpenter, 49, was
charged yesterday morning with operating a motor vehicle while over the
legal alcohol limit in connection with an incident in Perth June 16.
Police launched an investigation after receiving a phone complaint from a
citizen early that evening. The charge was laid when test results showed
the 28-year policing vet allegedly had more than a .08 booze level in his
bloodstream. Supt. Al Dawson refused to comment on whether Carpenter was
behind the wheel of an OPP vehicle at the time of the alleged offence. But
police said the North Burgess Twp. resident was off-duty that night. A
breathalyzer test was not among those completed. ON VACATION
"We're presenting the evidence," Dawson said. "It's up to the court
to decide guilt or innocence." Carpenter remains off work vacationing but
will be reassigned to administrative duties upon his return, pending the
outcome of the criminal proceedings. The force's professional standards
branch has started its own parallel examination of the situation. If any
breach of conduct is found by internal affairs officers, penalties under
the Police Services Act range from a suspension to outright dismissal.
Carpenter is one of several Eastern Region case managers who oversee probes
into the most serious offences as a part of the force's Criminal
Investigations Branch. He is scheduled to make his first appearence in
Perth court on July 17.
# OTTAWA COP EMPLOYEE DRUGS AND BOOZE
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Charged after Ford bash
OPP slap regional police photographer with booze,
pot rap after retirement party
By ANDREW SEYMOUR, Ottawa Sun
A SENIOR police force employee faces drug possession and drunk driving
charges after being nabbed at an OPP checkpoint just
hours after snapping photos and boozing at former chief Brian
Ford's retirement party.
"After 17 years of dedicated service ... now I'm going to be raked
over the coals," senior photo lab technician Mike Houston said
yesterday. "I've never been so ashamed or humiliated in all of my
life." The 42-year-old civilian employee was charged with driving with more
than the legal limit of alcohol in his blood and possession of an illegal
substance. OPP allege he was carrying three grams of marijuana when he was
stopped at a RIDE checkpoint June 23.
Reached yesterday at police headquarters, a remorseful Houston
said the marijuana that OPP officers found on him wasn't his.
"That's not mine and still has to be discussed in court," he said.
Houston was responsible for filming the festivities at the farewell
party at the Congress Centre and said although he was drinking, his
consumption was not excessive. "I know my limits and I maintained my
limits," he said. Houston, who is a member of the regional police
association, is being represented on the charges by Ottawa lawyer Lawrence
Greenspon. Police Chief Vince Bevan, who was out of town yesterday and not
available for comment, immediately turned the matter over to regional
police's professional standards branch after learning about the charges,
Insp. Sue O'Sullivan said. "We do have policies and procedures that govern
and it is the professional standards section that looks into it," she said.
"What they come up with will determine (Bevan's) future action." 'WON'T
AFFECT JOB'
Geoff Broadfoot, president of the regional police association, said
even if Houston is convicted he shouldn't receive a suspension or
lose his job. "In his position, a criminal record for impaired driving will
not affect his job," said Broadfoot, adding that the charges don't call
into question the regional police's relationship with the public or
Houston's honesty and integrity. "We need to give that internal review an
opportunity to happen," said police services board chairman Herb Kreling
yesterday. "We are doing what I feel is appropriate." Houston is in charge
of the lab that develops crime scene photos and also takes photos and films
the force's public relations events. He said he plans to go on stress
leave immediately. Houston is scheduled to appear in Ottawa court July 27.
********
NATIVE NEWS
POLICE GENOCIDE: CASES TURNED OVER TO JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Saskatoon Star Phoenix June 28 2000
Native deaths turned over to Justice Department
RCMP, Justice officials refuse to comfirm task
force handed over files
By Dan Zakreski
An RCMP task force has turned over files on the deaths of Darcy Ironchild
and Lloyd Dustyhorn to the provincial Justice Department, say sources close
to the investigation. The task force, investigating the suspicious deaths
of five Native men, forwarded the completed files to the province three
weeks ago. Justice officials will examine the material and then recommend
to the RCMP
whether criminal charges are warranted. RCMP and Justice officials refused
to confirm or deny whether the files were forwarded.
In total, the task force is examining seven separate cases, five of which
involved the deaths of Native men. The first matter cleared by the task
force, created by the province in February, led to assault and unlawful
confinement charges against Saskatoon police
constables Dan Hatchen and Ken Munson. The officers pleaded not guilty to
the allegation they took Darrell Night to the southern edge of the city and
dumped him at the Queen Elizabeth Power Station on Jan. 28. Night made it
back into the city. They are awaiting trial. The task force has also
completed its investigation into
the death of Lloyd Dustyhorn, found frozen to death outside a locked
apartment building on Jan. 19, just hours after his release from police
custody. It has also finished its work on the death of Darcy
Ironchild, found dead by family members in his apartment on Feb. 19, hours
after his release from the city police drunk tank.
The task force is now focusing on the deaths of Lawrence Wegner, Rodney
Naistus, Neil Stonechild and the allegation by Rodney Wailing that two
officers tried to drown him in the South Saskatchewan River. Stonechild,
17, went missing on Nov. 24, 1990 after drinking with friends. A witness
said he last saw the youth sitting in a police cruiser. His frozen body was
discovered in a field in north Saskatoon five days later. Wailing alleges
that two city police officers tried to drown him in the summer of 1995
after arresting him for public intoxication. He admitted that he had been
sniffing lacquer thinner. He was eventually charged with intoxication and
carrying a concealed knife. He said that he forgot the incident until a
televised report detailed Night's allegations.
The bodies of Wegner and Naistus were both discovered in the vicinity of
the Queen Elizabeth Power Station in a 10 day span at the end of January
and early February. A man matching Wegner's description was last seen being
forced into a police cruiser on 20th Street on Jan. 30, shortly after
police responded to reports of a disturbance in the area. Railway workers
found Wegner's frozen body near the power station Feb. 3. The body of
Naistus, also frozen, was found in front of Shamrock Feeds Ltd. on Schuyler
Street Jan. 29. He had last been seen heading for a Pacific Avenue
nightclub on Jan. 28.
BC LEGISLATURE MURALS
Bare breasts not unusual for B.C. natives in past, expert says
Jim Beatty, Sun Legislature Bureau Vancouver Sun
VICTORIA -- B.C. native leaders calling for a cover-up of legislature
murals depicting bare-breasted native women haven't kept abreast of their
history, according to several scholarly articles and a leading
anthropologist. University of Victoria anthropology professor Leland
Donald, who has studied B.C. natives for 25 years, said Tuesday it would
not have been uncommon for women to bare their
breasts in hot weather. "They dressed for working convenience," Donald
said in an interview. "Bare breasts were irrelevant."
While he hasn't seen the controversial murals in the rotunda of the
legislative building that were criticized by native leaders this week,
Donald said it was not uncommon for native men to work naked while women
covered the lower half of their bodies. "You have to ask how hot was it and
what were they doing." Breasts were not seen as intimate or sexual in the
early 1800s, Donald said, but were later sexualized by North Americans.
Four murals in the legislature depict B.C. natives in subservient, menial
and labouring positions. Painted on to the walls of the legislative
building in the 1930s, the murals depict scenes between 1792 and 1843. Most
offensive to aboriginal groups is a mural entitled Labour, which depicts
several topless native women either hauling logs to build Fort Victoria in
1843 or carrying baskets of fresh fish while blue-eye European
men in uniform look on. Grand Chief Ed John of the First Nations Summit
called the mural degrading and demeaning to aboriginal people and
historically incorrect. And he said he rejects the theories of
anthropologists. "I prefer to believe the elders that I've talked to," he
said Tuesday. "We spend far too much time listening to so called experts."
John and other native leaders suggest aboriginal women never went topless,
especially around European settlers.
On Tuesday, a day after the controversy hit the legislature, Aboriginal
Affairs Minister Dale Lovick suggested establishing a panel of experts to
review the murals and decide whether they should either remain or be
painted over with more respectful depictions of native life.
The committee should include artists, historians, anthropologists, natives
and non-natives, he said. Lovick initially said, "There is no record
whatsoever . . . of topless women. That is just not part of the West Coast
cultural tradition," but he later backed down when he was presented with a
series of scholarly articles to the contrary. "What some people will
suggest is that whether it is anthropological or historically correct won't
cut any ice. They will simply say they find it distasteful."
But John rejected outright the idea of the issue being studied by a
committee. "Sending it to a panel of experts is not going to change the
repugnancy of those murals," John said, suggesting they glorify colonialism
while demeaning natives. "It's time to bring these pictures and the
Parliament Buildings into the 21st century."
At least three articles from the Royal B.C. Museum archives suggest the
Coast Salish people wore little, if any, clothing in warm weather. "In
warm weather, men wore no clothing at all or simply a robe thrown over the
shoulders," says a 1990 article on Coast Salish natives. "Women wore a
short apron or skirt and usually a robe around the shoulders." That is
precisely how the native women are depicted in the mural that shows them
carrying baskets of fish and hauling logs to help build Fort Victoria. The
four controversial murals, which are among the first things tourists see
when entering the legislature, were painted by commercial artist George
Southwell in 1932. Southwell died in 1961 and it isn't known if he did
historical research before he began painting the murals.
While Lovick calls the murals crude and demeaning, he says they should
remain on the walls of the legislative building as a reminder of an ugly
part of the province's past.
Mark Denman
crime?
Michael Newton
June 30, 2000
Alberta: Coach admits sex assault
National Post
EDMONTON - The former executive director of the Edmonton Minor Soccer
Association pleaded guilty yesterday to sexual misconduct with two boys he
coached. Henricus (Rick) Valentyn, 35, admitted in
provincial court he sexually exploited a 15-year-old boy and sexually
assaulted another when the youth was aged 17 and 18. Both 1996 cases
involved excessive drinking, fondling and in one case oral sex. "It's good
that the kids won't have to testify," said Mario Charpentier, the club
president.
*******
GIRL (13) GUILTY, CAT MUTILATIONS
Friday, June 30, 2000 Girl sentenced in cat mutilations
By CP
SASKATOON -- A 13-year-old girl charged after a disturbing
series of cat mutilations was sentenced to 33 days time served and
two years' probation in provincial court yesterday. Defence lawyer Buffy
Rodgers told court the girl maintains she was responsible for only one of
the six incidents in which five cats died and one survived. "Her brother is
responsible for the other animals that were mutilated," Rodgers told Judge
Albert Lavoie, adding the boy forced his sister to watch him kill the cats
and made her clean up their remains.
It was a traumatic experience in what has been a traumatic childhood for
the girl, Rodgers said.
The girl pleaded guilty May 31 to one charge of animal cruelty, as
well as an unrelated charge of robbing a 16-year-old girl at
knifepoint and another unrelated charge of theft under $5,000.
Lavoie sentenced her following a joint submission from Rodgers
and Crown prosecutor Val Adamko. A custodial sentence for the
girl would only serve society's interests in the short term and would not
provide the girl with the 24-hour care she needs to deal with psychological
problems, substance abuse and trauma, Adamko told
Lavoie. The girl will be treated at a residential facility for troubled
children.
********
TWO GIRLS SERIOUSLY SEXUALLY ASSAULTED 6 YR OLD GIRL
By BERNIE BENNETT, The St John's Nfld Telegram
There will be no one charged in connection with the serious sexual
assault of a six-year-old girl last Saturday evening in the Ropewalk
Lane area, even though police believe they know who did it. The two people
who allegedly assaulted the little girl are under 12 years of age, both
girls, and cannot be charged with an offence because of their age. The
matter has been turned over to the Child, Youth and Family Services
division of the Department of Health and Community Services, St. John's
Region.
The young victim was hospitalized for an examination and released. The
incident occurred around 5 p.m. and members of the sexual abuse section of
the RNC carried out an intensive investigation. They tracked down a second
young girl who was with the victim, and say
they confirmed an assault had taken place. Up to that time, police were
looking for two 15-year-old boys who were seen in the area at the time and
were believed responsible.
"The investigators have confirmed the validity of the sexual assault, which
has been extremely traumatic for the young victim, her family and the
family of those (believed) responsible," said RNC spokesman Sgt. Bob
Garland. "It was extremely serious and the incident has had an effect on
all of them. But it's now out of our hands. That's it. It's no longer an
RNC investigation. We were initially looking for two teenage boys, but
we're not looking for
anyone anymore in connection with the incident."
Garland denied reports that the young girl had been thrown into a dumpster
after she was assaulted, although there was a dumpster near where the
incident occurred.
********
Friday, June 30, 2000
Affair with patient costs doctor a year's practice
By SHAUNE MacKINLAY -- The Daily News
A Shelburne County family doctor's affair with a female patient - whom he
diagnosed with a serious psychiatric problem - has cost him his medical
practice for one year.
Dr. William Hunter Blair, 60, admitted professional misconduct and was
suspended from practising medicine for a year in a settlement with the
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia.
"I hope it sends the understanding that doctors should not take advantage
of patients, and that there are vulnerable patients, and that there are
boundaries which, when we go into medicine, we agree that we'll respect,"
college registrar Dr. Cameron Little, said yesterday.
Details contained in the settlement portray the relationship in a far more
damaging light than the romance many people in the Barrington doctor's
community believed it to be. The document refers to Blair's lover only as
Patient X, but Joanna Hyde, 39, has publicly identified herself as the
woman. Hyde says she wants the public to know she's not a victim. Hyde had
a three-year history of psychiatric illness when Blair took over her file.
According to the settlement, her previous doctor severed ties with her
because she was delusional, wrongly believing she had a romantic
relationship
with him.
Blair began treating her in 1996, diagnosing her with bipolar disorder.
Romantic feelings didn't develop until June 1999, and the couple didn't
consummate their relationship until last August, when Hyde was no longer
his patient. During Blair's treatment of Hyde, largely for counselling, she
continued to have serious mental problems. He was consulted in early 1997
before her admission to a psychiatric unit. In August 1998, Hyde was again
hospitalized
because Blair thought she was suicidal. On Oct. 30, 1999, six weeks after
Blair learned he was under investigation, Hyde checked herself into the
psychiatric unit for a third stay. She was committed after doctors found
she was so "acutely psychotic" she could not
consent to treatment. She was discharged into Blair's care one month later.
Last Friday, municipal leaders from Barrington and neighbouring Clark's
Harbour and handed the college of physicians a petition signed by 4,000
people backing Blair. Yesterday, Clark's Harbour Mayor Leigh Stoddart
seemed surprised by the information in the settlement, but it didn't change
his mind about Blair.
"I don't think anyone here believes that because of her condition he took
advantage of her," Stoddart said. Stoddart said the college's decision
penalizes his community. Blair's suspension leaves only two doctors to
treat 9,000 people. Little said he sympathizes with the community's plight,
but it's up to the province to recruit another doctor for the area. Neither
Blair nor his lawyer would comment yesterday. Blair must pass a psychiatric
assessment at a sexual behaviours clinic before the college lifts the
suspension, which takes effect July 8. When his licence is restored, he
will be banned from doing psychotherapy.
Friday, June 30, 2000 Ban `absolutely absurd,' lover says
By JO-ANNE MacDONALD -- The Daily News
Joanna Hyde says the love she shared with Dr. William Hunter Blair didn't
break any rules. Hyde accused the College of Physicians and Surgeons
yesterday of twisting her medical history and wrongly concluding that Blair
took advantage of her. The college suspended Blair, 60, from practising
medicine for one year because of their relationship. "The college has
attempted to paint me as a psychotic dimwit of a victim who didn't even
know she was a victim," Hyde, 39, said. "I know my own mind and I will not
have a governing body from the land of Oz telling me that my emotions and
my affections for someone are somehow misplaced or unhealthy. I mean it's
absolutely absurd."
She called the settlement detailing their relationship a "fabrication" that
Blair felt pressured to sign. Hyde, a mother of two, became Blair's patient
in 1996 and began seeing him on a weekly basis in 1998. The visits, she
said, mostly consisted of reading to
him from her diary on the death of her mother in 1993 and its profound
effect on her. She said they ended their doctor/patient relationship in
June 1999, when they realized they had fallen in love. They consummated
their love two months later, she said.
They have since separated from their spouses, and are still seeing one
another. Hyde denied the college's assertion that another doctor had
dropped her as a patient because she had romantic delusions about him. The
college's 10-month investigation of Blair was "hell" for both of them, Hyde
said. She is relieved the decision is out and has asked Shelburne's weekly
newspaper to print it so people will be able to "see right through this."
********
QUEBEC SEX CHANGE SURGEON
Friday 30 June 2000
Scalpel, drugs and damage done: suit
Woman claims surgeon botched her sex change, enticed her with cocaine and
had sex with her
DEBBIE PARKES
The Montreal Gazette
It's a story lurid enough for the front page of a supermarket tabloid, only
the person at the centre this time is a Quebec City plastic surgeon. His
name is Denys Chabot, and in March 1996, at St. Francois d'Assise Hospital,
he performed a sex-change operation on a man who today lives her life as a
30-year-old woman.
Now, the woman is suing Chabot for $583,000, claiming among other things
that the operation was far from a success and she'll have to undergo
corrective surgery. Furthermore, she alleges Chabot abused his professional
relationship by having sex with her - after first enticing her with
cocaine. Marc Boulanger, one of two lawyers representing the woman, said
she continues to have major psychological problems for which she takes
medication, although she
has gained some self-esteem having found work in a high-profile cabaret
show. Even Chabot admits in a statement of defence that he had sex with
the woman about six months after the operation, after running into her at a
bar where she was working as a dancer. However, he denies that there were
ever any drugs involved.
Having sex with a patient is a clear violation of Quebec's Professional
Code. Last week, Chabot pleaded guilty before a disciplinary committee of
the College des Medecins on one charge regarding his conduct with the
woman, although no details
of the case came out at that time. In his written defence in the civil
case, Chabot also says problems with the operation - which the woman says
include breasts that are too high, an improper
vaginal cavity, a lack of a clitoris and small labia - are a result of
inherent risks and he is not to blame.
Chabot also admits in his statement of defence that he told the woman that
he had been having problems of sensation in his right hand - a detail
mentioned in the woman's suit. However Chabot denies something else the
woman claims - that he told her he had
been off work for almost a year and had been trying to learn how to operate
with his left hand.
In her suit, the woman says she was "stupefied" to learn Chabot performed
her operation with his left hand. According to the woman, this is how the
sexual relationship happened:
One night in the fall of 1996, she was working at Bar l'Extasy in Quebec
City when, to her surprise, she noticed Chabot sitting in the front row.
Chabot grabbed her by the arm and invited her to a private booth, but
there, the woman was unwilling to comply with his requests for sexual acts,
according to her version. Seeing her malaise, Chabot asked her to get him a
glass of water, her suit says. Upon her return, she alleges, she saw that
the doctor had prepared two lines of cocaine.
Unhappy Past
Chabot knew from their doctor-patient relationship that her unhappy past
included prostitution and a drug problem, the woman claims.
She had been off drugs for a while, but ended up back on them after
problems from the operation, she claims. Unable to resist the cocaine, she
consumed it with the doctor, she says. After, Chabot asked her to go home
with him, promising more cocaine there.
At his home, he subjected her to a night of degrading and perverted sex
acts, she claims.
A few days later, she accepted a telephone invitation to have dinner
together in a restaurant, believing that Chabot intended to apologize.
Instead, no sooner had she gotten into his car when he gave her $300 and
told her to buy cocaine for him, she alleges.
The woman complied, and from going to a restaurant they ended up at his
house where he subjected her to more degrading sex, including "brutal
acts," the suit says.
These incidents and the medical problems, including problems urinating
properly, helped to push the woman farther into the world of drugs and
prostitution to the point that her only desire was to die of a drug
overdose, the suit says. She says she spent six months in 1997 and 1998 in
a drug-treatment program and also made one suicide attempt after that. In
his statement of defence, Chabot acknowledges that he paid her to dance for
him in a private booth, but denies the rest of what the woman alleges
happened that
night. He does, however, admit phoning her a few days after the meeting at
the bar. He says he invited her to dinner at his place, she accepted, and
he picked her up at her home.
Once in the car, the woman asked for $300, which he gave her, he says. From
there, they went straight to his place, he says. That night, the two had
consensual sex, he says. In fact, any sex between a doctor and his patient
is clearly prohibited by Quebec's
Professional Code, and at the hearing last week, the disciplinary committee
said it will accept a recommendation that Chabot be suspended for six
months and fined $600. However, the suspension won't start until after the
committee hands down its written ruling, which is said it expects to do in
July.
Chabot no longer performs sex-change operations, his lawyer, Louis
Lacoursiere, said, although he was unable to say why he stopped.
********
CLIFFORD BROWN, 10 YEARS, MURDERED WIFE
Friday, June 30, 2000 Brown apologizes for wife's murder
By KEVIN MARTIN, CALGARY SUN
With his victim's and his own relatives wiping away tears, a
contrite Clifford Brown yesterday said he wished he could relive
the day he murdered his wife. "I know saying sorry doesn't change
anything," Brown told Justice Peter Martin, his voice cracking with emotion
and nearly inaudible. "But ... I wish the day hadn't happened, I'm sorry."
Brown, who remained silent throughout his trial, expressed remorse for the
first time for killing his wife Janice, shortly before Martin handed him a
mandatory life term.
"I'm very sorry to my children, to Janice's family, to Janice, to my
family, to everyone," he said. Martin ordered Brown to serve the legislated
minimum 10 years in prison before being eligible for parole. Crown
prosecutor Harold Hagglund wanted it lifted to 15 years. But Martin said
that, although courts don't condone spousal abuse, Brown's actions didn't
warrant an increased punishment because he had no history of violence.
"Had this been a relationship punctuated with prior abuse I would
not hesitate to significantly increase the period of parole ineligibility
to 15 years or more," he said. Brown was convicted by a jury Wednesday of
second-degree murder for strangling his wife on Dec. 21, 1998, in their
Cochrane home. Defence lawyer Mary Brebner had argued Brown was provoked
into killing his wife when she allegedly taunted him about her lover.
Martin said he doubted the victim made any such comment. The Queen's Bench
judge urged the two families to reconcile despite the tragedy. Hostilities
boiled over Tuesday when Brown was assaulted outside the court house,
resulting in Janice Brown's brother being charged. Relatives have also been
fighting over access to the couple's two children, Amanda, 14, and Colin,
10. "I would plead with members of both families ... to do everything
possible to act in their best interests," he said.
********
MAURA CABRERA, HUSBAND POISONED
'My child is innocent'
Lawyer, families slam police probe of man's death from poisoning
Kalvin Reid, St Catharines Standard June 30 2000
Niagara Regional Police have "prejudiced" the case against Maura
Cabrera, the accused killer's lawyer charged Thursday. Speaking after
Cabrera made her second court appearance since being charged with
first-degree murder in the poisoning death of her common law husband Rick
Sawyer, lawyer Geoffrey Hadfield criticized the police investigation and
the timing of Cabrera's arrest. "It is our view that evidence is being fed
in tantalizing tidbits to the press," Hadfield said. "This case has taken
on the feel of an American
case, tried in the press before it is tried in the courts.
"There has been a dribble of information that is, in our view, quite
meaningless. They have prejudiced the case against Maura before the
investigation is even complete. "This isn't a case of having the death and
mode of death determined before arresting a suspect. What they have done is
arrested a suspect and now they are trying to build a case." The police
deny they are conducting a flawed investigation. Inspector Donna Moody of
the NRP major crime unit said the force has assigned its top two forensic
investigators to the case. "I have no problem with our investigation," she
said in an interview Thursday. "We are still putting our case together. Not
all the evidence has been turned over to the Crown yet."
Cabrera, 29, was in court for a detainment order until her bail hearing, a
necessary step under the Criminal Code for people charged with the most
serious offences in Canadian law. Wearing a yellow t-shirt over a grey
sweatsuit, with her hair in two braids tied with white elastics, Cabrera
looked worn as she stood in the prisoner's box in courtroom 2 of the
Welland courthouse. Her hands cuffed and her arms folded across her chest,
her gaze was downcast for most of her five-minute appearance, only looking
up occasionally at her lawyer or the judge. She did not scan the gallery
where a handful of supporters, including her parents, the father of the
victim, the victim's uncle and a few friends, sat.
She will remain in custody until a July 14 bail hearing in Welland.
Sawyer, 28, was admitted to Welland County General Hospital June 16
complaining of sickness and impaired vision. He was diagnosed with
poisoning and transferred to Hotel Dieu Hospital in St. Catharines, where
he slipped into a coma and died June 18. Cabrera, a native of Guatemala,
was arrested by Niagara Regional Police June 20, two days before Sawyer's
funeral. The couple's children, Ricky Jr., 5, and Jean-Paul, 10, Cabrera's
son by a previous marriage, have been staying with Cabrera's parents.
Hadfield said he has a petition, signed by members of both the Cabrera and
Sawyer families, requesting Cabrera be released on bail.
"Both the Cabreras and the Sawyers are here in support of Maura," he said,
the crowd of family and friends surrounding him nodding in approval.
"People who are intimate with Maura and know what kind of person she is,
are here in support of her." Hadfield also said members of Sawyer's family
have presented him with evidence they feel will exonerate Cabrera. "The
Sawyer family is rallying around Maura, trying to assist in her defence,"
he said. "They are of the
view that Maura did not murder her husband." As Hadfield spoke to
reporters, Jerry Sawyer, father of the victim, stood solemnly and nodded in
agreement with the lawyer's criticism of the investigation. Standing
beside Hadfield, in the middle of the crowd that filled the courtroom,
Carlos and Hazel Cabrera broke into tears, holding each other in their
arms, thinking of a daughter they feel is wrongly accused.
After they had a chance to compose themselves, they spoke to the media for
the first time since Cabrera was arrested. "My child is innocent," Carlos
Cabrera said in heavily accented English. "I know her. She has a big
heart." Not including court appearances, the Cabreras have only seen their
daughter once since she was
arrested June 20. They were permitted a 10-minute visit last Monday.
The Cabreras said they are finding support from all quarters.
"Even people I have never seen in my life have stopped me in the street and
told me to be strong," Hazel Cabrera said. Following a five-day police
search of the townhouse Cabrera and Sawyer shared on Denistoun Street in
Welland, Hadfield and a private investigator, a former Metropolitan Toronto
officer, went through the house.
Hadfield said there were a number of items the police should have seized
for evidence and didn't, such as 24 bottles of open wine on a rack in the
living room, a bottle found under the stairs containing a clear liquid but
labelled as rye-whisky and bottles of pills and liquid prescription drugs
found in the bedroom and bathroom.
All the items could be potential leads to the cause of death, Hadfield
said. "These pieces of evidence are gone now from the point of view of
ascertaining what happened here," he said.
Hadfield said he and the investigator took pictures and video of the scene
shortly after police wrapped up their investigation. "(The family) is
concerned about counteracting the sense of sensationalism that's been, in
our view, fuelled by small doses of information doled out to the press by
the Niagara Regional Police," Hadfield
said. Moody said it is not necessary for police to seize the actual bottles
from the house to gather evidence from them. She said investigating
officers seized between 50 and 60 exhibits from the
Sawyer/Cabrera residence, including samples from various bottles found in
the home. Police have determined Sawyer was killed by methyl alcohol, but
the source of the poison is still unknown. Tests on toxins found in the
home and in the press room of the Welland Tribune, where Cabrera was
employed, have yet to be completed.
"We have a lot of samples to go through," Moody said. "The investigation
was conducted in a normal fashion. There was enough evidence to lay the
charge, so we did so at an appropriate time."
But the timing of the arrest has Hadfield puzzled. He says police should
have shown some compassion to allow Cabrera to attend Sawyer's funeral. He
said Cabrera was "extremely upset" she could not be at Eglise Sacre-Coeur
June 22. "The fact the police would arrest Maura immediately before the
funeral, hours before the funeral, precluded her from attending her common
law husband's funeral and precluded her from offering comfort to her
children," Hadfield said. Hadfield said both families were also upset
Cabrera could not attend the funeral, but he was interrupted by Sawyer's
uncle. "Go a little further," Ed Sawyer said. "We are angry."
*********
JEAN GUY TREMBLAY DELAY D.O. DECISION
Friday, June 30, 2000 Delay angers victims
By KEVIN MARTIN, CALGARY SUN
It will be at least another month before serial woman abuser Jean
Guy Tremblay learns whether he will be locked up indefinitely.
Justice Scott Brooker said yesterday he hasn't made a final
determination on a Crown application to declare Tremblay a
dangerous offender. He said he will rule Aug. 3. The delay was met with
frustration by his most recent victims. "For me it's gotten to the point
where it's a joke," said Tamarah Hallson who, along with fellow victim
Tamara Monilaws, showed up to learn the new court date. "It's been three
years," said Hallson, a former roommate of
Tremblay's who was assaulted and confined by the Montreal native
in 1997. Hallson said she has put her life on hold, waiting to find out
when, and if, Tremblay will regain his freedom. "I can't do anything -- I
want to go back to school and I don't even know what country I'm going to
be in," she said, explaining she will move to the U.S. if Tremblay is freed.
********
DONALD GAZLEY PEDOPHILE SEX OFFENDER 2 MONTHS???
Man involved in murder case sentenced for sexual assaults
Rob Tripp, Whig-Standard Staff Writer June 30 2000
The man who led police to the remains of a murdered Kingston woman has been
sentenced to two months in jail for four sexual assaults on young girls.
Donald John Gazley, 39, a repeat sex offender whose last crime landed him
in federal prison for seven years, declined to speak before Mr. Justice
Rommel Masse passed sentence. Masse noted Gazley's past record and the age
of his latest victims, girls who
were 11 to 14 years old at the time of the crimes.
"It's most distressing to me as a judge, as a citizen, as a father," Masse
said, before announcing the sentence of two months in jail, in addition to
the seven months Gazley spent in pre-trial custody.
The sentence is equal to 16 months in jail, Masse said. The judge also
imposed three years of probation and conditions that forbid
Gazley from being in the company of children under 14, except his own
seven-year-old son, without another responsible adult present.
He's also forbidden to visit parks, playgrounds, public swimming pools and
other spots where children are found, without another adult. Prosecutor
Gerard Laarhuis said he and defence lawyer David Crowe struck a deal,
agreeing to ask for a sentence of 12 to 18 months. Laarhuis said there was
some doubt whether the Crown could prove its case if a trial was held. "We
don't have to prove those facts," he said, because of the guilty pleas. No
mention was made in court of five other sex-related charges involving the
same victims.
"The Crown in charge of this matter has had extensive interviews with the
complainants and the parents of the complainants," Laarhuis said. Even the
families agreed to the deal, the Crown lawyer said, preferring the
"sure-thing guilty plea" rather than risk a trial.
Lawyers Peter Kemp and Peter Napier were attentive spectators in the front
row of the public gallery as Gazley's case concluded. An hour earlier, the
two defence lawyers appeared in an adjacent court room to discuss the case
against their client, James Nelson Wall.
Wall, 44, was charged in January with first-degree murder after Gazley took
police to an isolated spot roughly 50 kilometres northeast of Kingston.
Investigators found the skeletal remains of Jutta Weber, a 48-year-old
Kingston woman missing since August 1997.
Wall was Weber's live-in boyfriend at the time she vanished.
Gazley still faces a charge of accessory after the fact to murder in
Weber's killing and will be back in court in August on the charge.
Wall's lawyers will be back in court in July, when a date is expected to be
set for a preliminary hearing.
********
RICHARD CAREEN PEDOPHILE PAROLED
6/30/00 By BERNIE BENNETT, The St John's Nfld. Telegram
A St. Mary's Bay man, who was released on day parole in April after serving
16 months of a four-year sentence after being convicted on a number of
sexual assault and violent offences, has been granted full parole in a
compassionate decision by the National Parole Board.
Richard Joseph Careen, 44, has terminal cancer and apparently has only days
to live.
Careen was convicted by a Newfoundland Supreme Court jury in November 1998
of 18 counts of assault-related offences against six complainants. The
offences included everything from assault causing bodily harm and assault
with a weapon to indecent assault and gross indecency. He was released on
day parole on April 13 on conditions that he abstain from alcohol, not have
any contact with any of his victims or be in the company of children under
the age of 18 years, remain within a 20-kilometre radius of St. John's and
return to a halfway house in the evenings.
With full parole, Careen is now permitted to return to his hometown to live
out his final days because, given his condition, the NPB fells he doesn't
pose any risk. The NPB said his counselling treatment initiatives have
taken a back seat to his deteriorating health condition. "The most recent
medical information suggests that you have only days to live," the NPB
wrote to Careen in its summary of reasons for granting him full parole.
"The board determined that with your current medical condition, your risk
to society is low.
You simply want to return to your home community to live out the rest of
your days in a supportive setting."
But, the NPB noted, given that Careen's community remains largely divided
between his supporters and detractors, his return home is a cause of
concern. The board said the RCMP have also questioned how his medical needs
can be met in a rural location about two hours away from hospital in St.
John's. The NPB said it carefully verified all of the relevant issues
relating to risk as well as the concerns expressed by the victims, but on
balance has decided that Careen's presence in society on full parole does
not constitute an unacceptable risk. "Your life hangs in the balance and a
release to allow you to live out your final days at home appears to be a
just, humane and appropriate decision in this circumstance," stated the NPB.
********
TORONTO COPS & MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS TEAMS
June 30, 2000
Test project teams crisis unit, police
Aim is more caring response to the mentally ill
By Heather Greenwood
Toronto Star Staff Reporter
Toronto police and mental health workers have joined forces to deal more
sensitively with mentally ill people - and, it's hoped, defuse situations
that might otherwise end in police shootings. Starting tomorrow, police
officers in Scarborough's 42 Division will be required to call a local
mental health crisis unit for cases involving an ``emotionally disturbed
person,'' Inspector Gary Ellis said. The initiative partners officers with
the Scarborough Mobile Crisis Unit, a division of the New Dimensions of
Community Living program (NDCL) created by the health ministry.
Ellis, a member of the New Dimensions board, agreed to a pilot project in
his division over the next six months. Coroner's inquests into the deaths
of schizophrenics Wayne Williams and Edmund
Yu, both shot and killed by police, contributed to his strong feelings
about the need for the program. ``It's heavy on my mind always,'' Ellis
said. ``They're in the wheelchair of the mind.
How would you feel with someone who's disabled in another way, having to
use force on them? This is no different.'' When it gets a call, the Mobile
Crisis Unit will send out a team of two: a psychiatric nurse/social worker
and a crisis intervention worker. They'll be able to do on-site mental
status assessments, explain the person's mental status to police and help
calm the situation.
On Wednesday, laminated cards carrying the crisis unit's phone number were
attached to the dashboards of 42 Division cruisers. The cards explain how
to fill out a report for evaluation and tracking.
At the end of the pilot project, Ellis said, a decision will be made about
whether to pursue the program at all 17 Toronto police divisions. Julie, a
psychiatric nurse at the Mobile Crisis Unit who has been riding with police
to get acquainted, says the idea of combining units has been well-received.
Crisis workers do not disclose their last names, for safety reasons. ``The
families have always been pleased to see us,'' she said. ``We've had no
complaints about service.'' Over the past three months, officers and mobile
crisis workers have gone together to certain calls, on a voluntary basis.
Recently, when a young man stood baying at the moon in the streets of
Toronto, instead of being arrested he was taken to a hospital, diagnosed as
psychotic and given treatment.
The service is also practical, as it lets officers leave a mentally ill
person in a professional's care while they return to patrol.
Julie said the crisis unit can provide the mentally ill with access to
long-term care, support services, education for their families and support
groups. The program is not without controversy, however.
The mobile unit has only a dispatcher and the two-person team on duty
during each of three daily eight-hour shifts, Julie said. That means
incoming calls must be prioritized. The project also drew criticism at last
weekend's ``Alternatives to the Use of Lethal
Force'' conference, where some psychiatric survivors said it would be
better for a person with experience of mental illness to go on such calls
than a mental health worker. The main point, Ellis said, is not ``who comes
along,'' but the fact that ``attempts are
being made to fix the problem.''
*******
KARLA HOMOLKA
Thursday, June 29, 2000 Dangerous liaison
Karla's former jail pal still fears for life
By HEATHER BIRD-- Toronto Sun
It should be no surprise to learn that, like many of the other
inmates, Karla Homolka liked to keep family snapshots in her cell. One,
however, was larger than all the rest and more prominently displayed. It
was a framed 8x10 photograph of her dead sister, Tammy, the one who she
helped to kill. Its mere presence was upsetting to other women who lived
and worked in the segregation unit at Kingston's now-defunct Prison for
Women. "It was so prominent, it was the first thing you'd see," recalls
"Jennifer," one of Homolka's fellow prisoners. "It was right by the edge of
the desk and the desk was right by the door. "I think what was creepy was
that she'd just act like everything was normal ... she would say she loved
her sister. And that she missed her."
Everything was definitely not normal, as Jennifer was about to find out. A
short-lived, intense friendship with the notorious schoolgirl killer made
her fear for her life while she was on the inside. And
even though she's been out for some time, she still is afraid about what
might happen if her family or friends were to find out today she had been
in close contact with the most reviled woman in the country. Homolka will
be much in the news in the coming weeks and months as the clock ticks down
on the remainder of her sentence. As of next Wednesday, she will be
eligible for mandatory release in exactly a year, unless Corrections Canada
applies to have her detained. If they do, they will have to give Homolka
written notice by Jan. 5 that they want to keep her until her warrant
expires in July 2005. Then, in order for her to stay in jail, they will
have to convince the National Parole Board at a public hearing that there
are grounds to believe Homolka will commit a serious offence before 2005.
NO DECISION TO KEEP HER
As of yesterday, no decision had been made on whether to try to keep her,
says Corrections Canada spokesman Jacques Belanger. Likewise, the lawyer
who acted for her most recently says he has heard nothing, officially or
otherwise. "I don't think they will try to do that," says Pascal
Lescarbeau. "I don't see any reason to do that."
Jennifer is in agreement. "I think it would be a mistake to let her stay
her full 12 years, I really do. I think if you were talking about eight
years versus 20 years -- that would be a big difference -- (then) keep her
in for 20. "If (they) think she's that dangerous, why wouldn't you want to
let her out with some supervision? I mean, when people get out of jail,
it's a big shock to their system. I don't think she's going to be any
different." The two became acquainted when the 33-year-old Jennifer, whose
own rap sheet brought her just short of a dangerous offender designation,
was
transferred to segregation after she got into trouble with other inmates in
the general population over drugs. "I became friends with her because I was
put into seg for an unjust cause," she recalls. At first, Homolka was only
allowed into common areas by herself but as time passed, Jennifer was
allowed to join her on a nightly basis to
make tea or play Trivial Pursuit. Otherwise, they were locked in their
cells 23 hours a day. Once the other prisoners noticed that the pair were
keeping company they began to make their displeasure known. "People were
yelling at me. The more I talked to her, the more they yelled at me. The
more they yelled at me, the more I talked to her. That's how it got to be
until I couldn't stand it any more."
Jennifer says that while Homolka never talked of her crimes, she came to
the conclusion over the six months they were together that she was far more
involved in the killings than she let on to authorities. Even months after
they separated, Homolka still referred to Paul Bernardo as her "soul mate"
and reminisced about their storybook wedding. "I don't know if he was the
sole killer of Kristen and Leslie. I really don't see that. My theory has
been all along that she was obsessed with Paul Bernardo and would do just
about anything to please him. And she did." Jennifer also noticed over
time that Homolka was fixated on seeing herself as the victim, while she
totally ignored any role she may have played as victimizer.
'SHE WAS ONE OF YOU'
"She just seemed to be like she never had any remorse, like it was just
business as usual." While their closeness seemed natural at the time,
Jennifer has since questioned why she ever kept company with Homolka at
all. "I've never been able to talk to anybody about this. I just feel that
any kind of friendship I ever had -- or whatever it was ... I mean, Jesus
Christ, I was locked up for 23 hours a day. I think that the rumours that
used to go around P4W were blown out of proportion." The rumours even
reached the outside. On one occasion, Bernardo's lawyer Tony Bryant left a
message. He had heard the pair knew one another and wanted to know if she
had gleaned any information from Homolka which could be used against her in
court. She refused to co-operate.
At the time, she still believed that Homolka was okay. "Karla made you feel
like she was your friend. She was one of you, really, she was bubbly. She
reminded me of somebody who didn't belong in there ... it was like she was
at a summer camp, almost. Maybe it was shock or whatever she was feeling,
but she didn't act like a prisoner."
It was only much later, when Jennifer learned many more details about the
crimes, that she realized she may have been manipulated by the petite,
pretty blonde. "She was a passive egomaniac. She knew she was pretty, she
knew she was smart."
'THE PRINCESS'
The pressure on the friendship was intense, she says, partially because the
inmates felt "the princess" was getting preferential treatment. And she
was. Threats against Homolka meant total lockdowns every time she moved
within the institution. The amount of mucous and saliva which made its way
into her meals meant the head steward in the kitchen was the only one
allowed to prepare her food. And since some of the guards didn't want any
part of her, a special group was assigned to handle her area. In the end,
it was too much for any friendship to bear. "Even talking to her was
totally destroying my reputation. People would have loved to probably
kill me. I finally told her I couldn't talk to her anymore.
"She understood. She totally understood. I think for a while there she was
grateful that anybody was talking to her at all."
In the end, Jennifer felt sorry for her. "She seemed like a nice girl (but
I had to stop.) Not because she was weird, not because she turned me off in
any way. I couldn't stand being yelled at any more." A short time later,
when Jennifer was transferred back to general population she was greeted
with several fistfights over her friendship with Karla. Eventually, her
tormentors got bored.
She only ever saw Karla one time after that. It was during a lockdown, when
Jennifer and some others were trapped in a tunnel while Homolka was being
moved. Jennifer was at the front of the line and through the glass in the
locked door, she saw her old friend come into view. When the pair locked
eyes, Homolka gave no sign of recognition. "And I thought, does she ever
look cold, man. Her eyes looked dead."
******** BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO ********
# OTTAWA COP BIGAMIST
Friday, June 30, 2000
Accused bigamist faces trial
By Richard Roik, Ottawa Sun
A veteran regional police officer charged with bigamy has waived
his preliminary hearing amid threats his alleged second wife would
be thrown in jail if she didn't testify for the Crown. Const. Eric Fenato,
40, opted yesterday to go straight to trial -- with
the date to be set in September -- after Joan Kendall refused
Wednesday to take the witness stand. "If you guys have to put me in jail, I
guess you have to," the 48-year-old Kendall told the court Wednesday.
Details of the preliminary hearing are covered by a publication ban.
Fenato is accused of secretly marrying Kendall during a Caribbean
vacation five years ago -- while he was legally wed to his first wife
Linda. Fenato was also charged with obstructing justice, unauthourized
possession of a restricted weapon, theft under $5,000 in connection with
the restricted handgun, and careless storage of it. The theft charge was
stayed at the opening of Fenato's preliminary hearing Wednesday. Fenato is
also facing one count of failing to comply with his bail conditions for
allegedly communicating with Kendall after his release. That condition has
since been lifted -- allowing the two to appear in court yesterday side by
side.
********
NATIVE NEWS
REGINA/MANITOBA LEONARD WABASH, DANGEROUS OFFENDER STATUS
Friday, June 30, 2000 Jail for sex attack
By CP
REGINA -- A Manitoba man who savagely beat and sexually assaulted a
75-year-old great-grandmother was jailed indefinitely yesterday.
Leonard Wabash, who sat handcuffed and shackled in Court of Queen's Bench,
was designated a dangerous offender by Justice Ronald Barclay. "The stark
and chilling horror surrounding the incident has shaken the security of the
Saskatchewan public, as the nature of this offence is so foreign to
small-town Saskatchewan," said Barclay. "What Wabash did was so callous,
brutal and senseless, it
showed a complete lack of appreciation of the value of human
life." Gripping an eagle feather, Wabash, 33, showed no emotion as
Barclay read out his lengthy criminal record of violent sex crimes.
"Public safety dictates that Wabash's freedom awaits the day
which will hopefully arrive when there can be some assurance that
he will not resume his pattern of violence," Barclay said.
*************
MOTHER CLAIMS SASKATOON POLICE LET BABY MURDERER WALK
Police, mother at odds over probe into baby's death
Saskatoon woman irate two suspects walk free after
1998 shaking death
By Darren Bernhardt Saskatoon Star Phoenix June 30 2000
A Saskatoon woman is frustrated by what she calls a laggard approach by the
police to investigating the 1998 murder of her infant son even though she
claims to know who is responsible. Two-month-old Nicholas Waterhen died in
August 1998 after he had been under the care of a babysitter. Following an
autopsy and further tests, it was
determined he died of internal injuries.
"He was shook so bad he had seven ribs broken and he had bleeding in his
throat and bleeding in the brain," his mom, Juliane Waterhen, said. "The
police had four suspects and then brought it down
to two. But they (police) haven't done anything since that."
Const. Grant Little said he can understand Waterhen's frustration because
everyone, including the police, don't like to see crimes go unpunished.
"But the problem is she would like to see this thing
pushed in a manner the policy simply cannot do," he said.
"There are procedural things, by law, that the police have to follow. I
know she wants us to force people to take polygraphs, for example, but we
can't do that. That's never been allowed."
Waterhen says both suspects were living at her house at the time. She
claims one of them took a police polygraph, or lie detector, test and
received a 50-50 pass. She says he was asked to have another one but he
moved to Alberta. He has since returned to live in Saskatoon while the
other person, who hadn't yet taken the test, moved to a reserve near Loon
Lake. Waterhen wants the police to order the men to be tested again because
there are so many different
versions of what happened that night. She said that one of the men has
stated he was in the shower at the time the incident was supposed to have
happened. But that story was later changed to him washing dishes in the
kitchen and then to being downstairs where he
couldn't hear the baby crying. Waterhen said she doesn't permit smoking or
drinking in the house - or even allow people who are drunk to enter the
house. But one of the men was "half-shot" after drinking that night and "he
was staying in the same room as my
baby," she said. "I just want to have some answers but the police have been
giving me the run around," said Waterhen, adding that Nicholas's father,
who doesn't live with her, is also pushing to get some action. "My baby was
shook to death and there are two suspects. Why can't the police do
anything? These two assholes are still walking around and I want someone
charged."
"This is by no means a filed and finished case by any stretch of the
imagination," said Little. "It's being actively investigated."
Just this week police were interviewing people in regards to the case. But
Little said police are not confirming there are specific suspects. "If she
wants to say there are, fine, but we're not
saying anything at this point," said Little. "There are multiple ways to
approach an investigation, including looking into witnesses or forensic
evidence, if there is any. We have to look at all angles and do it by the
numbers. If we shortcut trying to get to an end result, it only undermines
the case."
*******
HAMILTON/THUNDER BAY JOE COSTIN 5 YEARS MURDERED BABY
Costin gets five years for killing his baby
Barbara Brown, Justice Reporter
The Hamilton Spectator
Joe Costin appeared dejected and crumpled in the prisoner's box. Hunched
over with his head hung low, he stared resolutely at the floor. The
23-year-old father had pleaded guilty in June to a
reduced charge of criminal negligence causing the death of his 10-month-old
daughter. In a brief outburst of frustration, Costin grabbed little Regina
and shook her until she was dead. Now
the moment of reckoning had arrived. Ontario Court Justice Norman Bennett
said a "beautiful, innocent child" died on Aug. 26, 1999 as
the result of her father's "despicable lack of self-control."
He sentenced Costin to a further four years in prison. The punishment
included credit for the six months the accused killer had spent in custody
awaiting trial. That made his term equivalent to a
five-year sentence, which was in the normal range for a homicide involving
minimal violence and a sudden, impulsive act.
Dr. Chitra Rao, the forensic pathologist who conducted the post-mortem
examination, listed the cause of death as shaken impact syndrome. She said
it could have taken as few as two vigorous shakes -- forward and backward
-- to kill the little girl. Assistant Crown attorney Joe Nadel noted Costin
had a criminal record and had never held a steady job. He said the man
failed to meet even the basic
requirements of fatherhood and had betrayed the trust of a defenceless
child. "Our society purports to hold human life as precious and even
sacred," said the prosecutor.
"Despite that, this courthouse is a stage that depicts a never-ending,
always-changing tableau of criminal behaviour that belies a belief in the
intrinsic value of life."
Court heard Costin was angry and anxious the day Regina died. His
girlfriend Cassandra Case had not received her welfare cheque and the
couple was penniless. They didn't have money for food or other basic
necessities for themselves and their child.
Costin checked the mailbox in the Wellington Street South building where
they rented a tiny, one-bedroom apartment. Other tenants had received their
social assistance cheques, but there was nothing for Cassandra and the
baby. The couple had no phone, so Costin asked Cassandra, 19, to go to a
neighbour's apartment and call to find out why she didn't get her cheque.
The baby began crying. Costin picked her up and shook Regina so violently
that she suffered a fatal brain injury. He was subsequently charged with
second-degree murder. After Dr. Rao testified at his preliminary hearing,
Costin agreed to a negotiated settlement and pleaded guilty to the lesser
offence of criminal negligence causing death. His lawyer, Don Clarke, read
an excerpt from a letter his client had written to the baby's mother.
Costin said: "I'm sorry for what I caused you. I never meant her any harm
and I certainly never meant her to die. There isn't a day
that goes by where I don't think of her, or what happened that day. It will
never leave my mind."
The young mother was not present in court when Costin was sentenced. She
did not file a victim-impact statement and could not be reached for comment
yesterday.
Costin was born in Thunder Bay. His mother suffered from chronic alcoholism
and ended up committing suicide. His pre-sentence report suggests Costin
suffered fetal alcohol syndrome and neglect as a child.
The children's aid society had been involved in Regina's life from the time
she was born. Her parents met while they were living at homes for troubled
youth, and Cassandra stayed at Grace Haven home for unwed mothers while
awaiting Regina's birth. In giving reasons for sentence, Bennett quoted a
brother judge from the Superior Court in Milton. Presiding at another case
involving a child homicide, Justice James Clarke wrote: "My sentence must
reflect the revulsion of society for crimes against its most vulnerable
members, particularly helpless and defenseless children. "Though the law
cannot change the heart, but it can restrain the heartless."
Mark Denman
strict gun control. this couldn't possibly mean that gun control doesn't end
crime, could it?
GLC1173
>look at all the crimes (50 kilobytes of 'em) >in a country with incredibly
>strict gun control. this couldn't possibly >mean that gun control doesn't end
>crime, could it?
Canada has truly high levels of "headline crimes" - many involving guns -
for a country with a lower population than Kalifornia and almost none of the
minority groups violent crime in the U.S. is ghettoized to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<B>Dissident news - plus immigration, gun rights, nationwide weather
<I> Al Gore - in his own words</I>
<A HREF="http://www.alamanceind.com">ALAMANCE INDEPENDENT:
official newspaper of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy</A></b>
Michael Newton
DR JAROSLAV RAFAJ STAFF PSYCHIATRIST SEX WITH PATIENT KINGSTON
Med student had sex with patient
Rob Tripp
Kingston Whig Standard July 01 2000
A former Queen's University medical student has been found guilty by a
professional disciplinary body of "sexual impropriety with a patient." A
37-year-old woman accused Dr. Jaroslav Rafaj of using his position of trust
and authority to draw her into a sexual relationship while she was a
psychiatric patient at Kingston institutions in the early 1980s. Rafaj was
a resident in training in psychiatry at Queen's, beginning in 1980. The
woman was a patient in various facilities at the time. She testified in
December before a disciplinary hearing of the College of Physicians and
Surgeons of Ontario that Rafaj had sex with her in several locations,
including Kingston General Hospital.
"The penalty is still outstanding," said Jill Hefley, a representative of
the college. A penalty hearing will be held, likely within weeks. Rafaj
could lose his licence or, at the minimum, receive a written reprimand.
Rafaj completed three of the required four years of the psychiatry program
at Queen's, so he was unable to acquire college certification as a
psychiatrist. The college says Rafaj's MD qualifications were obtained in
Prague in the Czech Republic. He has been listed in college records as an
independent practitioner since 1983. He has been working recently as a
staff psychiatrist at North Bay Psychiatric Hospital.
***********
ROSENTHAL, LAWYER-HEROIN ADDICT SUSPENDED FORGERY, FRAUD
Lawyer suspended for forged doctor's note
Canadian Press
Saturday, July 1, 2000
Toronto -- A lawyer who forged a doctor's note to help his girlfriend avoid
going to jail has been suspended from practice for three years. A panel of
peers from the Law Society of Upper
Canada found Stuart Rosenthal, 39, guilty of professional misconduct for,
among other things, fraud involving forged documents and credit cards, and
attempting to obstruct justice. In July, 1998, a judge gave Mr. Rosenthal a
conditional sentence of 18 months for forging the letter. He also ordered
the admitted heroin addict to undergo weekly drug testing for four years.
Mr. Rosenthal had forged the doctor's letter in 1996 indicating that his
girlfriend, who had been
convicted of unlawful confinement of a Toronto man, was pregnant. The
letter urged the sentencing judge to postpone or avoid giving the woman a
jail term until after the birth. Mr. Rosenthal's suspension runs
retroactively from March 24, 2000, to January, 2003. It places five
conditions on his return to legal practice including
random drug tests.
********
MOTHER DISTURBED BY CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT
St John's Nfld Telegram July 02 2000
By DEANA STOKES SULLIVAN, The Telegram
A Mount Pearl mother says she's worried children in her neighbourhood are
in jeopardy after several alleged incidents of sexual assault by an
11-year-old who still plays freely with children in the area. The woman,
who will be referred to as Jane to protect the identity of her children,
says her family has been in turmoil since mid-April when she learned that
her two sons, ages five and seven, had been sexually assaulted by an older
boy.
A third child who was playing with them at the time was also assaulted,
said Jane. That family, however, has since moved out of the province.
"They just wanted to get away from here," said Jane, who was alerted about
the April incident by her neighbour. Jane said after speaking to her
children, she found "their stories were all the same."
Her children told her the older boy brought them to a walking trail near
their home and allegedly punched the youngest child in the back and ribs,
then told the other two children to take off their clothes or he'd beat the
youngest child up. In fear, she said, the children obeyed.
Children describe painful acts
Jane says her children told her that when all three children had removed
their clothes, the older boy forced them to do things to each other,
including fondling and oral sex. She said one of the children described
physical pain that indicated to her he had been sodomized. Her children
were also allegedly threatened with a screwdriver, and told not to tell
anyone what happened or they'd be killed.
Jane said when she discussed the incident with her children, her youngest
boy cried uncontrollably for more than two hours. She says she contacted
the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC), but was told no charges can be
laid if an alleged molester is younger than 12. Jane said the case was
referred to the Child, Youth and Family Services division of the Department
of Health and Community Services, but she's not happy with how it was
handled. After some investigation - with counselling arranged for the
11-year-old -
she was told by a social worker that the case was being closed.
Since then, she said, her sons have been harassed by this child.
Jane says she caught the 11-year old in a wooded area recently with another
boy, after one of her children told her a friend of his was taken into the
woods. She and another woman went to look for the children. Jane said they
were found in a small, makeshift hut.
"The 11-year-old had a metal pipe across (the boy's) throat and his
eight-year-old sister was sitting on top of him," she said. "The police
came here and interviewed the children," Jane added, "but told us they
couldn't do anything, only fax the information to Child Protection and case
workers there would deal with it."
Called radio show
Jane said her children weren't offered counselling until after she voiced
her concerns on a radio open-line show. RNC Sgt. Bob Garland said
individuals can make their complaints to the police, "but if they're
(involving children) under 12, it has to be referred to the
Child Youth and Family Services," he said. "It automatically leaves us.
It's an age thing," he added. "When they reach the magical age of 12, we
can deal with them."
Garland said to his knowledge the molestation of young children by older
children is not a common occurrence, but the RNC has been involved in
similar cases recently. A six-year-old girl was sexually assaulted around 5
p.m. June 24 in the Ropewalk Lane area of St. John's. After investigating,
the police said last Thursday "the person or persons responsible" were
females under the age of 12. The case has been referred to Child, Youth and
Family Services.
Role for parents
Garland said it's extremely important for parents to teach young children
what's appropriate behaviour and what isn't. "It's just like teaching a
child not to touch a stove," he said. And, he added, if children are well-
informed and know they should tell an
adult if they are approached by anyone in a suspicious manner, "you'd still
have the problem with the perpetrators but there would be fewer victims."
Marilyn McCormick, provincial director of Child, Youth and Family Services,
agrees. "It's also really important when something like this happens,
parents should be more aware of where their children are," she said.
"Counselling doesn't change behaviours overnight." When her division
receives a report of a child molesting another child, McCormick said, an
assessment is done with both families involved. If the behaviour is deemed
to be more than just natural curiosity, further investigation is carried
out to determine why the child is behaving in this manner. In addition to
counselling for both families, McCormick said, mediation is
sometimes offered.
As for the accused child continuing to play with children in the
neighbourhood, McCormick said, "we can't restrict children and I think that
could make matters worse." There could even be "reverse victimization," she
said. "A child who may have engaged in that behaviour may become a victim
of neighbourhood segregation."
She added: "I think it's incumbent on the parents to really provide a level
of supervision and redirection, with the help of professionals if they
don't know how to deal with it themselves, and those services are certainly
available through Child, Youth and Family Services."
*********
MAIL ROOM EMPLOYEE OTTAWA CITIZEN STABS KITCHEN WORKER
Citizen eatery worker stabbed in back, arm
20-year-old arrested, ordered to undergo psychiatric exam
Aaron Sands
The Ottawa Citizen July 02 2000
A 20-year-old Citizen employee has been ordered to undergo a psychiatric
assessment after a woman stabbed a cafeteria worker at the Ottawa Citizen
building on Baxter Road early yesterday.
Michelle Alger, a part-time employee in the Citizen's mailroom, is charged
with aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
in connection with the attack, which occurred at 12:48 a.m. in the
second-floor cafeteria. Percy Stewart, a 27-year-old employee of Sodexho
Marriott, was working alone in the cafeteria when he saw a woman in the
restricted kitchen area. When he asked her to leave, she picked up a knife
from the counter and stabbed him twice -- once in the back and once in the
right arm. Mr. Stewart pulled away, ran to a phone and called 911. When
police responded, Ms. Alger was seated in the cafeteria. Police arrested
her without incident. They also seized a butcher knife at the scene. Mr.
Stewart suffered a 10-centimetre cut on his back and a five-centimetre gash
on his right arm. He was treated and released from the Ottawa Hospital's
Civic site yesterday. Deborah Bennett, vice-president of human resources
and finance at the Citizen, said mistaken identity apparently led to the
knifing. Ms. Alger began working part-time inserting flyers in the
Citizen's mailroom
last August. Her employment record was spotless. The police investigation
is continuing. Ms. Alger appeared in court for a bail
hearing yesterday. She was remanded in custody and ordered to be
examined by a psychiatrist. Her next court appearance is scheduled for July
27.
*********
JOHN J O'BRIEN SHOOTING RCMP OFFICE
Man shoots up RCMP detachment in northern Alberta
July 02 2000
GRANDE PRAIRIE, Alta. (CP) - A man carrying two pistols walked into a
northwestern Alberta RCMP detachment early Saturday, shot up the lobby and
held officers at bay for more than four hours. No one was injured in the
shooting, Const. Carol McKinley said. A 45-year old suspect eventually
surrendered to police. "We're still trying to determine why he entered our
building," she said. Police said a man walked into the Grande Prairie
detachment carrying two .22-calibre pistols shortly after a Canada Day
fireworks display had ended
in a nearby park. RCMP set up roadblocks around the area and then entered
the detachment through a back door. Family members of the armed man also
arrived at the scene to talk with police. John James O'Brien of Grande
Prairie faces 12 Criminal Code charges. Nine of those are weapons offences.
He has been remanded in custody and is to appear in provincial court
Wednesday.
********** BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO *******
# OLIVIA CHOW - TORONTO POLICE COMMISSION
July 1, 2000
Councillor was vital link between police, public
Michele Landsberg Toronto Star
THE CITY suffered a loss it could ill afford when Olivia Chow
was forced to resign from the Toronto Police Services Board.
She was one of the most conscientious, community-minded people ever to
serve on that board and it was greatly to Mayor Mel Lastman's credit that
he appointed her a year ago. Before all reason is drowned out by the
hysteria emanating from the police union, I'd like to tot up our wins and
losses here. First, Chow is still councillor for Downtown, still
accessible, tireless and calmly cheerful. How she maintains her
imperturbable air of balanced
good sense is a minor miracle, considering the abuse heaped on her by those
of the cops-can-do-no-wrong persuasion. Chalk up her equanimity and
down-to-earth groundedness as a win for urban civility.
Chow says the police union posted notices in various stations harshly
demanding that she resign from the police board and, incredibly, urging
that she be ``investigated for criminal acts.'' Even more crazily, an
officer circulated a petition insisting that she resign as a city
councillor. But Chow won't respond in kind.
In fact, now that Chow is off the police board, she wants to forge ahead
with bringing communities and police into better contact. She began that
work - of vital importance to all citizens, even those who don't know it -
while she was on the board. The day after she resigned, she got up early to
attend a weekend conference on Alternatives To Lethal Force. She had been
one of the organizers. You may have seen the Star photograph of Chief
Julian Fantino posing at that event in amity with Dudley Laws of the Urban
Alliance For Race Relations. Make that another plus for Chow and for all of
us. ``You know, every aspect of city life - housing, day care, transit, the
environment - has some citizen advocacy group that monitors public policy
and calls press conferences and organizes meetings,'' Chow told me in an
interview.
``But there's no strong citizen group doing public education about
policing. Maybe now I can be more active in helping some groups to get
organized.'' Sounds like an excellent idea. After all, the arm's-length
civilian complaint procedure has been demolished by the provincial
government. The chair of the police services board, Norm Gardner, is so
childishly smitten by the cops that he's a caricature in the eyes of
dispassionate observers.
The police are now totally insulated from public scrutiny, with a union
that believes it is a law unto itself. Remember Operation True Blue? The
threats to harass and intimidate elected city councillors who dared to
oppose police union policies? The fact that even Tory fundraiser Jeff
Lyons, another member of the police board, felt he
had to have his office ``swept'' for police union wire-taps?
The union leadership represents an extremist minority - at the considerable
expense of all those good, solid officers who routinely tackle their
difficult jobs as responsibly as they can. Both for their sake and ours,
we've never needed transparency and police
accountability more than we do right now.
Chow was working toward that, and especially toward community connection.
In the past year, she was a particularly effective voice for women and for
youth. At one point, when the police were about to bring in a new domestic
violence policy without consulting a single anti-violence group, Chow
quickly rounded up all the
front-line agencies and sat them down with police. Together, they hammered
out a new design for domestic assault teams that Chow considers a
groundbreaker. An effort to enlist youth in co-operative efforts with
police also had Chow's blessing and assistance. She worked with board
member Sandy Adelson to create the Policing and Youth Action Committee.
None of this made much of a news splash - but of such quiet and sturdy
efforts is a safer city built. When did police-citizen relations get so
violently polarized, anyway? Since when did
some police become so excitably thin-skinned that anyone who disagrees with
them must be targeted? Chow had the courage to attend and observe a public
demonstration while the Tories cowered inside the Legislature and her
fellow board members were nowhere to be
seen. She was doing her civic duty.
Speaking sanely, police and citizens will always be mutually dependent. We
need each other. You'd never guess it from the shriller media critics, but
Chow spent the last year trying to make that link work better. Anyone who
knows Olivia Chow can have no doubt that she'll keep right on trucking -
and the city will be the better for it. Michele Landsberg's column appears
Saturday in the Life section and Sunday in the A section. Her e-mail
address is mla...@thestar.ca.
# PAROLE PLAN surprise - only negative reports recorded
July 2, 2000 Parole plan irks critics
By ALAN CAIRNS -- Toronto Sun
A prison warden's "innovative practice" of reviewing negative
staff reports for inmates going before the National Parole Board
pressures more releases, victims groups say. In a memo outlining Bath
prison's commitment to commissioner Ole Ingstrup's controversial
"reintegration plan," warden Al Stevenson says each time parole staff
doesn't support early parole release he'll review the file. Stevenson says
his review is a "mechanism" to ensure "no neglect in the management of the
case and that nothing can be done at a senior level to 'open doors' which
might otherwise remain closed." But victims' advocates say by probing into
negative and not positive cases, Stevenson is pressuring staff to avoid
negative
reports and recommend releases for offenders who shouldn't be
freed.
'INTIMIDATION'
Steve Sullivan of the Resource Centre for Victims of Crime says:
"To me, it's intimidation. What he's really saying is you shouldn't be
making negative recommendations, and if you do, you'd better
satisfy me." In the memo, Stevenson confirms to staff that Bath management
and staff are "committed to working toward the release of 169 offenders" as
part of Ingstrup's plan. The plan, which Ingstrup says is supposed to get
each offender timely programming and their cases prepared for the parole
board at the earliest possible time in their sentence, has been criticized
because it establishes "target" releases -- critics say quotas -- for each
prison. Sullivan says CSC is clearly telling its front-line staff to
release more prisoners.
Corrections officials could not be reached for comment.
D.
GLC1173 wrote in message > Canada has truly high levels of "headline
crimes" - many involving guns -
>for a country with a lower population than Kalifornia and almost none of
the
>minority groups violent crime in the U.S. is ghettoized to.
I think it is spelled California and I seriously doubt that the entire
country of Canada has a lower population than that state. I know we don't
have a lot of people here but the land mass of Canada is larger than the
continental United States.
D.
Maggie
>crimes" - many involving guns -
>>for a country with a lower population than Kalifornia and almost none of
>the
>>minority groups violent crime in the U.S. is ghettoized to.
>
>I think it is spelled California and I seriously doubt that the entire
>country of Canada has a lower population than that state. I know we don't
>have a lot of people here but the land mass of Canada is larger than the
>continental United States.
>D.
***Oh for Pete's sake. How hard is it to pick up an almanac or look up the
population of California on the 'net? If you'd done that first you wouldn't
have looked so lazy and stupid.
Maggie < in a rotten mood
D.
Maggie wrote in message <20000703085114...@ng-cd1.aol.com>...
That's ok Maggie...you made the point a lot clearer than I did.
D.
ChevreTroi
maggi...@aol.comSPAMBLOC (Maggie) writes:
>D. said:
>>I think it is spelled California and I seriously doubt that the entire
>>country of Canada has a lower population than that state. I know we don't
>>have a lot of people here but the land mass of Canada is larger than the
>>continental United States.
>>D.
>
>***Oh for Pete's sake. How hard is it to pick up an almanac or look up the
>population of California on the 'net? If you'd done that first you wouldn't
>have looked so lazy and stupid.
>
>Maggie < in a rotten mood
>
>
Oh for Pete's sake ..had to spend 5 minutes just to find out exactly. Enquiring
minds....
California 30 million
Canada 31 million
Pretty close!
Chev.
"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so
certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts."
--Bertrand Russell
Maggie
>Oh for Pete's sake ..had to spend 5 minutes just to find out exactly.
Enquiring
>minds....
>California 30 million
>Canada 31 million
***Did you check the *dates* on those numbers? My source (US Bureau of Census)
says GLC is right--California 32.7 million in July 1998; Canada 31.0 million,
mid-1999.
Maggie
"There are lots of people who mistake their imagination for their memory."
Josh Billings
ChevreTroi
maggi...@aol.comSPAMBLOC (Maggie) writes:
>***Did you check the *dates* on those numbers? My source (US Bureau of
>Census)
>says GLC is right--California 32.7 million in July 1998; Canada 31.0 million,
>mid-1999.
>
yuppers... the Canada was 1999 ( Central Intelligence Agency)
however, I did re-check the California one.. (12/99) says 33 million
So GLC was right either way. ( About this fact anyway )
Chev
Mark Denman
Canada pop = 27 million
Samuel Sands
Mark Denman wrote:
> California pop = 31 million
> Canada pop = 27 million
Soda Pop = Carbonated water, flavoring
Sam (soda jerk) Sands
>
>
> --
> www.votenader.org
D.
larger population than Canada! Now I sit here trying to imagine how people
can live like that? Thanks for clearing it up for me folks!
D - Proud Canadian
Samuel Sands wrote in message <39613F7F...@bellsouth.net>...
Mark Denman
but nearly all of its population lives within 100 miles of the US border.
Overall population density in Canada is tiny.
Michael Newton
7/6/00 By CHRISTINA FRANGOU
The St John's Nfld Telegram
A Supreme Court judge has found a former priest, a current bishop and the
Episcopal Corp. of St. George's liable for sexual assaults on young altar
boys. A third man, retired Archbishop Alphonsus Penney, was found negligent
for his inaction in preventing further abuse after he was told of the
assaults. In a written decision, Justice Robert Wells of the Newfoundland
Supreme Court found former priest Kevin Bennett was liable for the hundreds
of sexual assaults he committed on altar boys in his parishes from the
1960s to the
1980s.
"(Bennett) dominated the parish and its communities. He recruited and
directed altar boys, who quickly became his victims," Wells wrote in his
65-page decision. "The awe in which Father Bennett was held by the
community at large contributed to his ability to control his victims and
thus to satisfy a prodigious appetite for constant sexual gratification,"
he continued. The decision marked the latest stage in ongoing legal action
with regards to the Roman Catholic Church and the issue of sexual assault.
Wells also found Penney, the former archbishop of the archdiocese of St.
John's and metropolitan of the province, liable for negligence to the boys
assaulted by Bennett after 1979. That year, Penney was informed of the
assaults while he was serving as archbishop.
Bennett, who had already spent 10 years in one parish before complaints
were made to Penney, remained at the parish for another six months. The
sexual assaults on boys aged 10 to 16 continued. In 1980, Bennett was
transferred to another parish. He remained a parish priest until 1989 when
the police investigated and laid charges. "Archbishop Penney failed to take
the steps which were his duty to take under canon law and as a senior
prelate of the church and metropolitan. Thus, he failed in his duty of care
to those plaintiffs who continued to be sexually assaulted," Wells wrote.
Wells ordered the Roman Catholic Episcopal Corp. of St. George's, as well
as Bishop Raymond Lahey, to pay damages. When he succeeded as bishop, Lahey
assumed responsibility for the property and corporation where the majority
of sexual assaults took place,
said Wells. The much-publicized civil case was launched by 36 men who were
victims of abuse in the isolated communities. Over several months of trial,
witnesses testified Bennett repeatedly abused them and that various clergy
failed to take appropriate action.
The 67-year-old Bennett, a native of St. George's, pleaded guilty in 1990
to more than 30 counts of sex-related offences. He was sentenced to four
years in prison. Wells' decision was released late Tuesday. In a move that
may have a serious impact on the financial compensation to the victims, he
cleared the Episcopal Corp. of St. John's, among the wealthiest of its kind
in Newfoundland, of responsibility. Wells dismissed actions against
Archbishop James MacDonald and the Roman Catholic Church.
"I do not think it is sound in law or otherwise meaningful to make a
finding of liability against the 'Roman Catholic Church' which is neither a
person nor a corporation within this jurisdiction," wrote Wells.
Compensation amounts have not been decided.
*******
SIX DEAD, MURDER SUICIDE
Six dead in Kitchener murder-suicide
July 6, 2000 Kitchener Record
Six people, including four children, are believed dead in an apparent
murder-suicide in a west Kitchener neighbourhood.
The identities of the victims have not been released, but neighbours say
they were of Eastern European, and possibly Czechslovakian, origin. Police
set up a command post on Mooregate Crescent in the Victoria Hills
subdivision outside a semi-detached home where the immigrant family from
eastern Europe had lived with their grandparents. Unconfirmed reports
suggest two older adults left the house alive at about 6 a.m.
Waterloo Regional Police and other emergency workers have been on the scene
since shortly thereafter. No bodies have been removed from the building,
although police have confirmed they are investigating a multiple homicide.
The children living in the house include three boys and one girl, ranging
in age from 3 months to 6 years.
Police said they will not identify family members until next of kin are
notified.
*******
JUDGE UPHOLDS SPANKING LAW
Ontario judge upholds so-called spanking law
JAMES MCCARTEN
TORONTO (CP) - Canadian parents, teachers and guardians can continue to
physically discipline children with the blessing of the Criminal Code, an
Ontario judge has ruled. But it's time for clearer rules governing the use
of corporal punishment, Judge David McCombs said in a ruling Wednesday that
threw out a constitutional challenge of the 108-year-old law. "The evidence
shows that public attitudes toward corporal punishment of children are
changing," Judge David McCombs said in a written decision. "There is a
growing body of evidence that even mild forms of corporal
punishment do no good and may cause harm." Children's rights advocates
wanted McCombs to strike down Section 43 of the Code, which grants parents
and guardians the right to use force in
correcting a child that is "reasonable in the circumstances."
The section has been part of the Criminal Code since 1892 and predates even
the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Canadian Foundation for Children,
Youth and Law had argued that the
section violates a child's right to equality and security and sanctions the
use of cruel and unusual punishment. But Parliament has left the section
alone, said McCombs, because it recognizes the need for parents and
teachers to use their own discretion in
deciding when force is necessary. "Parents and teachers require reasonable
latitude in carrying out the responsibility imposed by law to provide for
their children, to nurture them, and to educate them," he wrote. "That
responsibility . . . cannot be carried out unless parents and teachers have
a protected sphere of authority within which to fulfil their
responsibilities."
McCombs was quick to point out, however, that while parents are entitled to
use reasonable force, it must always be used with the best interests of the
child at heart. "In a very real sense, parental liberty interests and the
best interests of children are opposite sides of the same coin." Cheryl
Milne, one of the lawyers who brought the challenge on behalf of the
foundation, said she plans to take the case to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
"It leaves children vulnerable," Milne said of the ruling. "It doesn't
provide sufficient guidance for the interpretation of the section to
protect children, and it means the use of force against children is still
something that's sanctioned by society."
McCombs threw out the idea that the section discriminates against children
on the basis of age - it defines children as anyone under the age of 18 -
even though it acknowledges that force must not be used against teens or
children under the age of two. "It's my view that Section 43 is too broadly
worded," Milne said. "'Reasonable force' doesn't give sufficient guidance."
Milne also took little comfort from the concerns expressed by McCombs in
the ruling about the need for more hard and fast rules to help parents and
guardians interpret the section and use force more judiciously.
"The problem is we don't have (those rules) at this point," she said. "The
Canadian government has been told for years that it needs to be more
specific in Section 43 and provide more guidelines, but has refused to do
so." Rights advocates like Milne have long argued the law creates a defence
for teachers, parents and babysitters charged with assaulting youngsters,
and has
been used to justify hitting children and teenagers with belts, electrical
cords and plastic rulers.
Children are the only group of citizens who can legally be assaulted for
reasons unrelated to self defence or the protection of others, they argue.
But the law is a critical tool for educators, said Ontario Teachers
Federation president Barbara Sargent, who for one is glad it survived the
challenge. "What Section 43 did and will continue to do is enable teachers
to maintain some kind of discipline and balance in the classroom," Sargent
said. "Teachers will be able to work with children as a parent would - in a
fair and equitable way."
In arguments against the challenge, lawyers for Canada's attorney general
said Parliament must recognize the family as a fundamental unit in Canadian
society and parents shouldn't be criminalized for the form of discipline
they choose. In its court brief, however, the federal government said it
shared the child advocacy groups' goal of protecting children and agreed
parents should not
be advised to strike kids in the name of discipline.
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Expert slams spanking ruling
By RANDY RICHMOND, London Free Press Reporter
A judge's ruling that spanking does not violate children's rights
encourages abuse, children's advocates in London charged yesterday.
"It's incredibly unfortunate and regressive," said Alan Leschied, a
professor of education at the University of Western Ontario. "I thought
Canada was more progressive." Ontario Superior Court Justice David McCombs
ruled corporal punishment such as spanking doesn't violate the
constitutional rights of children, but
said laws allowing such discipline should be re-examined.
"In my view, Section 43 does not infringe the equality rights of children,"
he said in a written decision. Section 43 of the Criminal Code says "every
school teacher, parent or person standing in place of a parent is justified
in using force by way of
correction . . . if force does not exceed what is reasonable."
The Canadian Foundation for Children, Youth and Law had asked the
court to repeal the law, something the Children's Aid Society of London
Middlesex hoped for, said Rhonda Hallberg, director of family services.
Infrequent spanking appears to have no long-term effects on children,
Hallberg said. But the law has allowed parents to defend themselves in
court after severely injuring children, Hallberg said.
"If it's not reasonable to get in a fight with your neighbour or kick your
dog, why would be all right to do that to your child?"
Parents who hit their children will see the judge's ruling as justification
for their acts, Leschied said.
Studies continue to prove spanking and other forms of corporal punishment
damage children psychologically, he said. "There's not a shred of evidence
that suggests corporal punishment is an effective method of managing kids."
There is no such thing as reasonable force, he said. "Physical force is
physical force." Governments in Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands have all
banned corporal punishment, Leschied said. McCombs suggested it may be time
for change in Canada.
"The evidence shows that public attitudes toward corporate punishment of
children are changing," he said. "There is a growing body of evidence that
even mild forms of corporal punishment do no good and may cause harm." "It
may well be that the time has come for Parliament to give careful
consideration to amending Section 43 to provide specific criteria to guide
parents, teachers and law enforcement officials," McCombs said.
Barbara Sargent, president of the Ontario Teachers Federation, said the law
is a critical tool for educators. "What Section 43 did and will continue to
do is enable teachers to maintain some kind of discipline and balance in
the classroom," Sargent said after the ruling. "Classrooms are getting
larger and larger and there are more and more students coming into the
classrooms with problems, mentally and socially. Teachers will be able to
maintain discipline in a fair and judicial way. Teachers will be able to
work with children as a parent would -- in a fair and equitable way."
In arguments against the challenge, lawyers for Canada's attorney general
said Parliament must recognize the family as a fundamental unit in Canadian
society and parents shouldn't be criminalized for the form of discipline
they choose. In its court brief, however, the federal government said it
shared the child advocacy groups' goal of protecting children and agreed
parents should not
be advised to strike kids in the name of discipline.
********
CANADA DAY PARADE: RE-ENACEMENT J.C. WITH CROSS
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Church float upsets parents
Complaints about re-enactment of Jesus' whipping
By G. ALAIN MOORE, Edmonton Sun
FORT McMURRAY -- A re-enactment of Jesus Christ bearing a
cross in a Canada Day parade has a northern Alberta father
concerned about brutality at a family event. But the church behind the idea
contends the whole concept was about promoting peace.
"I had to explain to my son why the man on the wood was being
hit," said Bruce Clark, who has a three-year-old boy. He added: "We went to
see fire trucks, not somebody tortured on the cross.
"Everything at Canada Day was supposed to be family-oriented and
I don't think whipping somebody was family-oriented."
Actors depicted Jesus Christ struggling down a local road with a
cross while Roman soldiers tormented him on his journey with
verbal abuse, cracking a replica whip, and fake spitting, he said.
The same display prompted five people to call Fort McMurray
Mayor Doug Faulkner's office to complain. Clark stressed, however, he's
not upset about organized religions entering the parade. "It has nothing to
with churches. It has to do with how graphic it was. I thought it was too
serious." As a result, he wished they would have toned it down so it
wouldn't be so shocking to young families.
McMurray Gospel Assembly Pastor Glen Forsberg said he can
understand how parents feel about violence, but the idea behind the
portrayal is about peace. "The whole message of the gospel is to destroy
hostility through the hostility that was given to Him." The church decided
the re-enactment was suitable for the Canada Day parade because the country
has a deep history with Christianity that was brought with the Europeans
and that it's the faith of millions of Canadians, he said.
The church wasn't aware of any negative reaction to the display
until officials were called by the Fort McMurray Today, but
Forsberg noted that might be due to the fact people didn't know
who was behind the float.
*********
DONNA MARIE UPSON: "KKK" WOMAN 2 YEARS
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Defiant `Baby Hitler' gets two years
By ANDREA MacDONALD -- The Halifax Daily News
A 22-year-old Ku Klux Klan member emerged from her Dartmouth court
case yesterday as an unrepentant zealot either unwilling or unable to
stifle her racist views. A judge concluded Donna Marie Upson was beyond
conversion and sentenced her to two years in a federal penitentiary for
threatening black people, a minister and church
property. "Ms. Upson is incorrigible at this time," said Dartmouth
provincial court Judge Flora Buchan.
Upson has ties to Malcolm Ross, the former schoolteacher from Moncton who
doubts the Holocaust. She also belongs to Aryan Nations and the Nationalist
Party of Canada, which opposes immigration.
Upson came to Halifax this spring to recruit new members, and was
arrested after telling six metro churches that blacks were no longer
welcome there. She is originally from Toronto and claims her friends call
her Baby Hitler.
Rev. Elias Mutale feared for the safety of his family and Victoria Road
Baptist United Church after Upson told him in April that blacks were cursed
in the Bible and that they would be sorry.
He even mulled moving back to Zambia. "In 12 years in Canada I have never
been so traumatized," Mutale wrote in a victim-impact statement. He prayed
Upson would find help to deal with her bitterness and "embrace the true
spirit of Canada."
All but one of Upson's six prior convictions were racially motivated,
including the time she punched a passerby in the shoulder simply because
the woman was black. Her racist rants got her fired from a sales job in
Ontario. Women's shelters wouldn't accept her for the same reason, so she
lived in underground
parking lots.
Defence lawyer Ken Greer withdrew from the case at the last possible minute
yesterday, citing a "communication breakdown."
Upson begged the judge for anger-management counselling.
"I feel that a large sentence would do more harm than good," Upson said,
adding that she knew what she did seemed wrong to the judge.
"You can't know my heart and you can't know what I really felt."
The paunchy, stringy-haired woman has a Grade 10 education and has spent
much of her life in foster care.
She got involved in the white-supremacy movement at 17, after she fell in
with some Toronto skinheads. Walter Thompson of the Nova Scotia Civil
Liberties Association called the sentence appropriate because of the nature
of Upson's threats and her previous convictions. "If the woman has been
convicted six times, she may be so recalcitrant that the judge can't be
faulted for imposing it," he said. But he warned that convicting people on
the basis of speech alone is a tricky business. "Sometimes we have to
tolerate deplorable speech," he said.
********
STEVEN TRUSCOTT WRONGLY CONVICTED
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Truscott case battles time
By HEATHER BIRD Toronto Sun
As Steven Truscott's lawyers prepare his bid for exoneration in a
child sex slaying he insists he didn't commit, police are faced with an
ever-growing list of suspects in the case. Incredibly, more than 40 years
after Lynne Harper's body was found in Lawson's bush, the OPP have now
identified and are actively investigating 12 to 14 "persons of interest."
Det.-Insp. Jim Wilson, who has been working on the case since 1997, will
not name most of the people on the list, other than to confirm that
Truscott himself and the posthumously accused Sgt. Alex Kalichuk are
included.
The others, some living and some dead, some with criminal
records and some not, have been put forward in recent months by
people who have either harboured suspicions for years or else
have stumbled across new information. "It's very difficult," says Wilson,
"to commence an investigation into various people's backgrounds and
whereabouts 40 years ago. You don't know where it leads." In addition to
Wilson, who oversees a number of murder probes province-wide, two OPP
detective constables out of the
Sebringville detachment have been assigned to work on the
Truscott case full time. Part of their task has been to extract the cold
facts from the heated fiction surrounding the unfortunate Kalichuk who, in
death, has been branded an alcoholic pedophile likely responsible for the
12-year-old girl's death.
The revelations in the recent CBC's fifth estate program has been
deeply upsetting to the Kalichuk family, according to cousin
Dennis Kalichuk. And the so-called "sex crimes" he was guilty of
were nothing more than two counts of indecent exposure which
drew a $10 fine. (Wilson won't confirm this.) And while much
was made of Kalichuk's psychiatric difficulties in the wake of
Lynne's murder, his family says he was a tormented man for many
years prior to her death.
This is the problem facing Wilson in every aspect of this case.
From a distance of 40 years, each piece of evidence can be
viewed in opposite lights. This becomes particularly clear in examining
some of the key pieces both for and against Truscott himself. There has
been much made about the medical evidence
surrounding the stomach contents. It has been stated many times
as fact that this testimony was the piece of the Crown's case
which secured the conviction. After Lynne's autopsy, a pathologist
concluded she had likely been killed within two hours after she
had eaten her final meal. (In other words, at exactly the time she
was with Truscott.) Over the years, however, scientists have
come to know that it's impossible to pinpoint time of death with
this type of certainty through stomach contents. (A fact later
admitted by the pathologist himself.) Truscott's supporters say this goes a
long way to exonerating him. Perhaps. But it also doesn't rule out the
possibility that she could have actually died a short time after she ate
her final meal.
In Truscott's exoneration bid, he relies heavily on the evidence of
Douglas Oats, who insists to this day that he saw Steven Truscott
riding Lynne Harper on his bicycle at the critical time. This does
not square with what the Supreme Court of Canada determined in
their investigation. They found: "The case went to the jury with five
witnesses saying that they did not see Truscott and Lynne on the road. Two
of these were actively looking for him."
Truscott likewise doesn't address the evidence of Jocelyn Godette
and her family. She was the girl who testified that Steven had
made a date with her to go to that bush on that very evening.
Truscott denies ever making the tryst. He likewise offers no
explanation for her father's evidence that a young man had phoned
the house at the appointed time. Truscott also says the evidence about the
lesions on his penis was greatly exaggerated. Yet the Supreme Court heard
detailed testimony that there were existing herpes sores which could (or
could not) have been inflamed by a sexual assault.
As well, Truscott claims to have returned to the schoolyard that
night without a mark on his body, which overlooks Isabel
Lebourdais' manifesto on his innocence. In it, she explains away
the scratches on his limbs and the tear in his pants as the result of
routine activities for any teenage boy.
While memories fade and evidence disappears, in the end, time
works against Steven Truscott, says Wilson. In police work, it's
hard to convict someone years after the fact. It's even harder to
reverse a conviction. So, for now, despite Truscott's protestations and
undoubtedly much to his chagrin, he remains on Wilson's list.
"I certainly can't rule him out."
*******
P4W JOEY TWINS
Women become refugees in prison system
Kingston Whig Standard July 06 2000
Joey Twins, 42, has spent more than half her life in Prison for Women.
She's serving a life sentence for murder, and for much of
that time, she has been classified maximum security. Now she's worked her
way into medium security, but she believes it wouldn't take much to go
back. "Basically if I say the wrong thing they could max me," Twins says. A
newcomer at Grand Valley Institution in Kitchener, she believes guards are
watching her carefully. "They're intimidated by me," says Twins, looking
tough with
tattooed arms and army shorts.
Her history at P4W is intimidating. She has had more than 100 charges laid
against her for setting fires, assaulting staff, fighting, hostage taking
and threatening to kill staff. At
her last parole hearing in 1998, the board said her behaviour had improved,
but not to the point that she could be released.
Her move to Grand Valley has been tense. "In the two weeks I've been here
I've had more stress on my plate than in the 22 years I was at P4W," Twins
says, adding in no uncertain terms she'd
rather be back in Kingston.
Closing the prison was supposed to put female prisoners in more humane
environments, but those who are classified maximum security say they are in
a worse position than they were before. Grand Valley was built for minimum-
and medium-security prisoners. The
options for anyone bumped into maximum are limited. Grand Valley doesn't
have facilities, work or programs for maximum-security women. "Maximum
here is entirely different than at P4W. At P4W it was only on paper, you
were still allowed to do the same things as everyone else. HERE WHEN YOU'RE
MAXIMUM YOU HAVE TO STAY IN SEGREGATION."
If Twins does something to lose her medium-security status, she could spend
six weeks isolated in a small, barren segregation cell before being
transferred to a maximum security unit in a men's prison in another
province. Since P4W closed that's where maximum-security women will go
until the fall of 2001 when the maximum unit renovations at Grand Valley
are expected to be completed.
"It's not an ideal situation to have women in men's institutions, so we
want to get them back as quickly as possible," says Lisa Watson, national
co-ordinator for the new maximum units. "But it all takes time." The move
to regional facilities for women of all security levels is being touted as
a major improvement by Corrections officials. Moving the maximum-security
women in will be the last step in a process that began in 1990 with a
national task force that produced a report called Creating Choices.
It espoused a change in philosophy to treat women with respect, to give
them more responsibilities in home-like environments and to have more
community involvement to help them reintegrate into the public upon
release. Creating Choices says that P4W was overly secure and there
shouldn't be many maximum-security women.
This led planners to believe that the new regional facilities wouldn't need
much fortification but the original plan and philosophy was abandoned when
the regional institutions opened for women of all security levels.
Within the first few months of the Edmonton Institution for Women opening
in November 1995, half of the 28 inmates were classified as maximum
security. Officials had not expected to have so many maximum-security women
and they did not expect the disasters that followed. Denise Fayant, an
inmate, was killed less than 24 hours after she arrived. As well, there
were seven medium-and-maximum escapes in 18 days.
In May 1996, Corrections closed the facility. They upgraded security and
when it reopened in the fall, maximum-security inmates didn't return.
Current plans call for separate maximum units, with additional security, at
the regional institutions. In the meantime, maximum-security female inmates
are housed in men's prisons. The only exception was in Ontario, where
maximum women remained at P4W.
"I think the situation for women housed in maximum, segregated
secured units in men's prisons has been quite devastating," says Kim Pate,
executive director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies.
"Women have been literally warehoused for much of the time," she says. In
order to keep the women separated from the men, their opportunities and
movements in the prisons are restricted. "We've seen countless slashings,
suicide attempts and, tragically, one woman did suicide this year in the
Saskatchewan Penitentiary," Pate says.
At Grand Valley, the plan for maximum security calls for a unit with some
space for programs and three pods with five cells each. Each pod will have
living and dining areas. The entire unit will be more secure than the rest
of the prison, with locked, guarded doors attaching it to the main
administration building. There will likely be additional barbed wire and
motion detectors around the perimeter. It's not the house-like environment
where minimum- and medium-security convicts at Grand Valley are currently
housed, but neither is it the open, barred cells of P4W. The plan will
allow the prison to keep maximum-security women away from the rest of the
prisoners and it will enable Corrections staff to reintegrate
women gradually, officials say.
take certain steps
Lori MacDonald, who was deputy warden at P4W, is collaborating with
Watson on the regional developments. MacDonald compares the process of
lowering a maximum-security designation to quitting smoking: You have to
want to do it and take certain steps to make it happen.
Lisa Neve was classified maximum security for so long she almost forgot her
first name, after six years of being called only by her surname. Little
things like that get to you after a while, she says. Programming was
severely limited at the institutions in which she was kept between 1993 and
1998. At the time, she was Canada's only living female dangerous offender,
and because of her indefinite sentence, she was at the back of the line for
programs that would help get her into medium security.
Neve was serving time for 22 convictions. Alberta's Court of Appeal erased
her dangerous-offender designation in June 1999. She was released from
prison two days later. On the phone in Alberta, where she now lives, Neve
says maximum security is a vicious circle.
Her experience was so awful that she almost gave up and tried to hang
herself, spending eight days in intensive care afterward.
The current arrangement that places maximum-security women in men's
prisons is degrading, Neve says. "Everyone should have the right to heal,"
she says. "You're there to do a sentence, not to suffer needlessly."
Not only are the women in men's penitentiaries forgotten, but they
shouldn't be maximum security in the first place, Neve says.
no need for maximum
"There are no Paul Bernardos. Karla Holmolka is the worst we have and if
she can be medium, there's no need for the rest to be maximum. "What kind
of reasoning is that, that you can kill three people [and be classified
medium security], but if you have a dirty urine test you're maximum
security?"
A woman remains classified as maximum security as long as she is
considered to be at a medium to high risk of escaping, endangering public
safety or compromising internal security. The crime committed is a factor,
but not the determining factor. Of 295 women in federal custody, 41 are
designated maximum security, 13.9 per cent, a higher percentage than men
(1,589 maximum-security men
out of 11,779 in custody, or 13.5 per cent).
"In terms of who is truly maximum, our view is it's very small," Pate says.
"Maybe a handful [of maximum-security women] in the country, but there are
many more than that classified." Even women who are classified maximum
don't need barbed wire and eye-in-the-sky cameras; they need more
understanding, she says, echoing
the 1990 report.
"Some of the plans are certainly preferable in terms of additional
programming and support staff positions to cascade the women out faster,"
Pate says. "They're very positive objectives. The difficulty is what we've
seen thus far is the resources tend to be
allocated for bricks and mortar. When it comes to programs, the resources
haven't been allocated at this point."
About $80 million has been spent building the regional prisons to date.
"The very model the new prisons are built on has yet to really be
implemented." Pate says Corrections should be moving closer to the model at
the Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in Maple Creek, Sask., a facility for
minimum- and medium-security native women that has been heralded as a
success for its emphasis on native spirituality and healing in a scenic
setting without fences,
concrete or bars.
Women such as Brenda Morrison and Lisa Neve, who were once
considered dangerous inmates, did very well there, Pate says, offering them
as proof of her belief that this is the direction Corrections should be
moving. "If you invest in more humane intervention as opposed to walls,
bars and cameras, you can and do see very different results," she says.
Gayle Horii agrees.
Once a prisoner doing a life sentence for murder at P4W, she's been on full
parole since February 1996. She first went to P4W in 1986. She hated it so
much, she went on a hunger strike in 1989, seeking a transfer to a prison
closer to her home in British Columbia.
Horii, now living in the Vancouver area, says money should be going not to
more security, but toward programs and staff to help women.
Maximum-security women need to be productive and to be in a healing
environment, she says. "If you allow any prisoners to be held for long
periods of time under secure conditions, that is allowing torture."
makes prisoners worse
Such treatment, Horii says, just makes prisoners worse. "Maximum means you
are constantly watched, you have less access to facilities and programs and
far less movement. To the public, you're dangerous. It's not true at all.
[Maximum-security] means you don't do your sentence well, or you're not
adapting well, [and] you shouldn't adapt to that kind of environment."
MacDonald says Corrections won't repeat the mistakes of the past. She
defends the direction Corrections is taking. "I think it's cutting edge,"
she says. "It's taking one step forward for women."
MacDonald says the issue of maximum-security women hasn't been studied
carefully. "In the past there was a whole group of people [minimum- to
maximum-security] together and it was very difficult to monitor," she says,
but during the last six years maximum-security women have been tracked and
over the last few years, when P4W was just holding maximum-security women,
specific program changes were introduced. These changes will be applied in
the regions when the maximum-security women arrive. Combined with the more
modern buildings, MacDonald thinks the experience will be better. "The new
units will be self-contained, separate from the population with a specific
number of resources attached to them and devoted to them for programming
and supervising."
It will be better than the small units and limited programming space
maximum-security women have at the men's institutions, MacDonald says.
CLASSIFICATIONS
When a woman has been ordered to serve time in a federal prison, she is
given a security classification. A person in minimum security is of little
risk to anyone and generally she is given more freedom. Medium and maximum
are progressively more restrictive. During incarceration, classification
can change
depending on how well an inmate behaves. Classifications must be reviewed
at least once a year, but they can change at any time.
Federal sentences: Someone who receives a sentence of more than two
years must do her time in a federal prison. The only exception is in
British Columbia, where federally sentenced women of all security levels,
serve their time in the provincially run Burnaby Correctional Centre for
Women. Prison for Women was the last prison for women classified as maximum
security.
Where are the maximum security women now? They have been "temporarily" put
in the following men's institutions: The Regional Reception Centre in Ste.
Anne des Plaines, Que., Springhill Institution in Springhill,
N.S., Saskatchewan Penitentiary in Prince Albert, Sask., Regional
Psychiatric Centre in Saskatoon.
Where will they be going? The plan is to send them to the institution
closest to their home, when new space is built for them. Grand Valley
Institution in Kitchener will have a 15-bed maximum-security unit. Joliette
Institution's maximum-security unit in Quebec will have six beds, Nova
Institution in Truro, N.S., will have five beds, and the Edmonton
Institution for Women in
Alberta will have 15.
********
KARL TOFT PEDOPHILE RECIDIVISM
Parole hearing eyes pedophile recidivism
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Edmonton -- He sodomized and fondled dozens of young boys over 30 years
while he was supposed to be looking after their safety. Now, Karl Toft
wants to be allowed back into the community in a parole hearing that raises
the issue of when and how long-term sex offenders can be returned to
society. "We do know [therapy] has been effective in reducing recidivism,"
said Leslie Kirkby, manager of the Phoenix program at Alberta Hospital,
where Mr. Toft has been held to undergo therapy since he was paroled in May
of 1999.
Mr. Toft was a staff member at the Youth Training Centre in Kingsclear,
N.B. In 1992, he was sentenced to 13 years in prison for sex crimes against
boys in his care over three decades. CP
********
PAUL DUCHARME PEDOPHILE
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Man ordered to avoid kids after sex charges laid
By KATHLEEN HARRIS, Ottawa Sun
An Ottawa man has been charged with sexually assaulting two
children at a west-end Ottawa wading pool. Paul Ducharme, 35, was ordered
to stay away from places popular with kids when he was released on bail
yesterday. He was charged with two counts of sexual assault and two counts
of sexual interference after an incident at the pool at Tremblay Park
Tuesday. Det. Dave Christie of the regional police sexual assault and child
abuse section said the afternoon assaults involved the touching of a
nine-year-old boy and an eight-year-old girl at the 108 Beech St. facility.
The two children were not together at the pool, he said.
Incidents like this aren't common, but Christie warns that public
places like swimming pools can be a venue of choice for predators
seeking young victims, he said. Last month, Robert Hatton, 43, pleaded
guilty to sex crimes against three children at the Purcell Community Centre.
Christie is asking that anyone who witnessed the incident or has
further information to call him at 236-1222, ext. 5463.
Don Lonie, communications officer for the City of Ottawa, said a
staff member called police when a verbal threat of physical harm
was made. The person may have been a family member of one of
the victims, he said.
*******
DOHERTY TEACHER/SEX PREDATOR PAROLE HEARING
Hearing 'disgusts' victims of Doherty's sex crimes
Rob Tripp, Whig-Standard July 6 2000
Victims of a former Kingston teacher who preyed on students for sex are
dismayed to learn he will get a chance to appeal for freedom six months
after he was jailed. Dennis Doherty, 60, has a parole hearing set for July
25 at Millbrook Correctional Centre, where he is serving an 18-month
sentence for three sex crimes, said Ross Virgo, a spokesman for the
Correctional Services Ministry.
"I think it's disgusting," said an angry Kingston woman. "He's been in
Millbrook doing easy time." Doherty was convicted of two crimes against the
Kingston woman when she was 15 years old and a student at Bayridge
Secondary School - including attempted rape. "I don't think the [expletive]
should be getting out," said the woman, now 40. "My life's still a mess -
I'm still trying to put the pieces together." The woman is one of nine
accusers who testified against Doherty during a trial last year. A court
order prohibits publication of their names.
'SLAP ON THE WRIST'
"I think it's unfortunate that our society thinks that's all these crimes
are worth," said another victim, a woman who is now 38 and living in
Toronto. "You ruin so many people's lives and you get a slap on the wrist
and six months in jail."
Doherty was convicted of indecently assaulting the Toronto woman in 1975.
Doherty was sentenced in Kingston on Feb. 4 this year after his conviction
on three sex crimes. He admitted having sexual relations with six teenage,
female students for the first 10 years of his teaching career, but was
convicted of crimes involving only two women. "The amount of time we
suffered over the trial is longer than the amount of time he's been in
jail," said the Toronto woman.
She is resigned to the fact that Doherty likely will be released and there
is nothing she can do about it. "I guess it comes down to how much do we
think he should suffer for what he did to us and, ultimately, I think
that's irrelevant because it's not going to
change how hard it's been for us to deal with this," she said.
The Kingston woman is also upset because her request to attend Doherty's
parole hearing was denied. "I'm not allowed to attend, however I could make
a request to be seen prior to this hearing," she said. She won't likely ask
to speak to parole board members because she doesn't have a car and can't
afford to travel to Millbrook, near Peterborough. Victims, reporters and
the public can attend federal parole hearings, but the Ontario government
bars all spectators from provincial hearings.
'OUTREACH TO VICTIMS'
"We've been making much more vigorous outreach to victims," said Virgo, a
spokesman for Corrections and the Solicitor General's ministry. Last week,
Attorney General Jim Flaherty announced a Victims' Justice Action Plan.
"Our government is committed to giving victims of crime a stronger voice by
supporting them through all stages of the legal process," Flaherty said.
Victims cannot attend parole hearings because "it's the current status of
the policy," Virgo said, although the hearings might eventually be opened.
Victims can make submissions to parole boards, in person, before hearings
are held. They also can submit statements describing how their lives were
affected. Doherty's victims say they will submit statements.
*******
EDWARD JOSEPH HARTLING SEX ATTACKS
Police hunt sex attacker
Women assaulted within three hours of each other
Gary Dimmock
The Ottawa Citizen
Police are seeking Edward Joseph Hartling, 40, in connection with two sex
attacks against women in their homes. The first attack came around 10 p.m.
Tuesday, after a man dressed in black climbed through a girl's bedroom
window on Borthwick Avenue in Ottawa's
east end. Home alone, the 17-year-old victim had been watching television
when she heard someone breaking into her bedroom.
She had kept the window open a crack because of the day's heat.
Face to face with the intruder, the girl told him he could take anything he
wanted. "I want you," he said. Frightened, the girl backed away. Then, he
grabbed her and started ripping her clothes. The attacker grabbed her by
the throat and started choking her.
At that moment, the girl's mother came home, startling the attacker. He let
go of his victim, then climbed back out of the bedroom window and ran off
into the night.
Still shaken, the girl spent yesterday with friends. She fears spending
another night in her family's apartment. Ottawa-Carleton police were still
searching for the suspect when the second
attack was reported. Three hours later, police believe the same man struck
again. Around 1:15 a.m. yesterday, he climbed through a bedroom window of a
ground floor apartment on Riverside Drive.
A 56-year-old woman was asleep when the attacker appeared at the foot of
her bed. He pulled a knife and sexually assaulted her and beat her up.
Minutes later, the attacker ran off and the woman ran to a neighbour and
called police. The suspect was described as six feet tall with a slim
build, light brown or dirty blond hair, and blue eyes. Police say he was
wearing a black T-shirt, black jeans, and carrying a long black knife with
a black handle. Police yesterday asked that anyone with information about
the attacks or
similar attacks should contact police at 613-236-1222 ext. 5944.
********
'EXTREME CLEANERS' HELP KEEP PEOPLE IN THEIR HOMES
'Extreme cleaners' overlook mess to keep tenants in their homes
ROMA LUCIW
The Globe and Mail
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Toronto -- The smell is the first thing people notice. It seeps pungent and
sour under the doorways and through the walls of
neighbouring apartments. "It's like a dead smell," Heather Gwinnett
said matter-of-factly of a home she cleaned last week. Ms. Gwinnett, 49, is
part of a group of "extreme cleaners," a new home-cleaning project with
Visiting Homemakers Association Home Health Care that works with people
whose homes are so filthy that they face imminent eviction. All
extreme-cleaning clients suffer from
mental-health problems, and are embarrassed or unaware that their homes are
falling apart. VHA Home Health Care is one of 62
agencies under the United Way umbrella that received increased funding this
week at a news conference at Anishnawbe Street Patrol offices.
United Way president Anne Golden said this year's injection of $1.9-million
was the largest ever, 27 per cent more than 1999's increase. Through last
year's fundraising campaigns, the United Way
was able to raise $63.1-million. In addition, three new agencies, the
Crčche Child and Family Centre, the Delta Child Care Network, and Lakeshore
Area Multi-Services Project Inc. (LAMP), were added to the roster of more
than 200 United Way Agencies. "This year's theme is to boost programs that
combat homelessness," Ms. Golden
said, adding that the number of people searching for shelters in Toronto is
expected to grow to 32,000 by the end of this year from 26,000 in 1996.
That's why the United Way is focusing in programs designed to keep people
in their homes, like the Extreme Cleaning
Initiative which received an additional $25,000 on top of the $893,000 VHA
annual funding.
"These people deserve a second chance," Ms. Gwinnett said. "When they start
to trust you and reach out to touch my hand, it just means so much to me.
You overlook the mess, because they're still
human beings. And nobody deserves to live like that." Since it began last
November, 27 homes have been cleaned. Half of those
belonged to elderly people, most of them single.
******** BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO ********
# 2 ABBOTSFORD COPS GUILTY; RAIDED CHILDREN'S PARTY, SHOT DOG
Cops broke regulations in raid on kids' party, shooting of dog
Police Complaints Commission finds that two Abbotsford
officers violated rules of professional conduct under
Police Act in drug bust that put children in danger
Lora Grindlay, The Vancouver Province July 06 2000
Ron Raber is satisfied that two Abbotsford police officers who burst in on
his son's birthday party and shot the family dog have got what they
deserve. Raber called it "good news" that two of six officers involved in
the Jan. 3, 1999, drug raid on his Center Street home have been found
guilty of violating professional-conduct regulations under the Police Act.
After a 24-day inquiry by the B.C. Police Complaints Commission,
adjudicator Peter Millward found Const. Matthew Sekela guilty of two counts
of discreditable
conduct. Millward, a former B.C. Supreme Court justice, also
found Const. David Schmirler guilty of improper use of a firearm in the
shooting of Kona the pit bull. "I figured it would be a
whitewash. I didn't think anything would come of it," said Raber, who spent
over two months in jail on drug charges following the raid. "I'm pleased it
all came out. They definitely screwed up."
Fourteen children and 14 adults were at Raber's son's seventh birthday
party when the Emergency Response Team members, armed with MP5 machine
pistols, burst in.
As the children and parents watched in horror, Schmirler fired two shots at
Kona -- from within a foot of the dog -- when it attacked another officer's
arm. Raber said his two children are recovering from the trauma.
"They talk about it all the time," said the 32-year-old. "They are kind of
scared of police now."
In his findings released yesterday, Millward said the evidence established
"on an overwhelming balance of probabilities that Const. Sekela knew or
ought reasonably to have known" that there were children in the house. In
upholding a second count of discreditable conduct against Sekela, Millward
said he didn't comply with operational procedure to ensure the house was
under surveillance while a search warrant was obtained.
"There was no compelling factor justifying his failure to do so," Millward
wrote. Surveillance of the Center Street home was not arranged until police
had the warrant. Const. Mark Teichman, the only officer assigned to watch
the house, began surveillance about 95 minutes before the tactical team
entered the house. Millward's report says Teichman had a partially
obstructed view of the
Raber house. Schmirler, Millward said, acted "without reasonable grounds"
in shooting Kona without considering alternatives or first determining if
others were in the room. Millward called Abbotsford's tactical team "a
powerful and dangerous weapon" that once launched is not easily deterred.
He said a reconsideration
of the use of tactical teams is required.
Attorney-General Andrew Petter yesterday ordered a ministerial review of
police tactical teams, in light of Millward's ruling.
Millward will sentence Sekela and Schmirler at 10 a.m. on Monday in
Federal Court. Under the Police Act, officers found guilty face discipline
ranging from a verbal reprimand to dismissal.
Abbotsford police were studying the ruling and would not comment
yesterday.
# SOLDIERS CHARGED WITH BOMB-MAKING POST BAIL
Saskatoon Phoenix July 05 2000
Two men charged with making Molotov cocktails in the yard of a home in the
middle of the night were released from custody Wednesday, although it's
unclear if they are in trouble with their employer - the Canadian Armed
Forces. Crown prosecutor Warren Holmes told Judge Benjamin Goldstein he
could not justify detaining Trevor Wayne McNeil, 21, and Russell Bruce
Horrocks, 20, while their charges are pending. The pair were arrested after
police were called to a home in the 100 block of Columbia Drive at 3:30 a.m.
Sunday, where they found two men filling bottles with gasoline and stuffing
them with rags. McNeil and Horrocks are charged with possession of an
explosive device without lawful excuse and making
an explosive device with intent to harm people or damage property.
Police said the incident was related to an earlier disturbance in the River
Heights area.
McNeil was released on $500 cash bail, on conditions that he maintain his
address in Edmonton, have no contact with Horrocks, stay out of Saskatoon
except to attend court or see his lawyer, and not possess or consume
alcohol. He is also not allowed to possess any explosives except for the
purposes of his employment with the
Armed Forces. He will return to court July 11.
Horrocks, who lives in Saskatoon, was released on $500 non-cash bail with
similar conditions. He will return to court July 13.
Horrocks' defence lawyer, Bill Roe, confirmed his client is a member of the
Canadian army but would not comment on whether he is in trouble with the
army. His client was "visiting" in the city when the incident occurred, Roe
said.
# JOYCEVILLE: MANAGERS LOSING CONTROL
Managers losing control, says prison workers union
Rob Tripp, Kingston Whig-Standard July 06 2000
Violence and illegal drug use are rampant at Joyceville Penitentiary
because managers have lost control of the facility, the union representing
250 prison workers claims. "That's why we're having this picket at regional
headquarters," said John Edmunds, standing alongside a dozen
placard-carrying Joyceville guards
yesterday. Edmunds is a national vice-president of the Union of Solicitor
General Employees, which represents Joyceville staff, including 145 prison
guards. The pickets handed out leaflets and carried signs for about three
hours at the King Street entrance to Corrections Canada's regional
headquarters, decrying management of the prison. The signs said:
"Management is out of control," and "Hey warden, just say no to drugs."
One Joyceville inmate died and another was hospitalized last week from
suspected overdoses of morphine smuggled into the prison. The same day,
another prisoner hanged himself. The incidents were the latest in a string
of problems at the prison in the past 11 months.
In August last year, 140 inmates went on a rampage in a recreation
building, causing at least $100,000 damage. In November, a notorious
cop-killer, serving a life sentence for murder, staged an elaborate escape
attempt. An internal investigation revealed security problems at the
prison. In March this year, prison staff demanded an investigation and
prison-wide search due to fear that deadly cyanide had been smuggled into
the institution. In the previous six months, staff seized more than 3,600
litres of hidden,
homemade alcohol and nearly 70 crude weapons made by convicts, said the
union.
The prison workers union said there also have been numerous incidents of
staff being pricked by needles or exposed to the blood of inmates. "The
regional headquarters is a warden's boss and enough's enough," Edmunds
said. "There's got to be some stop to this." He said the failure of
managers to address longstanding concerns jeopardizes the safety of prison
workers. After yesterday's information picket, Edmunds and other union
officials met privately with Ross Toller, senior official at regional
headquarters to discuss their concerns. "He is trying to come to some
resolution," said Theresa Westfall, a representative of Corrections.
Managers from Joyceville were involved in the talks. By late afternoon the
sides were still talking. In the meantime, Westfall said, there would be no
response to the union's charges.
Prison workers blame management for the raucous conditions at Joyceville,
claiming that bosses have failed to take action against troublesome inmates
and ignored complaints of staff. "We're either dismissed or we're lied to,"
Edmunds said. Managers have labelled union leaders as troublemakers, said
Paul Bell, president of the Joyceville local.
*******
NATIVE NEWS
CHARGES DROPPED AGAINST MANITOBA WARRIORS
Gang-related charges dropped against alleged Warriors
Crown unable to secure conviction of suspected Manitoba gang members in
case called a test to Canada's 1997 organized-crime
law
DAVID ROBERTS Manitoba Bureau
Thursday, July 6, 2000 Globe & Mail
Winnipeg -- The first major test of Canada's new antigang law limped to a
conclusion of sorts yesterday, with the Crown dropping gang-related charges
against 12 alleged Manitoba Warriors in
exchange for pleas of guilty in cocaine trafficking. The original accused,
32 aboriginal men and one aboriginal female, one
Caucasian man and one black man -- were rounded up in October of 1998 and
directly indicted under 1997 federal legislation designed to thwart
organized crime. The joint federal-provincial prosecution
of the 35 alleged Manitoba Warriors was touted as the first major test of
the 1997 law. But of the 35, only two people -- minor
players -- actually pleaded guilty to participating in a criminal
organization and had extra time tacked to their jail terms.
So after 20 months of pretrial wrangling and after spending an estimated
$7-million for a custom-built courthouse, legal-aid fees, prosecutors and
sheriff's officers, the matter never actually got to trial and the antigang
law remains untested. In the end, the Crown secured 32 convictions on drug
charges and offered
two complete stays in exchange for testimony. The case of one accused,
Sheldon Clarke, remains undecided. The dozen men who pleaded guilty
yesterday to cocaine trafficking and conspiracy
charges will be sentenced next week. The trafficking charges involve
peddling small quantities of cocaine in various
hotels in Winnipeg.
"With these pleas entered, the Crown will enter stays on the other charges
against these men," prosecutor Bob Morrison told Court of Queen's Bench
Judge Nathan Nurgitz yesterday. All who had earlier pleaded guilty were
jailed for periods of six months to six
years on drug-related charges. Denied bail, the accused were routinely
transported from a downtown jail to the specially built suburban Winnipeg
courthouse during nearly two years of pretrial appearances. Yesterday,
armour-clad guards stood vigil over
video cameras while the accused sat chained to the floor in cubicles as
each man stood to plead guilty. Critics, including Phil Fontaine, National
Chief of the Assembly of First Nations,
called the case a gross abuse of civil rights. Mr. Fontaine and others
complained the case was discriminatory since the accused faced a reverse
onus to qualify for bail, yet the majority of
them were too impoverished to post a surety.
Roland Penner, former Manitoba attorney-general, now a professor of law at
the University of Manitoba, described the case yesterday as "entirely
unwise and misconceived from the beginning." Describing the case as
politically motivated, expensive and constitutionally
invalid, Prof. Penner said the federal antigang law is redundant because it
is similar to various conspiracy laws, "which are sometimes called the
shabbiest weapon of the prosecutorial
arsenal." "I don't think it would stand up [to a constitutional
challenge]," Prof. Penner said. "It was really misconceived by both
the previous government and the present government . . . preventive
detention under another name smells bad." David Deutscher, also of the U of
M's law faculty, said the case was too complex with too many accused and
too many charges for it to have a chance of
success. "Quite obviously it didn't succeed," he said. "In my view this law
[in 1997] was a political reaction to some problems the federal government
was having in Quebec [with gang wars]."
At one time, there were a dozen prosecutors and more than 30 defence
lawyers appearing in the super-secure Winnipeg court, which was built by
the previous Tory government at a cost of $3.3-million. Yesterday, there
were 10 defence lawyers and three Crown
prosecutors in the sprawling facility. Under the 1997 law, an offender is
to be sentenced both for the crime and for participating in
organized-crime. The sentences are to be served
consecutively. The maximum penalty is 14 years in prison.
At the time of the mass arrests, which police dubbed Operation Northern
Snow, Vic Toews, then Manitoba's justice minister, said the government had
no choice but to prosecute. "We have to
support the federal antigang legislation. I wouldn't say what's motivating
us here is the economics," he said.
NDP Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh, who questioned the previous
government's decision to build the courthouse without first testing the
legislation, said yesterday the government would not use the building again
as a courthouse. He said the government will try to find a new tenant or
sell the building.
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Taxpayers left sitting on white elephant
By BRENDAN O'HALLARN, Winnipeg Sun
The beleaguered Manitoba Warriors trial ended with a whimper
yesterday; now the provincial government is looking to unload the
$3.7-million courthouse built to house it. "Anyone want to buy a
courthouse?" Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh joked with reporters, after
12 of the 13 remaining defendants pleaded guilty to cocaine trafficking
charges. More serious charges of participating in a criminal organization
were dropped in exchange for the guilty pleas. The pleas were entered
yesterday after three weeks of intense negotiations between the Crown and
defence. Lead prosecutor Bob Morrison would not comment on the plea
bargains. Lawyer Barry Sinder said the defence team's clients instructed
them to accept the deals from the Crown. "It goes without saying anyone in
custody in the remand centre for 20 months would be anxious to get on with
their lives," Sinder said. "I think everyone involved in the court process
is relieved there is a potential finality to the proceedings." The alleged
gang members waved to the media cheerfully yesterday while leaving the
facility in padlocked vans.
CONVERTED SEED-CLEANING PLANT
Now the government is left with a courthouse made from a
converted mustard seed-cleaning plant, built to try a large group of
defendants, and no defendants to bring to justice. "We've got a facility
here that is useless as a courthouse. It is indeed in every sense a white
elephant," Mackintosh said. The courthouse was unveiled by the previous
Tory administration in early 1999, to cries the government was wasting
money and unfairly targeting aboriginals -- the race of all but two of the
defendants.
Tory justice critic Darren Praznik said Mackintosh "has the power"
to make the courthouse a white elephant by ordering its sale or
demolition. "Manitobans know that gangs are still a problem, and it may be
required again," Praznik said. Sandy Shindleman, president of Shindico
Realty, said a building like the converted courthouse could be used as
office space, but little else.
"There is some demand for suburban office space, but that area
(Chevrier Boulevard in Fort Garry) wouldn't be high on the list. It's
basically an industrial park," Shindleman said. Government Services
Minister Steve Ashton said the province can salvage $200,000 in equipment
from the $2.2 million it spent renovating the building. "In terms of the
taxpayers of Manitoba right now, we've got a $2.2-million building and no
use for it," Ashton said.
The land the courthouse sits on was purchased for $1.5 million.
Former Tory Justice minister Vic Toews said the NDP never
offered an alternative to building the courthouse when one was
needed to stage the trial. "The provincial government's role was to ensure
infrastructure was there to conduct the trial," said Toews, who now works
at Great-West Life. "If (the NDP) has a suggestion to assist the
prosecution the next time, I'd be interested in hearing it."
Thursday, July 6, 2000
'Gang law not put to test'
By BRENDAN O'HALLARN, Winnipeg Sun
The mass trial of 35 alleged Manitoba Warriors was designed to
test the federal government's 1997 anti-gang legislation. The trial
effectively collapsed under its own weight yesterday, but that doesn't mean
the legislation itself is invalid, an observer of the
trial says. "I don't think the gang legislation itself was tested," said
University of Manitoba law professor David Deutscher.
"I think what was tested is the ability to try a number of individuals
together. And in that way, the prosecution concluded there were too many
roadblocks to continue." Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh said his party
supported the creation of the federal anti-gang law while in opposition,
and still backs it. "I think any time there's an experience like this, it's
important to look
and see what can be done better," he said.
Mackintosh wouldn't comment on the machinations of the trial until
all the sentencing hearings are complete. A final accused, Sheldon Clarke,
still faces the charges, having been separated from the main indictment in
May. The province has received money from Ottawa to help defray the legal
aid costs of the trial. But further than that, the federal government has
offered no assistance paying for the trial, Mackintosh said. So far, trial
has cost Manitobans in excess of $9 million. David Phillips, spokesman for
the Warriors defence team and a vocal opponent of the trial, is curious how
other provinces will attempt to use the anti-gang legislation.
Prosecutions of suspected gang members in Alberta and Ontario
have already begun. "In my opinion, it was a poor decision to start this
prosecution as one big group. It was politically motivated," Phillips said.
"I don't think you'll ever see a trial of this magnitude again."
**************
14 YEAR OLD BOY, DRUNK, KILLS TWO WITH VEHICLE
Thursday, July 6, 2000
Driver, 14, drunk
Brothers, 8 and 10, killed cycling on country road
By London Free Press
LONDON, Ont. -- The 14-year-old driver of a pickup truck is in
custody following a hit-and-run crash on a First Nations reserve
that resulted in the deaths of two young brothers. Police say the teen
driver was arrested hours later hitchhiking along Hwy. 401 and charged with
public intoxication and underage drinking. Daniel Fisher, 10, died of his
injuries Tuesday at Children's Hospital
of Western Ontario in London. Yesterday afternoon his parents,
Delbert and Hazel Fisher, decided to take his brother Jesse, 8, off
life support. The brothers were biking before dark Monday evening on a
gravel road on the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation reserve when they
were struck by a truck. A third boy, Justin Beeswax, 9, was treated in
hospital and released. "It might have been an accident but what the hell is
a 14-year-old boy doing behind the wheel? And who gave him alcohol?" asked
Mel Fisher, the outraged uncle of the two dead boys. "Delbert is speechless
and I don't have the words to comfort him," he said.
ADULTS DRINKING
OPP First Nations Const. Dan Riley said a 39-year-old Chippewas
man, a 47-year-old woman and a London teen were at a house on
the reserve, where witnesses said the two adults were drinking
alcohol before they left in a pickup. The pickup went off Range 3 road
about 8:50 p.m., and hit the boys before ending up in a ditch. The teen
driver and two adult passengers fled on foot. Police have not identified
the adults. OPP Const. Myra Rusk said the woman was arrested with the
14-year-old along the 401 before they were linked to the hit-and-run. Rusk
said the boy was not given a blood test because police did not know he was
a suspect in the crash.
The Chippewas man, who owned the pickup truck, was taken to
the London OPP detachment by a friend early Tuesday. He faces
no charges, but under the Criminal Code, the owner of a vehicle is
responsible for its operation if he is a passenger and can be
charged. The teen is in custody for a bail hearing July 12 on one count of
criminal negligence causing death, two of criminal negligence causing
bodily harm and a charge of failing to remain at the scene of a crash as
well as the drinking charges.
Michael Newton
July 8, 2000
Volunteers against involuntary drugs
'Brian's Law' is being challenged by a 'loose coalition' of former mental
patients, lawyers and Scientologists
Nate Hendley
National Post
It's an early June morning and anti-psychiatry activist Don Weitz is going
to Queen's Park. There he'll join a press conference with other activists
who want to stop passage of Brian's Law. Named after Ottawa sportscaster
Brian Smith, shot to death in 1995
by a schizophrenic attacker who thought the news media was
controlling him, the law would set rigid standards for mental patients
living in the community. Those with severe psychiatric disorders would have
to take therapy on an outpatient basis and failure to do so could result in
involuntary committal.
Brad Clark, MPP for Stoney Creek and the Parliamentary Assistant
to Ontario's Minister of Health, calls Brian's Law "a balanced piece of
legislation that provides early intervention for the mentally ill." Mr.
Weitz, however, believes the bill will lead to mass discrimination.
"This is the kind of law you would expect in a totalitarian society,"
explains Mr. Weitz, who once spent a year in a Boston mental hospital for
what he believes was a mistaken diagnosis of schizophrenia. "I was 20
years old, going through a crisis, trying to establish my identity," he
says. "They pathologized my search for identity as being crazy." Mr. Weitz
compares Brian's Law to Hitler's Nuremberg Laws, which stripped German Jews
of basic civil rights.
At 69, he is the leader of Toronto's anti-psychiatry movement, a loose
coalition of lawyers, radicals, the local branch of the Church of
Scientology and "psychiatric survivors" who hate the
mental health system. They have their work cut out for them. On the day of
a press conference the group held at Queen's Park, Brian's Law passed third
reading by an 82-10 vote. It's expected to come into force by year's end.
Sitting on a panel in the legislature's media room with fellow activist
Erick Fabris and lawyer Anita Szigeti, Mr. Weitz attacks Brian's Law for
"adding a Big Brother component" to the lives of the mentally ill. Mr.
Fabris, who helps co-ordinate the patients' council at the Queen Street
Mental Health Centre, complains that "the very name of the law assumes we
are violent." He points out that mental patients are often victims, not
perpetrators, of violence. As an example, he cites the case of Edmond Yu, a
homeless paranoid schizophrenic man, killed by Toronto police in 1997 on a
TTC bus.
According to Mr. Weitz, Brian's Law perpetuates "the myth of the violent
mental patient" and debunks any correlation between violent acts and
psychiatric disorders. As for the death of Mr. Smith, Mr. Weitz refuses to
acknowledge that schizophrenia -- which psychiatrists say can lead to
delusional thinking and dangerous behaviour -- had anything to do with it.
Criminal acts are criminal acts, as far as he is concerned, and have little
to do with what he considers imaginary mental illnesses. This being the
case, he believes the government has no right to force medication on people
for non-existent illnesses.
At the press conference, speakers take turns explaining in heated rhetoric
about the Tories specifically and psychiatry in general. Once they're
finished, the panelists amble outside for a smoke.
What had gone largely unsaid at the conference was that mental institutions
began discharging patients en masse in the 1960s. From 1960 to 1998, the
number of psychiatric beds in Toronto fell
from 3,857 in 1960 to 1,102 in 1998, leading to a huge rise in the number
of homeless mental patients. It has been estimated that one-third of single
men and three-quarters of single women in city hostels have mental
illnesses. About 26,000 people use hostels each year.
Mr. Fabris, who himself has been told he's manic-depressive, mentions that
his mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia and that he himself was in a
Vancouver mental institution in the early
1990s, where he was put on anti-psychotic drugs. He eventually weaned
himself off the pills, moved to Toronto and got involved in the
anti-psychiatry movement.
Ms. Szigeti, whose practice consists solely of defending mental patients,
calls Brian's Law "a huge civil liberties issue." She's glad that the
Canadian Civil Liberties Association opposes the
legislation. The Canadian Mental Health Association has also spoken out
against the bill on the grounds that it's discriminatory to force treatment
on people who aren't necessarily dangerous.
Other organizations are equally leery.
The Church of Scientology is dead-set against the province's proposed
legislation. Janet Laveau, the Church's Toronto president, calls Brian's
Law "a backwards step" that will reduce the right of
informed consent for mental patients. At the core of the anti-psychiatry
movement is one very radical belief: mental illness is a myth and
psychiatric disorders stem from physical causes.
According to Mr. Fabris, what psychiatrists view as mental problems are
merely "life crises" triggered by stress, insomnia or anxiety. Such crises,
he says, can be properly managed through sympathetic counselling.
Mr. Weitz shares this view, as long as the counselling in question is
provided on a drug-free, voluntary basis. Mr. Weitz calls psychiatric drugs
"poison" and thinks the government has no right to forcibly intervene in
the lives of people with psychiatric disorders. "Where's the scientific
basis?," he demands. "There's no urine test, no biopsy, no blood test [for
mental illness]. It's just a metaphor for dissident behavior and one way
society exercises control."
According to Mr. Weitz, homeless mental patients seen wandering the streets
in a daze are not suffering from too little medication -- as the Tories
insist -- but from too much. "When you see people writhing and twitching on
the street, it is not because of [mental illness] but because of the
side-effect of the drugs they're on," he says. Mr. Weitz sees the
legislation as a grim portend of things to come. He's convinced it might
lead to a return of eugenics -- the "scientific" culling of mentally and
physically handicapped people. "When you start to label people and codify
[discrimination] into law, it's very scary."
********
ANTI POVERTY PROTESTERS WANT POLICE INVESTIGATED
Monday, July 10, 2000
Groups call for probe of police Queen's Park riot
By JENNIFER BILL, TORONTO SUN
Police conduct at a riotous June 15 anti-poverty rally at Queen's
Park will be under fire today as unions and community groups
demand "a solid investigation." Eighteen groups have joined forces to
submit a request to the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services for
an investigation into what they call "police misconduct and the use of
pepper spray and truncheons" at the public demonstration. They charge that
the municipal and provincial police service at the rally was "appalling"
and that they were the "first to move out and strike and attack the public."
"We felt it was important because the police -- whose role it is to
de-escalate the situation -- actually escalated it," said Mary Gellatly, an
employee with Parkdale Community Legal Services.
'VIOLENT'
The coalition wants action taken against the government bodies
involved in the strategy of how the police reacted to the
demonstrators. "The police strategy to move into the crowd really created a
violent and dangerous situation," Gellatly said, adding that the cuts and
bruises received by demonstrators prompted them to seek criminal charges
against individual police. Groups such as the Ontario Public Services
Employees Union and the Canadian Union of Public Employees will host a
variety of speakers at today's Metro Hall press conference, including
OPSEU's Terry Downey and York University sociology professor Deborah Brock,
who will talk about their experiences at the rally, and the ROLE OF POLICE
IN SOCIETY. "I'm quite confident that if we get a good investigation that
they will see some real problems with the police at the demonstration. This
is not the kind of policing we want in this province," Gellatly said.
A police spokesman couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.
********
PEACEFUL PROTEST = MEDIA SILENCE
Michele Landsberg Toronto Star July 9 2000
There were 1200 people ringing Queen's Park in single file on June 28,
holding signs facing out to the traffic circle saying "Remember Walkerton"
and "Silence Please". The demonstrators wore black arm bands. It was
respectful, peaceful and a powerful witness for those harmed by Tory
cutbacks. An amazing number of drivers honked their support, or, when they
saw the "Silence" signs, turned down their radios and put thumbs up. Yet,
there was not a word in The Star, and a paltry few in the other papers.
Remember all those righteously indignant observers who denounced the
"rioters" at Queen's Park after the anti-poverty protest? They insisted
that the demonstrators could have made their point better through peaceful
protest. Looks like they were wrong. In these Tory and tabloid times,
polite protest seems to equal oblivion.
********
PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL STANDOFF - DISCHARGE - NO WEAPONS -
WANTED HELP
SWAT team ends hospital standoff
The Ottawa Citizen
July 10, 2000
Hours after being released from the Ottawa Hospital's General campus, a
38-year-old psychiatric patient returned and barricaded himself in a
hospital boardroom, claiming to have a loaded gun and a hostage. The
bizarre drama unfolded shortly after 3 a.m. in an administrative conference
room on the first floor. Ottawa-Carleton police surrounded the hospital
while tactical officers and negotiators tried to communicate with the man.
Police learned that the individual was deeply distraught but had no hostage
and no weapon. After a four-hour standoff, the tactical unit broke down the
locked door and arrested the suspect. Dennis Piffard of Ottawa is charged
with one count of mischief to property and one count of public mischief.
He'll appear in court this morning for a bail
hearing and will undergo a psychiatric assessment by court-appointed
doctors.
Monday, July 10, 2000 Cops stop hospital standoff
By ANN MARIE McQUEEN, Ottawa Sun
Police negotiating with a suspected armed hostage-taker broke
down a door at a local hospital yesterday to find a lone, distraught man.
An unidentified male phoned Ottawa Hospital's General campus from a
first-floor conference room just after 3 a.m., saying he had a gun and a
hostage, said regional police Sgt. Al Tario. About 20 tactical officers and
two police negotiators raced to the scene, speaking to the man through the
door and over the phone for the next four hours.
'STRANGE-LOOKING GUY'
Once all hospital staff and patients were accounted for, officers
broke down the door and arrested the man, who wasn't a patient or
staff member at the hospital. "There was no weapon, no hostages and no
injuries," said Tario. One witness who was waiting for treatment saw police
usher "a strange-looking guy" in handcuffs into the emergency room. Police
say charges are pending against a 38-year-old man who underwent a physical
and psychological assessment at the hospital's emergency department. He
remains in police custody and is expected to appear in court today.
*******
DR. NEALE
7/10/00
Probe of former Durham doctor widens
Allegations about gynecologist double in month
By Stan Josey
Toronto Star Durham Region Bureau Chief
The number of negligence complaints in Durham Region against gynecologist
Dr. Richard Neale, who faces accusations of medical misconduct in Britain,
has risen to 40 from 18 last month.
Durham police Sergeant Jim Grimley said the investigation of local
complaints is proceeding but it may be some time before criminal charges
are considered against the doctor, who practised in Durham from 1980 to
1984.
``The outcome of the investigation would have to be discussed with a crown
attorney, who would decide what, if any, criminal charges would be laid,''
Grimley said. Neale is appearing before a medical disciplinary board in
London accused of professional abuses after returning to England from
Canada in the mid-1980s. The charges allege he bungled surgery, neglected
patients and treated patients
without their consent. British Labour MP Frank Cook, who has taken an
interest in the Neale case, was quoted in British papers on the weekend as
saying he would try to expedite Neale's extradition if Canadian police lay
charges. But any decision on applying for extradition would be made by the
Ontario ministry of the attorney-general, said Grimley. ``Frankly, we are a
long way from contemplating anything like that at the moment.'' Grimley
said the medical evidence is complex and sometimes hard to come by because
the local complaints stem from incidents at least 15 years old.
Durham police have confirmed Neale is being investigated in the case of
Geraldine Krawchuk, who died in hospital under his care during childbirth
in Oshawa in 1981. Another of Neale's former patients said she is
concerned that he may leave London when the hearing ends next month. ``We
believe there should be some way of keeping him in Britain until the end of
the police investigation here,'' said Pat Ball of Whitby, head of the
Action and Support
Group for Medical Victims of Richard Neale. Neale was barred from
practising medicine in Ontario in 1985 but subsequently held
several medical posts in Britain, where he now stands accused of botching
medical procedures in about 130 cases. Before coming to Ontario, he
practised in British Columbia, where he also faced
allegations of incompetence.
********
PEDOPHILES UNTREATED VICTIMS OF CHILD SEX ABUSE
monday, July 10, 2000
Lax rules on pedophiles worry chief
By JONATHAN SHER, London Free Press
Some children in London may be playing under the gaze of pedophiles
whose whereabouts are unknown to police. At London police headquarters,
officers maintain a list of the city's most dangerous sexual offenders.
Some are admitted pedophiles. Others have been diagnosed as such. All have
a proclivity to rob youth of their
innocence.
Four of the current list of 26 have special status: They've dropped below
the radar screen of those charged with protecting the public from the most
heinous of crimes. No longer on parole, probation or under court order, the
four aren't required to reveal their home address to London authorities.
"These (pedophiles) can be living next door to you, next door to anyone,"
London police Chief Al Gramolini said. "We're not accountable for their
whereabouts." If London is typical, then hundreds of known sexual predators
move freely across Canada without detection -- until sometimes it's too
late.
Most convicted pedophiles are tracked by police, probation or parole
officers, but some have become invisible to law enforcement.
Pedophiles who complete their terms in prison or the community may
move freely without notifying police unless the Crown seeks limits through
a special court process. A court can order sex offenders to report to
police and keep away from children as it did earlier this year after
Frederick Fagan, 51, passed candy to kids through a wire fence at a south
London elementary school. In 1999, London police issued a public warning
that Fagan, who was last charged and convicted of a sex crime in 1986,
posed a risk to young children.
But such court orders aren't uniformly sought and require the Crown to
renew an order each year.
What's needed, said Gramolini, is a national registry for sex offenders, a
database of perps required to report every address change to police.
"They're not as likely to re-offend if they know a police officer will be
at their door," Gramolini said. Not knowing where pedophiles might lurk
puts Det.-Sgt Rick Harriss on
edge. "I'd love to know where they are every minute of the day," said
Harriss, who supervises London police's sexual assault and child abuse
unit. In April, Ontario legislators unanimously endorsed the country's
first sex offender registry, the law named for 11-year-old Christopher
Stephenson, sexually assaulted and killed in 1988 by paroled pedophile
Joseph Fredericks. But the Ontario registry hasn't been implemented, and
even when it is, it
won't track pedophiles convicted outside the province.
A national registry would provide a layer of protection to children, said
Rhonda Hallberg, who chairs the Child Abuse Council in London. "Some
children never recover from sexual abuse," she said. But a registry alone
won't remedy the fraying safety net that protects children against
pedophiles, she said. "Most sexual offenders don't get treatment," Hallberg
said. The number of sexual offenders swamp the relatively few slots open at
programs to treat them, she said. Children pay the price for that failing,
she said, an assessment shared by Gramolini.
In 1998, the most recent year data was available, 59 per cent of sexual
assaults in Canada were against victims under age 18, according to the
Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.
Too many Canadians balk at spending money to treat sex offenders, said
Hallberg, because they fail to understand children are the main
beneficiaries. Such treatment is also needed to break the cycle of abuse,
she said. -- most pedophiles were victims of abuse as children, she said.
********
CHILD ABUSE INVESTIGATOR
July 10, 2000 Abuse investigator develops a 'barrier'
By JONATHAN SHER, Free Press Reporter
London police officer Cam Halliday spends his days questioning children who
have become targets for physical and sexual abusers.
One child stands out, a six-year-old girl whose precocious wit and good
humour warmed his heart. Then for a moment, the outward charm vanished long
enough for a sad, scared girl to ask, "Please tell my Dad to start being
nice to me." Halliday, who radiated charm with his smile, paused. "You
don't want to become distracted by the tears. You develop a barrier. You're
goal-oriented and you want disclosure. But there's been times when my chin
might quiver a little bit." He welcomes children who are scared and
tormented, angry and and ashamed, and asks them to recall events they'd
rather forget, stories whose accuracy and completeness may determine
whether a sexual predator is locked up or walks away. He gains their trust
with humour and conversation with things kids hold
near and dear -- like Pokemon.
"I really do enjoy interviewing kids because it's so darned fun. They never
cease to be amazing," said Halliday, who has two children of his own. "But
at some point you must go from fun to their dark secret." Halliday
carefully avoids questions that suggest an answer, so-called leading
questions, such as, "So your uncle touches you?" Children are quick to
agree, true or not, casting doubt on their answers. Halliday instead asks,
"Do you know why you're here today?" He's haunted most by the stories of
those who remind him of his own children.
********
TWO WOMEN WARNED POLICE ABOUT LUFT BEHAVIOUR
7/10/00
Police warned about Bill Luft
Women say their concerns dismissed over man who killed wife and four kids
By Frank Etherington
Torstar News Service
KITCHENER - Two women say they spent three years repeatedly warning police,
court officials and child welfare workers that Bill Luft was armed,
dangerous and mentally ill before he killed his wife, four children and
then himself. Pamela Nancarrow Snow and Sue Taylor - both from
Kitchener-Waterloo - said since 1997 their concerns about Luft, 42, and
another man who befriended the killer, were either dismissed by officials
or not treated seriously and investigated thoroughly.
As a candle burned and a colourful mound of stuffed toys, dolls, flowers,
cards and religious items grew outside the Kitchener home where the Luft
family died late Wednesday or early Thursday, regional police and the
Ontario coroner's office confirmed Luft stabbed his wife, Bohumila, 27, to
death with a kitchen knife at 146 Mooregate Cr. Luft then used a
.22-calibre rifle to shoot his four children, Daniel, 7, Nicole, 5, Peter,
2, and 3-month-old David, before shooting himself. ``None of the children
suffered previous physical abuse or anything of that nature,'' said Dr. Jim
Cairns, Ontario deputy chief coroner. ``That's why the autopsies took so
long. We wanted to make sure we didn't overlook past abuses.'' On Friday at
11 a.m., a public remembrance will take place at the International Gospel
Centre at 35 Charles St. in Kitchener. The Lufts and their children will be
cremated and
buried together, possibly in the Czech Republic.
After several bitter, interconnected legal suits and counter-suits during
past years involving Luft and the other man, Snow and Taylor said they won
two restraining orders against the men in Goderich and Kitchener courts to
stay away from Snow. The Luft order, based on written threats to Snow, was
issued May 15 by a Goderich judge.
One document sent to Snow contained obscene language while another said
``lie down . . . now, hold still while I stab you through the heart.'' Snow
said she first detailed her fears about the two men to Waterloo Region
police in 1997. ``This should never, ever have happened,'' Snow said
yesterday. ``I'm so sick about this. I played with those (Luft) babies.
This could have been prevented, but the system failed. . . . We told them
over and over again about Bill's
(Luft's) psychotic state . . .''
The women said they repeatedly told police and other authorities that Luft
told them he was mentally ill and often had what he told them was a loaded
.22-calibre rifle at a bed-and-breakfast property Snow owned near Bayfield,
Ont. They said the only serious response came from the OPP in Goderich, who
sent an officer to court to provide security when Luft and the women
presented their cases.
Because she was so scared of Luft and alarmed at his ``bizarre'' behaviour,
Taylor said she made certain she was accompanied by one of two ``very big
male friends'' every time she went to court to act for Snow. Snow said she
first had contact with Luft when she hired a Waterloo contractor to build
an addition to the Bayfield house. When she told the contractor she needed
someone to do electrical work, he suggested Luft. At that time, Luft's wife
had left him and gone back to the Czech Republic. When he showed up at the
site, he came with his son Daniel, who was then 3 years old.
Snow said Luft did good work and after he ``cried the blues'' about having
nowhere to live, she made ``a stupid decision'' and offered him a place to
live in return for more construction work. Snow said Luft wanted to bring
his wife back to Canada from the Czech Republic and, using his recreational
vehicle as collateral, persuaded her to lend him $1,000. He brought his
pregnant wife and his daughter Nicole back to Bayfield but didn't repay the
money, Taylor said. Luft and Snow then got involved in a lengthy
landlord-tenant dispute when she asked him to leave her property and he
launched a claim against her in small claims court and at the local housing
authority. When it looked as though he would lose those actions, Luft took
off in the RV for Texas and, because of the loan against the vehicle, Snow
reported it stolen. When he returned, he sued her for damages because he
had to pay rental charges for
the RV while in Texas, Taylor said.
She said the case moved on to criminal court after Luft made the threats
against Snow. As the court cases moved ahead, Snow contacted Perth and
Huron child welfare officials to say she was worried about the safety of
the Luft children because of his
mental condition. Workers completed a review of the Luft family in 1999 but
said they could find nothing wrong and no grounds for intervention. Child
protection workers in Waterloo Region also investigated the family in
April, but that review ended when Luft admitted himself to Grand River
Hospital for psychiatric
counselling and treatment for manic depression. Frequently alarmed at
Luft's behaviour, Taylor said she e-mailed information to the
OPP in Goderich. ``I told them he had a gun, that he was psychotic and I
was concerned for the safety of his family and others,'' Taylor said.
``Police said they knew about Luft and his illness . . . they sent an
officer to court but said they couldn't do much else.''
********
SPANKING LAW
July 9, 2000 What I learned over my father's knee
I may have had to endure the occasional spanking,
but I always knew I was loved
By LORRIE GOLDSTEIN -- Toronto Sun
When I was a child my father spanked me occasionally, but I
was never in fear of him. That fear would only come when I visited one of
my friends, at whose house everyone seemed to live in fear of his dad. To
be fair, I never saw him hit anyone in his family, he never hit me, and my
friend never told me he was beaten. But whenever his father was around,
everyone in the house was obviously on edge - talking in whispers, walking
around on tip-toes. Years later, I realized that regardless of whether this
guy ever actually struck his wife or his kids, he had them all in a
perpetual state of low level emotional terror.
Far better and healthier the situation in my home, where, on the
rare occasion when I really screwed up, "Wait till your father gets
home" was my mom's standard reply. Upon arriving home from work, my dad,
after being informed of my various misdeeds, would take me over his knee at
an appointed hour, which he set, give me a few swift smacks on my bare
bottom with his hand, and send me off to my room. An hour later, mom would
come in to make sure I was okay, and
I would be restored to the world of the living, without any further
recriminations. When it was over, it was over.
This always struck me as a far healthier relationship between
parent and child than my poor buddy had to endure. Of course, these sorts
of more subtle distinctions are lost today on all those driven,
self-righteous, busybodies and social engineers who want the state to ban
spanking. Let's assume, for the sake of argument that my childhood
friend's dad never once spanked (or hit) anybody in his family, that they
only lived in a state of perpetual fear that he might do so, or scream at
them or otherwise punish them.
Was that a more healthy situation than in my family where I had
to endure the occasional spanking, but always knew I was loved?
Of course not. I mean, c'mon!
Last week, Mr. Justice David McCombs of the Ontario Superior
Court delivered an eminently sensible judgment upholding the right
of parents to spank their kids, reasonably. Legally speaking, Judge McCombs
ruled that section 43 of the Criminal Code is constitutional. It states:
"Every schoolteacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is
justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child, as
the case may be, who is under his care, if the force does not exceed what
is reasonable in the circumstances." In so doing, he denied an attempt by
anti-spanking groups and children's aid societies to strike down section 43.
(Sorry, but I've seen too many inquests over the years where it
was revealed how a CAS had monumentally screwed up to have
any faith in them as the all-knowing defenders of children. And I
have no patience with politically correct ideologues, who, in their
irrational obsession to end all forms of spanking, are effectively
saying my dad was a child abuser.)
Much has been made by some media, who tend to have a knee-jerk bias against
spanking as well, about the fact Judge McCombs wrote it might be time for
Parliament to establish specific criteria to better define how section 43
should be applied and interpreted. Some suggested this meant the judge was
calling for an overhaul of corporal punishment. Well, no. If you read his
decision, it's apparent that when he talks about a parent's reasonable use
of corrective force, he means the spankings many of us recall as kids.
He means spanking a child's rear with your bare hand, never with
an object, never applying force to the head, never hitting an infant or a
teen or a child who is incapable of understanding the
punishment, such as one who is mentally handicapped, and never
hitting in a way that produces physical injury. All those things, Judge
McCombs clearly believes, are abusive and criminal acts and should be
prosecuted. So do I. He is concerned that some past legal judgments appear
to have used section 43 to justify excessive force, hence his call for
parliamentary guidelines which would take into account "contemporary
community standards" about spanking.
It's clear from Judge McCombs' ruling that he's not a fan of
spanking and believes society is rightly moving away from it. He's
just not prepared to indulge in the silly, often hysterical and
guilt-laden rhetoric of so many who want it banned. As Judge McCombs wisely
notes: "It is not correct to say that section 43 sends the message that
hitting children is acceptable. Parliament is not being contradictory or
hypocritical in preserving the section 43 defence while simultaneously
adopting a multi-faceted strategy to discourage corporal punishment of
children. The law does not criminalize all behaviour which society does not
condone." (My italics.) Hallelujah! Finally, a judge who understands the
difference between interpreting the law and judicial activism. As he notes:
"Judges ... are not legislators, nor should they be."
One can only hope for a similar display of judicial wisdom when
McCombs' sound and sensible judgment is appealed by those who want to ban
spanking, as it will be. Finally, I didn't spank my kids when they were
growing up. I didn't see any need. But I feel no irrational compulsion to
impose my views on someone who is simply being a judicious parent in
spanking his or her child, as my dad was with me.
*******
MICHELE LANDSBERG: STOCKWELL DAY
WHERE DAY'S ANTI-SEMITIC REMOURS GOT STARTED
MICHELE LANDSBERG SUNDAY STAR JULY 9 2000 PG.A2
During a debate last week, Stockwell Day said, in answer to a question from
the audience, that it was "1000 per cent false" that he had ever taught at
a Christian school "where Jews were described as children of the devil".
The Globe and Mail's John Ibbotson jumped in with a column linking the
question to "underground rumours" of anti-Semitism for which, he insisted,
there is not "a shred of credible evidence". I'd like to come at this a
different way, by going back to the source of
the story - a column and a feature in the Edmonton Journal on April 2 of
this year, neither of which was ever disputed or denied.
The column was by Paula Simons, who was a young journalist at the Alberta
Report a dozen years ago, when Stockwell Day was a newly-elected Tory
member of the Alberta Legislature. She phoned him up to ask him about the
curriculum Day had used for seven years ---the Accelerated Christian
Education, or ACE curriculum, published in Texas --- while he was the
administrator of a Pentecostal school.
Day was a fervent missionary for Christian education. When he was heading
up the school at the Bentley Christian Centre, he was also leading a
vociferous campaign against the Alberta Ministry of Education's right to
define education, insisting that "God's word" was the only valid law. The
controversial ACE curriculum that Day used was audited at the time by the
Alberta Ministry of Education , which found that it apparently created "a
degree of insensitivity toward blacks, Jews and natives."
In one worksheet, students were asked whether it was true or false that
"Jewish leaders are children of their father, the devil." A text described
French-Canadian settlers' parties as "scenes of immorality and consumption
of alcohol"and said that the the French settlers "would rather spend their
money on a good horse or a feast...than on a better plough."
Graham Thomson, an Edmonton Journal colleague of Simons, obtained these
details through Freedom of Information and ran them in his April 2 profile
of Stockwell Day. Simons, in her column on the same day, pointedly noted
that parts of the ACE curriculum attacked democracy as "the deification
of man, which is the very essence of humanism and totally alien to God's
word." Back in that 1980s interview, she particularly asked Day about a
passage claiming that
"science became successful because the founders of modern science were
Christian."
Did that passage demean Albert Einstein, who was non-Christian? she asked.
As Simons recently recollected in her column, Day reacted with "shock, even
anger. Could I back up such a serious allegation? Did I have any proof? His
entire attitude suggested that I'd insulted a great man in the most damning
way possible." Neither Simons' column nor Graham Thomson's thorough
reporting on the
discredited ACE currriculum, used and defended by Day, has been disputed or
denied in any way. Neither of them said or implied that Day was
anti-Semitic; in fact, Simons said she believed his protestations that he
wasn't.
Whether Day is anti-democratic ---and just laughably ignorant --- is
another question.
*******
NATIVE NEWS
HELL'S ANGELS CORNER DRUG MARKET IN NUNAVUT
July 10, 2000
Hells Angels corner the drug market in Nunavut
Increase in trade: police
Jonathon Gatehouse
National Post
IQALUIT, Nunavut - The Hells Angels have set up shop north of
sixty. Attracted by the lure of easy money and the mini-economic boom
sparked by the creation of Canada's newest territory, the
motorcycle gang has taken control of Nunavut's drug trade and is
seeking new marketplaces. "There's been a major, major increase in the last
year," Corporal Jim Christensen, head of the RCMP's Nunavut Drug Section,
said in a recent interview. "Criminal organizations in the south realize
the potential and are seizing the moment." The decades-old trade in
cannabis has been consolidated and cocaine is starting to flow into the
eastern Arctic in quantity, showing up for the first time in outlying
settlements such as Pangnirtung and Cape Dorset. The reason is simple, said
Cpl. Christensen -- money. "The greed factor is everything," he said. A
street gram of coke (actual weight between .4 and .8 of a gram) sells for
between $200 and $275 in Iqaluit, far above the $80 it would fetch in most
Canadian cities. A gram of marijuana or hash goes for $30, double or triple
the price in the south. The influx of workers to new high-paying jobs to
Iqaluit -- the Baffin Island community of 5,000 has seen more than
$50-million in new construction since it became the territorial seat of
government on April 1, 1999 -- has created a ready market.
"The Hells are turning their attention anywhere where there's
money to be made ... especially when it's easy," said Sergeant
Guy Ouellette, a biker expert with the Sûreté du Québec.
Under siege from the Rock Machine in Quebec and faced with
"virgin territory" in the far North, the Hells Sherbrooke, Que.,
branch began to quietly muscle in on the Nunavut trade two years
ago, he said. The Sherbrooke chapter, the largest in Canada with
25 full-patch members, already controlled the drug trade in the
north of the province and operates in several francophone
communities in Northern Ontario. "It's a natural extension," said Sgt.
Ouellette. Police have been reluctant to publicize the Hells Angels
expansion, but recent arrests highlight the gang's growing power in the far
North. This month, the SQ staged a series of raids across Quebec under the
auspices of Project Nordica, a probe of trafficking routes to the far
North. Investigators seized six kilograms of hash, 21 grams of cocaine and
several hundred thousand dollars in cash. In one of the Montreal apartments
they raided, police found packages of cannabis bearing addresses in Nunavut
and Quebec's Ungava region, ready to be mailed out by express post.
In the Laurentians, police found contraband liquor and a canning
machine they believe was used to package drugs for transit. They
recovered a debt list with the names of 40 northern residents,
showing $200,000 to $300,000 outstanding. Six people have been charged,
including Gilles Allard, identified by police as an associate member of the
Sherbrooke Hells Angels, and Michel Leblanc, a former RCMP constable.
According to Sgt. Ouellette, police found $200,000 in Mr. Leblanc's home,
and close to $60,000 more arrived by mail in the week following his arrest.
That same week, Iqaluit RCMP charged a resident of nearby Apex with
trafficking, seizing an ounce-and-a-half of cocaine, with an
estimated street value of $12,000. The Hells Angels connection first
surfaced in March, 1998, when police in Nunavut collared a full-patch
member of the Sherbrooke chapter as part of a two-year investigation into
the Baffin Island hash trade, which resulted in the arrest of 29 people on
68 counts. Charges were eventually dropped because of insufficient
evidence. While bikers are not currently thundering down the dirt streets
of Iqaluit, their presence is felt in the town. One local cocaine dealer,
who spoke under the condition of anonymity, said the gang's name is often
invoked by those seeking to instill fear in consumers and the competition.
"There's a lot of wannabes," said the man. "A lot of them like to have the
ties and the name. But there's no colour wearing or waving going on." The
RCMP says Iqaluit's boomtown atmosphere has been something of a magnet for
a "bad element" from the rest of the country, an assessment the dealer
agrees with.
"It's pretty well people that didn't succeed down south and came
up here and found an easy way to make a fast buck," he said.
Pamela Clarke, regional director for the federal Department of
Justice, said the increase in the drug trade is a concern, but the
preoccupation for both police and the courts remains violent
personal crimes such as assault, rape and domestic abuse. Ms. Clarke
pointed to the many challenges facing the new territory, including chronic
unemployment, poverty and low education levels.
"We're like a microcosm of the things that cause crime.," she said.
July 11, 2000
Cape Dorset's drug addiction
Some desperate residents offer Saturday Night Specials: expensive carvings
for the price of a gram of marijuana
Jonathon Gatehouse
National Post
CAPE DORSET, Nunavut - The bug-eyed alien with the joint pinched between
his skinny fingers has a Mona Lisa smile and simple
command: "Take Me to Your Dealer." It's the kind of kitschy marijuana
paraphernalia that proudly decorates the walls of head shops across the
country. Up here, however, alongside the snowmobiles, sled dogs, and
rapidly melting mounds of snow, the poster at least serves a dual purpose
-- an effective block against the near 24-hour sunshine. Taped to the
inside of a bedroom window in a house high up on one of the rocky hillsides
that enclose this Inuit settlement of 1,200 people, the image also speaks
volumes about what is going on behind closed doors. Alcohol may still be
the drug of choice in the North, but marijuana is not that far behind.
"For the size of this community and the number of people here, it's an
epidemic. There's no doubt," says Constable Kurt Lozinski, one of four RCMP
officers policing the hamlet. "We get tips on people trafficking drugs
every day. It's just a question of when can we find the time."
Nestled in a stony cove on the southwest tip of Baffin Island,
residents of Cape Dorset (also known as Kingait) have no shortage
of things to be proud of. The people are friendly and kind. The
spectacular lunar landscape, made familiar by the Group of Seven, draws
tourists from around the world during the brief spring and summer. The
village's hundreds of talented carvers and print
makers have made it the recognized centre of the Inuit Art movement. And
the money the two industries bring in has made Dorset one of the most
prosperous aboriginal communities in Canada.
Yet for all its advantages and outward tranquility, the settlement is one
of the North's most violent places. In 1999, the local RCMP logged more
than 900 complaints -- mostly physical and sexual
assaults, domestic abuse and property crimes. The Nunavut Court of Justice,
which travels to the community four times a year to try the most serious
offenders, dealt with 62 individuals and 108
charges in its latest sitting.
And while alcohol remains the number one contributing factor to the
hamlet's troubles, the expanding abuse of soft drugs is making a volatile
situation even more difficult to handle. "We're mostly babysitters here,"
Const. Lozinski says, sitting at his desk in the RCMP building that
overlooks the settlement. "We arrest people, charge them; it doesn't seem
to deter them. When they come out they go right back to the old life." The
most commonly heard sound in Cape Dorset is the thrum of metal shaping
stone. The overturned wood packing crates that serve as outdoor carving
benches are a feature of almost every home in town. While the international
market for Inuit sculpture is not what it once was, the arching seals and
polished polar bears still bring in millions every year. A master artist
can earn thousands for each piece. A merely good carver can earn between
$500 and $700 a day -- cash.
That's the thing about Cape Dorset. The local economy may boast two hotels,
a couple of grocers, a café and a Co-op that buys and markets art, but it
does not have a bank. Cold, hard currency is
what keeps the hamlet humming. It's also what fuels the trade in drugs and
alcohol. "It's supply and demand. The money's there," says Cindy Parsons,
the municipality's director of social services. "We're just like any other
place."
As a "controlled community," in the jargon of northern liquor laws,
residents of Dorset must apply for a permit to import alcohol. Those judged
to be responsible enough by the elders on the alcohol
committee can bring in a set amount every 35 days -- three 40-ounce
bottles, or the equivalent in wine or beer. If that does not slake the
thirst, however, there's always the local bootleggers. The going rate for a
mickey is $100. Twenty-six ounces of spirits cost $300, 40 ounces costs
$500, and a 60-ounce bottle sells for a cool grand. By comparison,
marijuana and hash are a steal. A street gram of marijuana (.6 to .8 of a
gram) goes for just $60. Hash can fetch between $80 and $100. With the same
amounts selling for less than half the price on the streets of Canada's
largest cities, the profit incentives are obvious. Drugs are shipped into
town by friends or organized crime groups in the south, or carried in by
travellers on the two daily flights from Iqaluit. The local RCMP
estimates there are more than a dozen large-scale "importers" in town, and
25 to 30 street level dealers. In one recent arrest, police found 66 grams
of hash and almost $10,000.
While harder drugs like cocaine are still a rarity in Cape Dorset, their
growing availability in the new territory and the lure of a cash-rich
market do not bode well for the future. The local love affair with soft
drugs is already taking its toll on the community. While the violence and
abuse largely flows from alcohol, marijuana and hash are making themselves
felt in more insidious ways.
"Sixty dollars to some families is the difference between a couple of days
of food or not," says Const. Lozinski. When it comes to a choice between
toking or setting the table, too often the urge
to party wins out. "We've had cases of people putting Coffee Mate or
Coca-Cola in baby bottles because it's cheaper."
On the weekends, drug users sometimes go door to door in the hamlet
offering "Saturday Night Specials." A $300 carving will go for as low as
$60 -- the price of a gram. Like the community as a whole, most consumers
of cannabis are under the age of 25. At the Kingnait Hotel, Charlie Fewer,
the manager, removes large bundles of cash from the office safe. The 20s,
50s and 100s are crisp and new. The 5s and 10s are ragged, missing corners
and pieced together with tape. Mr. Fewer and other merchants say the
high-denomination bills do not stay in town long enough to become worn. The
only way in and out of Cape Dorset for most of the year is by air, but that
does
not stop the money from disappearing. "They have to bring in money all the
time. We go dry, we go dry here," says Mr. Fewer. "It goes
out of here in Kraft Dinner boxes."
Local expectations since the founding of Nunavut on April 1, 1999, have
been high. Many residents believed territorial status would be a panacea
for the community's persistent social and economic ills. But as the new
government in Iqaluit struggles with budget and infrastructure questions,
disenchantment is growing. "It just seems that in the last year, instead of
going forward we're going back," says Mr. Fewer. "They're not living up to
the problems. Everybody's afraid to speak out against each other." It is
difficult to find people willing to openly discuss the hamlet's drug and
alcohol problems. Many residents, already sensitive to Cape Dorset's bad
reputation in the North, do not see the advantage in spreading the news to
a wider audience. Several community leaders approached by a visiting
reporter, declined to discuss the matter. The head of the local nursing
station said she could be fired for talking to the media.
A computer-printed sign in English and Inuktitut occupies a prominent place
in the conference room at the Community Services building. "What you see
here. What you hear here. Let it stay
here," it proclaims.
Alika Parr, a hamlet councillor who serves on the local alcohol committee
says she and other elders try to educate the younger members of the
community about the dangers of drug use. Through a translator, she says
that its difficult for her to talk about the health effects because she has
no first-hand experience. "But seeing people who use it makes me realize
that it really has an effect on people's lives," she says. "We have to keep
lecturing the kids not to use drugs. It's hard for the women, too. They
have no support from their spouses." Ms. Parsons says residents are
beginning to address the issue through quiet interventions, though
she admits the message may not be getting through. "I still don't think
that the average person in the community thinks it's a problem," she says.
Const. Lozinski, who like many of the "southerners" in town is a temporary
resident, scheduled to
ship out to a new posting by the end of the summer, muses about the
disparity between the tranquility of public life and the private battles he
has to police almost every night. "People here are really, really nice when
they're sober," he says. "If you took away the alcohol and the drugs, we'd
be out of a job."
Mrs. Edna Kowalsky
Sincerely,
Mrs. Edna Kowalsky
"Michael Newton" <eyeo...@att.net> wrote in message
news:AFXa5.6871$%P.50...@bgtnsc06-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
Michael Newton
House arrest for ex-doctor
Barbara Brown, Justice Reporter
The Hamilton Spectator July 13
A disgraced former doctor will be under house arrest until July 2002 after
being sentenced yesterday for indecently assaulting a young girl. Superior
Court Justice Alan Whitten handed Guy Bradford, 73, a conditional sentence
of two years less a day, along with a stringent list of conditions. He
ordered Bradford to remain in his home except to attend medical
appointments or to perform the 100 hours of community service ordered by
the court.
Bradford was a family physician in Ancaster for more than 30 years and was
known for making house calls long after most doctors had stopped the
practice. Many loyal friends and former patients wrote letters to the court
praising his professional standards and good character.
But Carolyn Donders, 29, and her sister, Theresa Buzzell, grew up in
Ancaster and had a very different impression of the doctor.
They remember a man who "creeped" them out while he was dating their mother
in the mid-1970s. They also remember that he continued to be a disturbing
presence when their family moved into an apartment over his McNiven Road
medical office. Donders told the court about three specific incidents when
she was between five and nine years old when Bradford put his hand down her
pants and
penetrated her vagina. Her older sister testified that when she was about
10 years old she saw Bradford with his hand inside Carolyn's underwear. She
remembers discussing the incident with her sister and their father.
Bradford lost his licence to practise medicine in 1995 after a niece of his
wife complained to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario that
she'd been sexually molested by her uncle in the early 1980s.
Hamilton-Wentworth police laid a string of sexual assault charges against
Bradford two years later. The charges involved five women, including
Donders and his niece, Dana
Muma. Bradford was tried four times since his arrest.
He was found not guilty at the first two trials, and the charges involving
his niece were thrown out of court last March because witness statements
given 16 years earlier had gone missing.
Whitten said Bradford would not likely pose a further risk to the safety of
the community because of his age and declining health.
The convicted man walks with canes due to fused and arthritic ankles and
also suffers from asthma, hypertension and congestive heart failure.
Bradford also has been treated since his arrest for depression and anxiety
attacks. "We are dealing with an individual who has been broken by his
legal odyssey," said the judge.
"What more powerful lesson would be necessary to teach him the error of his
sins?"
A conditional sentence means Bradford will serve his term in the community
under the supervision of a corrections officer.
He must notify the supervisor when he has a medical appointment and carry
his sentencing documents with him when he leaves the house.
Bradford pleaded not guilty at his fourth and final trial in May, but a
jury convicted him of assaulting Donders. He continues to maintain his
innocence on all allegations. Donders said she never expected Bradford to
show remorse. "I don't think he ever will.
"He's high and mighty and arrogant and he doesn't think he's done anything
wrong."
********
MATTHEW HALL, PEDOPHILE: MOTION FOR ASSESSMENT BY DEFENCE PSYCHIATRIST
REJECTED (DR JOHN BRADFORD??)
Motion to have Hall assessed by defence-selected psychiatrist rejected
(published July 13)
By LINDA RICHARDSON, The Sault Ste Marie Star
A move to have convicted sex offender Matthew Hall assessed by a
defence-selected psychiatrist was rejected Wednesday by a Superior Court
judge. Justice Michael Meehan dismissed a judicial review application filed
by the 24-year-old man's lawyer, who argued
that an earlier hearing where a Crown-recommended expert was appointed
lacked procedural fairness.
The higher court judge said Ontario Court Justice James Greco hadn't erred
in his ruling and in fact had made a ``valiant'' attempt to reach consensus
when he wasn't required to. Ordinarily, the Superior Court only intervenes
in a trial in extraordinary circumstances, he said. And there was nothing
in the materials he had reviewed that would lead to the conclusion that
Greco ``had operated in excess of his jurisdiction or that he made any
jurisdictional error that would lead me to interfere with the trial,''
Meehan said.
In June, Greco ordered Hall to undergo testing at a Toronto facility after
hearing Crown and defence arguments on who should be appointed to conduct
the battery of tests. The assessment, which could last up to 60 days, is
slated to begin Oct. 3. It's the first step in the process of seeking
dangerous-offender status for Hall, who has been convicted of dozens of
child porn offences and numerous sex-related charges. If the prosecution's
dangerous-offender application is successful, Hall could be behind bars
indefinitely.
In his decision, Greco said the application for such an assessment can only
be brought by the Crown, not the accused, who has no right to dictate who
should be selected. On Wednesday, defence counsel Michael Bennett also
requested Meehan make an order to have his client remanded to an Ottawa
hospital for assessment in its forensic unit. Meehan dismissed this
alternative saying ``I don't have the jurisdiction to make such an order.''
Prosecutor Kelly Weeks told the court the defence can get its own
assessment by making an application to the trial judge. If arrangements are
made at a secure facility with an admission date, the Crown is prepared to
co-operate, she said.
Hall was convicted in April of 43 charges, after he pleaded guilty to
distributing, importing and possessing child pornography, as well as a
number of sex-related offences involving children.
He also admitted sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl and sexually
touching an eight-year-old boy in Haileybury in 1997.
As well, he entered guilty pleas to seven counts of invitation to sexual
touching involving a number of young local girls.
The charges against Hall stemmed from a four-month undercover Internet
investigation conducted by the Ontario Provincial Police Pornography Unit
(Project P). During the trial, the court spent two days viewing hundreds of
graphic and explicit images of young children police seized from Hall's
computer and disks and heard details of the sex-related charges.
The hundreds of computer images showed adults, often men masked to hide
their identities, engaged in oral sex, intercourse and other sexual acts
with children, some as young as toddlers in diapers.
********
FMSF MERSKEY DEFENDS KINGSTON PSYCHIATRIST, ADAMS
Patients will feel the pain if doctor suspended
Sharon Lindores, Whig-Standard Staff Writer
Up to 200 patients suffering from chronic pain may find themselves without
a doctor next week. Dr. Frank Adams, a psychiatrist who specializes in
pain management, will learn whether his licence will be suspended or
revoked at a hearing Thursday and Friday in Toronto. (July 20)
A 1999 investigation by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario
found Adams guilty of professional misconduct and
incompetence. The decision was released April 14. Adams is concerned that
his patients may be left to suffer without care if his licence is taken
away. "Nobody's going to take them," he said, adding doctors won't want to
continue his level of care if he's being punished for it. The college, the
regulatory body for physicians, doesn't make provisions for patients left
without doctors due to sanctions it imposes, said college representative
Jill Hefley. "There are not that many specialists with my background," said
Adams, whose work has focused on pain management and the use of opioids,
compounds which resemble cocaine and morphine.
His experience includes assistant professorships at Queen's University, and
University of Toronto and postings at Kingston Psychiatric Hospital,
Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
in Houston, Texas, according to his curriculum vitae.
For the last five years he's been based in Kingston. He's warned his
patients that he may not be available pending the sentencing
outcome. In the meantime doctors, patients and advocates are rallying to
his support. Adams has a reputation for being on the cutting edge of
dealing with chronic pain. He's a leader in the field whose practices are
being questioned, although Ontario has no set policy guidelines on dealing
with pain, said DR. HAROLD
MERSKEY, PROFESSOR EMERITUS at University of WESTERN ONTARIO and EDITOR of
the CANADIAN PAIN SOCIETY JOURNAL.
"I do not think the charges were in any way justified, nor did the panel
have evidence to accept the charges," Merskey said.
The college investigated the treatment of 25 patients and found Adams' work
negligent in eight cases. They said he prescribes high doses of
painkillers, doesn't do proper examinations and didn't properly follow up
one case. Merskey refutes this. He was one of two witnesses for Adams and
he said that all three witnesses (including the one called by the college)
agree that Adams was not negligent.
"They are challenging the experience of a very capable and thoughtful
practitioner and a very devoted doctor," Merskey said. "This is not a drug
dealer and he's being treated as a drug dealer.
"This is not only a matter of justice, which it is, it's a matter that also
will set back the treatment of patients with chronic pain in Ontario by 10,
perhaps 20 years."
The college will not speak about the issue, referring to its written
decision, which reads:
"Dr. Adams was guilty of professional misconduct in that he failed to
maintain the standard of practice of the profession, and that he was
incompetent in that he displayed in his professional care of a patient a
lack of knowledge, skill or judgment of a nature, or to an extent that
demonstrates that he is unfit to continue in practice, or that his practice
should be restricted."
Adams said patients can only see him through referrals from family
physicians. They must have had multiple examinations for pain conditions
and a record that conventional methods of treatment have been ineffective.
Once he sees patients, he does examinations and a pain evaluation. Then, he
either refers patients back to their family doctors with instructions, or
he sees them on an ongoing basis. In addition to his 200 ongoing cases,
Adams sees about 600 to 700 new patients every year. Adams wouldn't comment
on his case before the college, but he defended his position.
"Clinical practice always is ahead of institutional concerns," Adams said.
"It takes people doing the work to be leaders. Many institutions by
tradition oppose progress. Opioids, unfortunately, have been so demonized
by the medical profession that to try to have it accepted in a more liberal
fashion is extremely difficult. "Traditional western medicine has ignored
pain."
Although the sentencing hearing is scheduled for next week, a decision may
take longer. The college has the ability to revoke or suspend licences, to
reprimand doctors or fine them. If a physician chooses to appeal the
sentence, the case goes to provincial court.
If a physician is guilty of incompetence, the penalty goes into effect
right away, but if the physician is guilty of misconduct, the penalty
doesn't go into effect until after the appeal process - which can take
years - is complete. Adams said he is prepared to appeal his case.
********
RICHARD BOLL, RC CHANCELLOR (legal issues), PEDOPHILE
Thursday, July 13, 2000
Catholic chancellor faces sex charges
By JONATHAN SHER, Free Press Reporter
The chancellor of the London diocese of the Roman Catholic church has
resigned from priestly duties, days after police charged him with molesting
boys at a school where he taught in the 1970s.
Richard Boll was arrested Sunday and resigned Tuesday from duties that
included delivering mass at parishes across the diocese, which stretches
through nine counties in Southwestern Ontario and includes nearly a
half-million Catholics. "(Boll) resigned from priestly duties until the
charges against him are resolved," said Larry Brennan, the diocese's
business administrator. Provincial Police in Simcoe say a number of men
have come forward to
complain they were sexually abused by a teacher while they were students at
a Catholic school in Port Dover between 1971 and 1976. Their ages at the
time ranged from 10 to 14. London Bishop John Sherlock broke off from a
vacation to return to London to deal with the matter Tuesday, Brennan said.
Sherlock left London later Tuesday and couldn't be reached for comment
yesterday, diocese staff said.
It hasn't been determined whether Boll will continue as chancellor,
Brennan said. Chancellors typically act like a chief operating officer in a
corporation, overseeing things such as budgets and personnel, said Lawrence
Cunningham, a theology professor at the University of Notre Dame in
Indiana. "If a bishop picks a priest as chancellor he must have confidence
in that person who he will ask advice from on a whole range of issues,"
Cunningham said.
Any behavioural problem involving a priest "would land on the chancellor's
desk," Cunningham said. With allegations of sexual abuse, a bishop will
typically seek input from the chancellor, he said.
Two months ago, Boll testified for the London diocese, which is defending
against an $11.6-million civil lawsuit filed by three brothers molested as
children by Rev. Barry Glendinning, who pleaded guilty in 1974 to gross
indecency with six young children.
Boll, who has a degree in church law equivalent to a master's degree, was
asked under what circumstances a priest might automatically be defrocked
for misconduct. "If he hit the Pope, it would be automatic . . . or
desecrating the precious body and blood. Those would be automatic," Boll
said in an oral examination for the lawsuit, as shown in a transcript
obtained by The Free
Press. "But it wouldn't be automatic if he pleaded guilty to (sexually)
abusing children?" Boll was asked by plaintiff lawyer Paul LeDroit. "No,"
Boll said.
Police have charged Boll, 55, with two counts of buggery and five counts
each of indecent assault and gross indecency. There is a publication ban on
the victims' names.
********
CATHOLIC WOMEN'S LEAGUE
More thajust a social club
Catholic Women's League adopts aggressive political posture
Rose Simone
Kitchener Waterloo RECORD STAFF
July 13, 2000
They want the federal government to establish a national sex offender's
registry. They are calling for a national program aimed at the prevention
of teen suicides. They're also asking the Ontario
government to make slippery roads safer for drivers by allowing the newer
studded tires that are easier on roads but allow cars to stop faster in the
wintertime. These resolutions, passed during the Catholic Women's League
of Canada provincial convention that wrapped up on Wednesday at the
Waterloo Inn, make it obvious the
organization is not just a women's parish social club.
During the four-day gathering in Waterloo, the 350 women who
are representatives of nearly 60,000 Ontario members of the
Catholic Women's League of Canada, dealt with complex political and social
issues, while also renewing their spirituality with speakers, prayer and
song. It was important that Pope John Paul II, in his 1995 open letter to
women, stressed his belief in the basic equality of men and women, said
Moira McQueen, a professor from the Toronto School of Theology who spoke at
the annual convention. In an interview after the talk, McQueen pointed out
that although the pope remains staunchly opposed to the ordination of
women, based on the idea that Christ chose only men as apostles, he did
make strong statements in his letter on the need for "real equality in
every area" for all women, in the home and in the world of work. The pope
said that women together with men share a
common responsibility for the destiny of humanity.
McQueen said the statement may seem rather basic to people on this side of
the world, but it's powerful when one considers the status of women in many
other parts of the world, where they are blatantly discriminated against
and where male violence against women is culturally accepted. "I think we
sometimes make the judgement from this part of the world that everybody
else is at the same stage and level," McQueen said. So when the pope
stresses the equal dignity of men and women to the entire world, it has
impact, she said. "I don't know too many other people who have done that."
McQueen said "in some ways I wish things in the church could move faster,
but
on the other hand, there is no point in moving faster when that basic right
is not yet widespread and totally accepted."
Meanwhile, bishops do pay attention to the Catholic Women's League of
Canada, which gives women influence in the church, McQueen said. "I think
if a bishop ignores the CWL, it's at his peril." Provincial league
president Betty Anne Brown from the community of Gormley, north of Toronto,
said the organization is influential both within the Catholic church and in
getting the ear of governments. It is a large faith group, she points out
-- 105,000 women in Canada are members of the Catholic Women's League, and
more than half are in Ontario. Many professional women -- lawyers,
engineers, teachers, professors, nurses -- tend to join when they are on
maternity leave, or when they take early retirement and have time to devote
to projects and causes, she said.
The skills of professional women come in handy when dealing with the
wording of some of the issues that come up in resolutions, said Brown, who
is herself a trained biochemist. At last year's provincial and national
conventions, for example, there were
resolutions on everything from a reduction on the use of cell phones while
driving, to a ban on the cloning of human embryos, reduction in emissions
of greenhouse gases and curbs on military exports. "Government does listen
to us, it's amazing," Brown said. "We met with Ontario government ministers
for two full days in March to talk about 15 resolutions that came from our
members."
Women are also taking on a more vital role at a time when the Catholic
church is suffering from a shortage of ordained priests, she added.
"Although the numbers of ordained priests has decreased, the churches can
carry on because there are all these committed Catholic women who are
helping to share the load of ministry," Brown said. Most of all, the
members provide each other with support in times of sorrow or joy, Brown
said. When her own daughter died, just two weeks ago, Brown said many
members drove from all over Ontario to be with her family.
********
CHILD RESIDENTIAL CARE, STANDARDS
Halifax Daily News July 13, 2000
Kids' care standards packaged
A new set of provincial standards will soon protect children with
behavioural and emotional problems living in the province's 31 residential
facilities under the government's care. The 102 standards, covering
everything from staff ratios to reporting child
abuse allegations, will come into effect in April 2001. Debra Burris,
provincial co-ordinator of community residential services with the
Department of Community Services, said yesterday the new standards have
been in the works for four years. The standards went through a "very
detailed'' consultation with people who provide the service,
representatives of children in care, and government staff.
Up until now, the 31 facilities with room to help 221 troubled children,
have been governed by a combination of rules developed by each facility's
board, department policies and sections of the Children and Family Services
Act, said Burris. "What, in effect, we've done with these new standards is
sort of blend it so it
becomes a comprehensive package of all of the policies and legislative
pieces. We've taken what existed and built on it,'' she said. "This means
that they're all collectively in one spot and it covers a whole raft of
issues that relate to the operation of a residential facility.'' The new
manual has been sent out to service providers around the province, and
orientation sessions will be held in September. Residences, run by private,
not-for-profit organizations, usually have eight to 10 children in their
care; some have as few as three. - staff
********
DAVID THREINEN (52) PEDOPHILE MURDERER
Child killer makes another parole bid
Threinen turned down in 1995 hearing after
psychological report calls him 'fixated pedophile'
By Leslie Perreaux Saskatoon Star Phoenix July 13 2000
A killer who terrorized Saskatoon 25 years ago by snatching and strangling
four young children is applying for parole once again.
David Threinen, 52, will likely face a National Parole Board hearing in
August, 25 years after he confessed to killing the four schoolchildren.
Threinen has been eligible to apply for parole every two years since 1995,
when he'd served 20 years for the killings. His first and only parole
hearing was in 1995. He was
turned down one hour into his hearing. Parole board members said a 1992
psychological report best summarized Threinen's situation.
The report called him a "fixated pedophile" with predatory and homicidal
tendencies. The board said Threinen had made an effort to understand the
underlying causes of his violent offences, but he was still a serious risk
to the community.
Threinen's case worker recommended against parole, adding Threinen had no
plan for what he would do if he got out of prison. In an interview
following the hearing in 1995, Threinen said he's not Charles Manson, but
he acknowledged that as a grandfather, he didn't know if he would have
granted himself parole. Robert Grubesic, 9, and Dahrlyne Cranfield, 12,
were abducted and strangled in June 1975. Samantha Turner, 8, and Cathy
Scott, 7, disappeared one month later. One of the children was sexually
assaulted. Threinen was convicted of killing a 16-year-old
Lethbridge girl in 1972. The conviction was overturned by the Alberta Court
of Appeal because the Crown failed to prove the cause of the girl's death.
Parole for child killer highly unlikely: expert
Nature of crimes, current mental state make
chances of conditional release remote
By Leslie Perreaux Saskatoon Star Phoenix July 13 2000
Slim and none are the two words that best describe the chances that
multiple child murderer David Threinen will get parole at a hearing next
month, says one criminologist. Threinen, the man who terrorized Saskatoon
in the summer of 1975 through a series of abductions and murders, hasn't
started to take the many steps
required for him to get serious consideration for release.
Lifers - inmates serving life or indeterminate sentences - almost always
take a series of small steps toward parole before they are given full
parole. The National Parole Board must approve a series of short absences
from jail - escorted and unescorted day passes, weekend passes, day parole
- before lifers are usually considered for release. The same unwritten rule
often applies to armed robbers and rapists who sometimes get sentences of
more than 10 years.
Lifers usually take three to five years to get those absences before they
have a chance at full parole. "That's not to say that lifers will get any
of those releases. But that would be the ordinary progression if a lifer is
to get day parole," said parole board spokesperson Debra Kihara. "I can't
say to you that it's impossible that Threinen or any other lifer would be
given full parole at any parole review, but a gradual release is the
ordinary way."
Threinen has never been beyond the gates of prison on any type of approved
absence. Threinen, 52, is serving a life-sentence for abducting and
strangling four Saskatoon children in the summer
of 1975. He became eligible for parole in 1995 and was turned down
immediately after a one-hour hearing. Threinen's own case worker
recommended against his release. His psychologist called him a
"fixated pedophile" with predatory and homicidal tendencies.
"Without an institutional champion, a corrections worker who thinks he
should be released, it's unlikely he'll get parole," said Neil Boyd, a
criminologist from Simon Fraser University. Boyd said Threinen's horrific
crimes will always weigh heavily on the three-member parole board. "The
nature of his crime would make it likely the parole board would turn him
down," Boyd said. Dahrlyne Cranfield, 12, and Robert Grubesic, 9, were
riding their bikes along the river between the Broadway and University
bridges June 15, 1975 when the young boy had trouble with his bike.
Threinen came upon the children who were walking their bikes and invited
them to go for ice cream. Two months later their bodies were found near the
Grasswood Esso on Highway 11. On July 26 that year, Threinen was driving
through Sutherland when he came upon Samantha Turner, 8, and Cathy Scott,
7. They were on their way to The
Igloo, an ice cream parlour on 115th Street. Their bodies were found three
kilometres north of the neighbourhood. The killings sent the city into a
panic. Many parents kept their children locked in their homes during the
summer months. Rumours swirled that the children had been abducted and
taken to another country, where they were sold into slavery.
Police were warned about Threinen six months before the killing spree by a
parole board member, but he wasn't on the suspect list until two months
after the first children disappeared. Police also didn't know that Threinen
had a previous conviction for murder in Lethbridge. That conviction was
overturned by the Alberta Court of Appeal. A tip in August of 1975 finally
led police to Threinen,
who immediately confessed to the murders and led police to the bodies. He
pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced in February 1976. Threinen is
currently serving his sentence in British
Columbia.
********
BILLY LOOCK (58) PEDOPHILE ABDUCTION
Thursday, July 13, 2000 Girl kidnapped, attacked
'Harmless' Arnprior man charged after 8-year-old
taken from park
By JOHN STEINBACHS and LISA LISLE, Ottawa Sun
ARNPRIOR -- A long-time resident of this small town faces
several charges after an eight-year-old girl was led away from a
park and sexually assaulted. Police apprehended the suspect after an
anonymous caller tipped them off. "The caller just said she had walked away
with the man," OPP Det. Tamara Kolynko said. "There was no evidence of a
sexual assault at the park." Minutes after getting the call, police headed
for the small park where local children play. "The area around the park was
searched and after we failed to find her, we attended the residence of the
accused," Kolynko said. Police pounded on the door of the grey stucco
McGonical St. apartment but didn't get any response for several minutes.
"While (we) attempted to talk to the accused, the girl was let out the side
door by her abductor," Kolynko said. Nicole Enright and her boyfriend David
Nicholas, who live in the
front section of the same house, were sitting on their porch when
they saw the terrified girl dash by.
'REALLY SCARED'
"She was scared, really scared," Enright said. "She didn't know
what to do." "She just ran saying 'I got to get home. I got to get home,' "
Nicholas added. The girl was treated in hospital and then interviewed by
police, who say she was sexually assaulted.
William "Billy" Loock, 58, was arrested just after midnight and
charged with sexual assault, forcible confinement and sexual
interference. News of the arrest and charges have surprised some local
residents. Jan Duperron was taking care of a house down the street when
police arrived at her door asking if she had seen an eight-year-old girl
wearing a white shirt and yellow shorts.
"Everybody knows Billy," Duperron said. "Most people think he's a
harmless old man." Loock is often seen drinking along the railroad tracks
and wandering the streets near the park. Years ago, he lost several fingers
on his right hand when he fell asleep on those same tracks and a train ran
over them.
'WOULDN'T HURT A FLY'
A relative of the little girl said she didn't believe Loock is to be
feared. "I went to school with Billy,'' said the woman. "He wouldn't hurt a
fly." Loock has no previous criminal record. He'll be back in court for a
bail hearing tomorrow.
********
DUSTIN MOORE ( 23) SEX OFFENDER WARNING
Thursday, July 13, 2000
Sex offender warning issued
By London Free Press staff
A high-risk offender who sexually assaulted girls has moved to St.
Thomas, police there reported yesterday. Dustin Moore, 23, of 54 Leger
Ave., moved to the city Friday from the Owen Sound area after completing
his sentence for sexual assault against females ages 12 and 18, police
reported. Moore also had previous convictions for sexually assaulting girls
and failing to comply with a probation order, police said. Moore, who is
receiving psychiatric treatment, medication and counselling, has been
ordered not to be alone with females under age 18. Moore is 5-foot-six, 130
pounds, with blue eyes, glasses, brown hair and a fair complexion.
********
KEVIN MACHELL 20 YEARS PRISON, WIFE MURDER
Man gets 20 years for family murder
Thursday, July 13, 2000
Kelowna -- A man who murdered his ex-wife and her mother in front of his
two children will spend at least 20 years in prison.
Kevin Machell, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, was sentenced
yesterday. He killed Tammy and Cecilia Grono in front of his two children
in Summerland in September of 1997. Crown counsel Geoff Barrow told court
Tuesday Mr. Machell had threatened his
ex-wife and was under an order not to contact her. The Crown maintained Mr.
Machell was seeking revenge after his estranged wife
told police in Nova Scotia in 1996 that he faced an arrest warrant for
thefts in Alberta. CP
***********
JASON DEIR, WIFE BEATING
Hotel cook pleads guilty to assault
Arthur Milnes, July 13 Kingston Whig-Standard
Jason Deir's child had just one question for his father on the night of
April 18, a court in Kingston heard Tuesday. "Daddy, why are you hurting
Mommy?" "Because she's bad," Deir told the youngster. Moments before, a
hushed court was told, the executive sous chef at Kingston's Holiday Inn
viciously beat his wife. The reason? Court heard she had wanted to go for a
drink with her sister to celebrate a promotion.
'SPAT IN MY FACE'
"He was holding my [shoulders] with both hands, he spat in my face and then
he head-bumped me," the woman told a Kingston Police officer the next day.
The assaults continued over the next 12 hours. "He threw me into a closet
door," she said. "He started shaking me, telling me to get out [of the
house] I reached for my radio for work and he smashed it." She left for
work later that evening and arrived home the next morning, court was told.
"He grabbed me by both shoulders and threw me against the wall, telling me
to leave," quoted Crown attorney Bruce Griffith, reading from the victim's
statement to the police. At one point, she left Deir's presence and sat on
a sofa. "He pulled me off the couch," she said, adding that he called her a
"slut" and "whore." Deir warned her that if he ever saw her with another
man that he would kill him.
'MANY THINGS THROWN'
In addition to the April assaults, the woman told police, her husband had
previously thrown her against a wall. She was seven months pregnant when
that occurred during an assault that included a slap to the face. "I've had
many things thrown at me," she said.
Deir pleaded guilty to a charge of assault in the Ontario Court of Justice
yesterday. His lawyer, Bill Bishop, obviously surprised Mr. Justice Paul
Megginson when he announced he would be arguing that his client shouldn't
receive a jail term. "On this," the judge said, shaking his head, "I'll
tell you, frankly, I'm considering several months in prison." Bishop said
Deir and his wife have been undergoing counselling as a couple and
separately in light of the charges. He also said alcohol and drugs were not
a factor in Deir's criminal behaviour. "They have been doing their best at
putting this behind them," Bishop said. "The couple has gotten together
[and] they have sought advice they have worked on the problem and solved a
large part of it." Despite Bishop's argument, Mr. Justice Megginson seemed
skeptical.
"How could denunciation of serious domestic violence be accomplished by a
non-custodial sentence?" he asked the defence lawyer. Bishop said
counselling, probation and the fact that Deir will not be left with a
criminal record are serious matters that would help denounce the crime.
"This man is paying for it," Bishop said. Mr. Justice Megginson reminded
the courtroom that one of the principles of sentencing was to publicly
denounce such crimes. He wondered aloud whether a non-custodial sentence in
this case would accomplish this. "All the public will hear is that a man
commits serious domestic abuse and doesn't go to jail," the judge said.
VOLATILE ATMOSPHERE
Bishop said the judge had to understand that assault came after the woman
had had sex with another man. While this didn't excuse his client's
actions, Bishop said, it did contribute to a volatile atmosphere in the
house. Bishop then put the woman on the stand. In a voice that barely rose
above a whisper, she told the crowded courtroom that she had been involved
in a sexual relationship with a man other than her husband. This didn't
seem to sway the judge. Though he ordered a pre-sentence report be prepared
on Deir, he let it be known that jail was a likely possibility. "If I were
sentencing today, it would be a sentence of imprisonment," Mr.
Justice Megginson said. He ordered Deir to return to court Aug. 29 for
sentencing.
*******
PADDY MITCHELL LETTERS TO STEPHEN REID
Paddy Mitchell's Letters from Leavenworth: Goodbye Kingston
Michael Patrick Mitchell, Ottawa's gentleman bank robber, faces the rest of
his life in the U.S. penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas. He spends his
afternoons at a typewriter in the library there, and sends much of his work
to a longtime Ottawa friend.
Paddy Mitchell
Ottawa Citizen Special July 14 2000
Stephen Reid and I were in Millhaven Penitentiary together. It was reputed
to be the meanest, toughest prison in Canada -- and it was.
The first day I was there [1976] Stephen and I went for a walk in the yard.
We watched a guy get hit on the head with a lead pipe. He lay bleeding on
the ground for more than an hour. I wanted to do something to help him but
Stephen, a veteran of prison life, stopped me. "You can't get involved,
Paddy. There's rules. The guy must have done something wrong. If he had
friends, someone would
have helped him by now. So, he's probably either a rat, a rapist or a child
molester and you wouldn't want to help one of those would you?" He was
right. Sticking my nose into that incident could have
cost me my life. A week later, we were walking down a hall, coming
from the yard, when a guy nudged me aside and drove a knife into the back
of the guy in front of me. The gate in front of us was closed and there
were about 40 guys waiting for it to open.
The guy with the knife in him was screeching and rolling on the floor.
There was blood everywhere. The cop who controlled the gate could see this
guy was hurt but he would not open the door. He ordered the prisoners to
turn around and go back to the yard.
They wouldn't and it was a stand-off for 10 minutes. Finally, he gave in
and opened the door. Stephen and I were first through. The guard yelled at
us from his safe enclosure: "Pick that guy up and bring him to the
infirmary." I turned to do what I had been told.
Stephen grabbed me by the arm: "You can't do it, Paddy, leave him be" and
pushed me up the corridor.
Two weeks later, an elderly con who lived four doors from me was stabbed 40
times and died in his cell. Stephen told me his next-door neighbour killed
him because he snored. -
In prison there is a pecking order. And by the time I arrived Stephen was
well up in the hierarchy. He had a group around him who would do anything
for him. Big, tough kids -- they would give up their lives for him. Stephen
had been feeding them a line about what an important dude I was. He called
me "Boss" and, of course, I played that to the hilt. So, when I arrived,
they treated me like royalty. The amount of respect you are entitled to in
prison depends on how successful you were on the street with your criminal
enterprises. And, contrary to what you may think, the majority of people in
prison have never made a dime.
Stephen had connections for everything and everything ready for me when I
arrived -- clothing, food, stereo. He always had a big hunk of hash for us
to smoke so we could while away the evenings in stoned bliss. The place was
a mad house, a killing field. We were determined to escape and spent every
waking moment plotting.
-
[Lionel Wright escaped in 1976 and Stephen Reid dodged his guard on an
escorted day trip in August 1979, leaving Mitchell as the only Stopwatcher
behind bars.] I didn't have any illusions about Stephen and Lionel
storming the prison, with drawn weapons, to free me. No! We were going to
trick them. But first, Stephen and Lionel would knock off a couple of banks
because we were short of money. An average take from a bank in those days
was 20 to 25 grand and
a good one might net us 40 to 50 Gs. On Nov. 15, 1979, I had a visitor who
told me that everything was in place. "Today is the day, brother, are you
ready?" he asked. I told him I was as ready
as I was ever going to be. At six o'clock I went for a five-mile run in the
yard. It would be my last in this prison because I knew that within the
next hour or two I would either be dead, heading back to prison, or free.
-
An old con named Donny Jones told me the story of a guy who had been "in
the hole" (segregation) for several weeks. One day the guards brought him
to the infirmary for blood tests. The guy was heavily addicted to
cigarettes and had not been allowed to have even one all the time he was in
solitary. When the guards weren't looking, Donny slipped him five
cigarettes and the guy stashed them in his sock. When he got back to his
cell he realized he didn't
have any matches so he ate the five cigarettes. Five minutes later he
started getting severe chest pains and called for the guards. They thought
he was having a heart attack and he got to spend four
glorious days in a private room in a hospital on the outside being
monitored by a heart machine.
If he was able to fool everybody by eating five cigarettes, imagine how
much more I would fool them by soaking a whole package of tobacco in hot
water, straining it and drinking the juice. Unknown to me, I drank enough
nicotine to kill an elephant. I didn't have to do any faking. I was in
serious trouble. My heart began beating
so fast and so hard against my chest I thought it might bust right through
my sternum. I fell to the floor, knocked over a full can of garbage and
began flopping in it like a fish out of water.
There was no doubt in my mind I was dying and I thought: "God damn it, what
a stinking way to go, flopping around in a pile of f______g garbage. I only
remember bits and pieces after that. The nurse was summoned and she
declared: "Cardiac arrest, get an ambulance." In the ambulance all of a
sudden I was out of my body. I looked down and watched as an ambulance
attendant ministered drugs through a needle in my arm. He had a desperate
look on his face: "we're losing this guy. Step on it." He started pounding
my chest. I didn't feel it because I was not there. I was drifting through
snow white clouds for what seemed like hours, slowly at first, and then
picking up momentum until I felt I was travelling at the velocity of a jet
plane or maybe even the speed of light.
Then suddenly I came out of the cloud and the scene took me by surprise. I
remember thinking: "By golly, those nuns were right all along." It was
exactly the same setting that was depicted on the "food for hungry kids in
China" poster displayed on the wall at school.
I thought it was Saint Peter who was talking to me but it wasn't St.
Peter's voice. It was my brother, Bobbie, and one of my pals. What were
they doing here? There was mass confusion. I was in the back of the
ambulance. Then, someone was picking me up off the stretcher, throwing me
over their shoulder, and running with me. I was thrown in the back of a
vehicle; two people, all dressed in white and wearing surgical masks,
jumped in and the van took off.
The two people were hovering over me cutting the chains and handcuffs off
me. I couldn't see their faces but I recognized their voices. They took me
to an apartment and right into the bathroom and gave me some stuff to
induce vomiting. I spent the next several days bent over a toilet. I was
real sick for days. They told me later there were times when there was some
doubt as to whether I would make it. But my brother and my friends nursed
me through it and now we were all FREE!
-
Prison escapes don't come cheap. When Bobbie and the boys broke me out of
Joyceville they had to come up with a lot of money fast to cover expenses.
So, they hit the bank at Carlingwood Shopping Centre one morning just
before opening time. I was too sick from the nicotine cocktail and "too
hot" to go along. They hit the glass doors with a tire iron and went right
for the night depository
proceeds. One of the bank employees tried to be a hero but all he got for
his troubles was a gun jammed against his temple and a warning: "Smarten up
or you're history." I guess he didn't like the idea of being a dead hero. I
think they got $50,000-$60,000 for that job.
There were four of them in on the bank robbery. My brother, Bobbie, didn't
enter the bank with them because he was the key "interference man" on the
outside. Later, Bobbie joined me in Florida for a holdup and we hit a bank
in Ocala for $60,000. Bobbie was the one who went over the counter and
grabbed the canvas money bags the armoured trucks had dropped off. I was
the guy who was keeping the bank staff at bay at gunpoint telling them it
was a holdup and nobody would get hurt. I stayed in that apartment for a
full seven days. Somebody ventured forth every day to pick up a newspaper
out of a machine 100 yards away. This may sound a little narcissistic but
we always enjoyed our press. From Kingston I was driven to Quebec where my
friends had rented a big, beautiful, four-bedroom house with two enormous
fireplaces located on a lake
in the mountains. Along with a house to luxuriate in, the refrigerator was
stocked with all my favourite things -- filet mignons wrapped in bacon,
lobster tails, scallops and shrimp. We had French wines, Crown Royal rye
and a bag of dynamite reefer to take the edge off. On my third night there
a pretty little blond-haired, blue-eyed angel knocked on my front door. My
friends had thought of everything. We had a steak and lobster tail dinner
and a nice bottle of wine. Afterwards we had coffee and liqueur and smoked
a joint sitting in front of a roaring fire. I won't go into details what
happened next but I'd like to say: "Geraldine, if you
ever get around to reading this memoir, it was one of the most wonderful
and memorable nights of my life."
-
But it was not the time for pleasure. It was a time for getting out of the
country, getting down to business and making some money.
I was driven to Montreal, took a train across the border into Vermont,
jumped on a plane out of New York and flew to Tampa, Florida. We robbed a
couple of banks and a large department store. We had been robbing banks in
Canada and a good lick may have been 10 to 20 grand. But, this U.S. of A.
was a whole new ball game. This was the Promised Land as far as money was
concerned. On one of our robberies which went off without a hitch we got 40
Gs and the next day we were surprised to read in the newspaper that the
police had solved the crime and had the culprit in custody.
We didn't stick around to find out what happened to the poor guy. With 100
Grand in our pockets we flew to San Diego, California.
Tomorrow: I gotta run . . .
******** BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO *******
# CSC PROBING CELL DEATHS, KINGSTON
Thursday, July 13, 2000
Jails crack down after OD deaths
Three inmates have died in past 17 days
By ROB GRANATSTEIN, TORONTO SUN
The drug overdose deaths of three inmates in 17 days has forced
Corrections Canada to tighten security and launch an investigation
at Ontario prisons. The three deaths, all in Kingston prisons, are the
first as a result of drug overdoses since 1998. "They all seem to be
unrelated," said Theresa Westfall, a spokesman for Corrections Canada. "The
common factor is determining how they got the drugs in. "Inside the
penitentiary, we'll be increasing our surveillance, increasing our
searches," she said. "We'll also increase our intelligence efforts to see
if there's any reason why this is happening." Westfall said there are 15 to
45 drug seizures in federal prisons in Ontario every month. Prisons are
looking at ways of increasing their drug monitoring, including adding drug
sniffing dogs full time at the jails. David Nelson, 52, of Newmarket, died
of a suspected overdose Tuesday at the minimum-security Frontenac
Institution. Nelson was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder
and had a long list of previous convictions. Gary Hilton, 40, from
Burlington, died of a suspected heroin overdose on July 6. He had been
serving time for theft, robbery, assault and mischief at Kingston Pen. John
Bolyantu, 38, of Windsor, died of a suspected morphine tablet overdose at
Joyceville Institution on June 24. He had a long record of convictions for
drugs and assault. Inquests are expected in the deaths. A fourth inmate
died in the same period, killing himself in his cell. The Ontario
Provincial Police's penitentiary squad is involved in the investigation as
well.
Cluster of deaths points to drug woes
Rob Tripp, Kingston Whig-Standard July 13 2000
Corrections Canada says a heroin overdose may have killed a 52-year-old
prisoner at Frontenac Institution, making him the third Kingston inmate to
die of a suspected drug overdose in a 17-day span. David Allan Nelson, 52,
serving a life-sentence for second-degree murder, was found unconscious at
the minimum-security prison just before 1 p.m. Tuesday. Attempts to revive
him failed, and he was pronounced dead at the institution at 1:30 p.m.
Police and Corrections are investigating the death, a "very rare" event at
the
minimum-security facility, according to assistant warden Susan Sutherland.
"Any time a tragedy like this happens, we step back and take a look at
possible ways that we might do things differently in order to avoid that
kind of thing happening again," Sutherland said.
Frontenac does not have walls, fences or armed guards. Inmates have
rooms, rather than cells, and they are not locked in at night. The smooth
operation of the facility is based, in part, on an honour system of good
conduct by inmates. "The inmates that live here have earned their way here
by demonstrating that they are credible and can be entrusted with a certain
degree of responsibility," Sutherland said. Prisoners at Frontenac are
subject to regular urine testing for drug use and they must remain
drug-free to stay at the institution, she said. Since June 25, suspected
drug overdoses killed prisoners at Joyceville Institution and Kingston
Penitentiary. Two other Joyceville prisoners survived suspected drug
overdoses. "I would not consider treating those [three] deaths any
differently than any other deaths in the prisons," regional coroner Dr.
Benoit Bechard said yesterday.
INQUESTS MANDATORY
Inquests into prison deaths, even those attributed to natural causes, are
mandatory. The coroner's office convenes inquests, in which citizen juries
review evidence and produce recommendations designed to prevent future
deaths. Bechard said he has no information to suggest these deaths are
linked or related, although they "arrived in a sort of cluster."
"Obviously, we're interested to see if there's a connection," he said.
Ontario's chief coroner has the authority to order a single inquest to
review several deaths if there are common factors. This is usually done
only when
the deaths are part of a single event, such as a car accident that claims
several lives.
A single inquest was convened in 1991 in Kingston to review the deaths of
three inmates at the Prison for Women, although the three women died
between February 1990 and February 1991. "Any decision like that would not
be made at this point [in this case]," Bechard said. "The only thing common
at this point is that they are in federal penitentiaries." Bechard said he
does not believe toxicology reports are complete on any of the deaths, so
it is impossible to be definitive about the causes of death. The incidents
are an indication that drugs are freely available in prisons, despite
efforts by the prison service to block the flow of illegal drugs being
smuggled in, usually by visitors.
success in smuggling
During an inquest into the 1990 death of Collins Bay prisoner Dennis Lepik,
who died of a heroin overdose, a witness testified about her success in
smuggling drugs into prison for more than 10 years. The woman testified
that she successfully smuggled drugs into federal institutions an estimated
85 times, often by wrapping the contraband in condoms, which she stuffed
into her body cavities. The woman said she also hid drugs on her children,
who accompanied her on prison visits. At one point, the woman estimated
smuggling 1,000 capsules of Valium into prison each week. At the conclusion
of the 1991 inquest, the coroner's jury recommended that
prison officials should have greater freedom to search inmates and visitors
for drugs. Since that time, prisons have adopted tough new tactics to find
drugs, including the use of drug-sniffing dogs and high-tech scanners that
can indicate if a person has been in contact with drugs. Prison authorities
remain limited by laws and by staff shortages from searching all visitors
for drugs.
OVERDOSE CHRONOLOGY
Corrections Canada and police investigators suspect the recent deaths of
three federal prisoners are the result of drug overdoses:
June 25: John Paul Bolyantu, 37, died at Joyceville Institution
June 25: Paul Iwasczenko, 31, was found unconscious at Joyceville but
recovered in hospital
July 6: James Hilton, 31, was found unresponsive in his cell at Kingston
Penitentiary; was rushed to hospital but was declared dead on arrival
July 7: A Joyceville prisoner, who has not been identified, was found
unconscious but recovered in hospital; Corrections says he accidentally
took too much prescription medication
July 11: David Allan Nelson, 52, was found unconscious in his room at
Frontenac Institution and was later declared dead at the prison
# RCMP ASSOCIATE FIGHTING PEDOPHILE CHARGE
Halifax Daily News July 13, 2000
Metro man sues government for sex investigation
A metro man is suing the federal and provincial governments for not
properly investigating what he claims are false accusations that he
sexually abused a child. The man - identified in legal documents only as
A.A. - says the mother of a two-year-old accused him twice in 1996 of
abusing her child. "To publicize (the man's) name in a lawsuit, I think,
would exacerbate the loss," the man's lawyer, Mark Knox, told The Daily
News. A.A. was "professionally associated" with the RCMP at the time, his
suit obliquely explains, and the accusations - which were investigated by
the RCMP and the provincial Community Services Department - hurt his
reputation.
Both agencies eventually closed their cases, the suit says. It adds that
the man took a test to determine whether he would abuse children, and it
came back negative. Knox said his client was not criminally charged with
abusing the child. The suit claims Community Services filed false,
incomplete or misleading reports about its investigation, and both the RCMP
and the province should
have consulted the child's doctor. "It was a negligent investigation.
(Otherwise) things would have been terminated a lot more quickly," Knox
said. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday at Nova Scotia Supreme Court, doesn't
reveal how the man was connected to the RCMP. - staff
**********
NATIVE NEWS
'NUREMBERG' COURT HOUSE: MANITOBA WARRIORS
Thursday, July 13, 2000
'Nuremberg' courthouse
Warriors prosecution rapped
By BRENDAN O'HALLARN, WINNIPEG SUN
When Richard Peck first saw the high-security courthouse built to
try the Manitoba Warriors, it reminded him of images he'd seen of
the Nuremberg war crimes trials. "Only in Nuremberg, the prisoners weren't
chained to the floor like they are here," Peck said.
Peck and Joe Wood, two B.C. lawyers hired by the Warriors
defence team, took aim yesterday at Manitoba's prosecution of 35
gang members, accusing the Crown of discrimination in how the
aboriginal defendants were arrested and detained. Addressing the court for
the first time, after two days of sentencing arguments by the Crown, Peck
said prosecutors have sought to make an example of the Warriors, at the
expense of human rights. 'CLOISTERED'
He spoke of the 20 months the defendants have spent "cloistered"
at the Winnipeg remand centre, denial of bail and lack of public
access to the "Kafkaesque" courtroom. "What has happened here diminishes me
as an individual, and Canada as a democratic country," Peck said. Barry
Sinder, who represents Warriors president William Pangman, said if the
Warriors trafficked cocaine to the extent claimed by the Crown, they would
show more trappings of wealth. Sinder said Pangman drove a 1971 car and
owned one change of clothes when arrested Nov. 4, 1998. "If you rounded up
35 panhandlers, I would not be surprised if they had more money on them,"
he said, advocating a sentence of two years for Pangman, 30 months less
than the Crown has requested. Speaking on behalf of Shayne Myran, lawyer
Evan Roitenberg said plea bargains struck by Warriors early in the trial
were hardly bargains. "Our clients looked at this marathon trial ahead of
them and said 'Get me sentenced. Get me out of the remand centre,' " he
said.
Roitenberg said the accused were told to accept the sentence deals
of the Crown or sit in stir until the trial. Defence arguments continue
today.
HUTTERITE MISSIONARY MEETS WITH WM PANGMAN, WINNIPEG PRISON
Thursday, July 13, 2000
Pangman not evil: missionary
By TAMMY MARLOWE, STAFF REPORTER Winnipeg Sun
Daniel Moody says he knows a far different William Pangman
than the sinister gang leader being portrayed by the Crown.
A Hutterite missionary who volunteers at the Winnipeg remand
centre, Moody was asked by Sagkeeng First Nation chief Jerry
Fontaine to meet with Pangman in"I knew him before he was even
arrested on these charges. We had developed a rapport to the point
where we could look eyeball to eyeball," Moody said.
And he said the steps Pangman and other accused have taken to
embrace Christ will help them find the right path if they're given
another chance. "We've met with many of the guys while they've been in the
remand centre. They've been the pleasantest floor to work with," Moody
said. But if society continues to treat them as hardened criminals, even
after they're released from prison, people shouldn't be surprised if that's
what they become, he said. "There are hundreds of churches in Winnipeg. And
we all love the poetry that tickles our ears Sunday morning. But there are
many among these church-going people who want them to lock up the Warriors
and throw away the key." Moody said many Winnipeggers aren't prepared to
help the Pangmans and Isadore Vermettes right themselves.
"If no one gives them a job, gives them a chance, steps out of their
comfortable churches to help them, where do you think they'll end up?"
Michael Newton
Monday, July 17, 2000 Woman slain Girls fled killing scene
By SUN MEDIA
STRATFORD -- A woman was murdered yesterday after her two young daughters
ran to a neighbour's house while she fought with a man inside a home. When
city police broke the home's front door open at around 1:16 p.m., they
found the woman with no vital signs and an injured man with what appeared
to be self-inflicted wounds, Stratford Police Insp. John Haggarty said.
Police said they will not identify the victim or the man charged with
murder until next of kin have been notified. As well, police have not
identified the weapon used or the extent of the man's injuries.
However, Haggarty said the man was taken under guard to a local hospital
for treatment. He was subsequently transferred to a
London hospital for surgery. A family member arrived on the scene yesterday
and drove away with the two girls, believed to be nine and 10 years old.
The neighbour who sheltered the girls was too upset to be interviewed.
Monday, July 17, 2000
Daughters flee to safety as Stratford mom slain
By MIRA OBERMAN, ALISTAIR STEELE AND HANK
DANISZEWSKI, London Free Press Reporters
STRATFORD -- A quiet street's innocence was shattered here
yesterday when a woman was found dead after her two young daughters
ran to a neighbour's home while she fought with a man inside their house.
When city police broke open the front door about 1:16 p.m., they found the
woman with no vital signs and an injured man with what appeared to be
self-inflicted wounds, said Stratford police Insp. John Haggarty. Police
wouldn't identify the victim or the man. But neighbours said a woman named
Laurie and her common-law husband, Joe Williamson, lived in the house with
two girls, ages nine and 10. The two girls didn't appear to be harmed,
police said.
Next to the house, a purple car and a GMC truck marked Nicholson
Concrete remained in the driveway. A company official confirmed Joe
Williamson works for Nicholson Concrete. Police hadn't yet identified the
weapon used or the extent of the man's injuries.
"They looked happy. There were always visitors and lots of kids and
people sitting on the porch," said Amy Lightfoot, 19, who lives nearby at
307 Nelson St. "I've never heard any yelling at all," said her roommate Rob
Hunt, 20. Taken under guard to a local hospital for treatment, the man was
later transferred to a London hospital for surgery, Haggarty said. Police
described his injuries as non-life-threatening.
The death comes in the wake of a wave of fatal domestic violence in
Ontario, including a murder-suicide this month in Kitchener when an
out-of-work man, Bill Luft, fatally stabbed his wife and shot their four
children before shooting himself. Earlier, Gillian Hadley of Pickering was
killed by her husband despite a court order to stay away.
Anne McDonnell, executive director of Stratford's Optimism Place, a
housing centre for abused women, heard sirens yesterday but didn't
know why. "Absolutely horrific" was her reaction to the news report.
"We had Pickering, and then we had the Luft family from Kitchener. I
don't know what this is about." Lightfoot and Hunt didn't realize anything
was wrong in the house at 19 Elm St. until they saw a fire truck, ambulance
and police cars drive up. They watched in horror as police broke the door
down and ambulance workers brought out the body of the dead woman and an
injured man with blood on his hands.
An elderly woman who lives next door at 23 Elm St. said her neighbours were
a "normal family" who'd lived in the area for several years. "They were
always quiet. I never heard any yelling or fighting. I didn't even hear Joe
leave for work in the morning.
"I feel sick to my stomach from it," said the woman, too shaken to give her
name. "They were always nice. They waved to you on the street. They were
probably one of the most vibrant houses around," said Jesse Weaver, 18, who
lives nearby. The small, well-maintained yellow frame home with typical
summer flowerbeds was cordoned off with police tape yesterday. Police later
sealed off the short street to prevent onlookers from getting too close.
Vehicles, apparently owned by the family, were still parked in the
driveway. A family member had arrived on the scene and drove away with the
two girls. The neighbour who had sheltered the girls was too upset to be
interviewed.
McDonnell, from Optimism Place, said she was "anxious to know if (the dead
woman) is somebody who's been involved with the shelter.
"God forbid, it's somebody we've turned away recently." Optimism Place has
13 beds, nine of which are funded by the province There are usually about
20 women and children sheltered there. "I can't think of the last time the
shelter was empty," said McDonnell.
Stratford hasn't had a domestic murder in many years, she said.
Former NDP MPP Karen Haslam, also involved with Optimism Place,
said: "We've been very upset recently about the lack of direction in
lessening the violence against women. This is terrible." Stratford Mayor
Dave Hunt was in contact with the police yesterday, but said he was
unwilling to comment until he heard more. The last two murders in Stratford
occurred about 10 days apart in February 1993.
Stratford mother slain
Police find body and injured husband after children flee home while
parents fought
Anne Kelly
Kitchener Waterloo RECORD CORRESPONDENT
July 17, 2000
STRATFORD -- A Stratford mother of two was killed Sunday after her two
young daughters fled the home as she fought with her common-law
husband. Police broke down the door of the home at 19 Elm St. at
about 1:16 p.m. after receiving a call from a neighbour where the
girls, believed to be ages nine and 10, had sought refuge.
Inside they found the woman with no vital signs and an injured man with
what appeared to be self-inflicted wounds, said Stratford Police Insp. John
Hagarty. The man was taken to Stratford General Hospital under guard and
later transferred to a London Hospital for surgery. His injuries are not
believed to be life-threatening.
Hagarty wouldn't identify the weapon used or the extent of the man's
injuries. Police also weren't releasing the name of the victim or the man,
but a hand-painted sign hanging from the front porch of the neatly kept
home bore the name of Joe Willemsen, his common-law wife, Laurie, and
children Crystal and Ashley.
The few neighbours willing to talk to reporters said they didn't hear
anything unusual prior to the arrival of emergency vehicles and found it
hard to believe such a tragedy had occurred in their quiet neighbourhood,
especially to a family that appeared to be happy.
Joyce Chalmers, who lives two doors down from the family's neat
yellow-sided home, arrived home about 8:30 p.m. Sunday to find her street
blocked off by police barricades and yellow police tape around her
neighbour's home. "I can't believe it,'' said a shaken Chalmers, who has
known the family since they moved in several years ago. "It was a good
family,'' she said. "They basically were friendly and neighbourly. We all
spoke.'' "She was a hard worker. He was a hard worker. The kids were
good.'' Chalmers said the victim worked at Dura, a Stratford manufacturing
facility, while Willemsen works for Nicholson Concrete of Stratford.
Willemsen's work truck and a car were still parked in the driveway of the
home where a welcome sign hung from the front porch and a row of plastic
tulips stretched across the front flower bed. The next-door neighbour who
sheltered the children refused to talk to the media. Chalmers met her on
the sidewalk and accompanied her into her house where a dog sat guard on
the front porch. The girls were taken from the scene by a family member
earlier in the day. Other than the odd curiosity seeker, the area was
surprisingly quiet Sunday
evening. The only group who gathered to watch the comings and goings of
police and media were friends and roommates of 18-year-old Jesse Weber, who
lives across the street. Weber said no one at his house had heard anything
unusual from the Willemsen home prior to the arrival of the fire truck, the
first emergency vehicle on the scene.
Weber has lived in the neighbourhood for about a year and didn't know the
family well, but found them friendly. "I'd say hello and they were always
nice,'' he said. Amy Lightfoot, 19, who also lives at the residence, said
the family's home was a busy one. "They had lots of relatives over. There
was always lots of kids running
around.''
Stratford hasn't had a killing since 1993 when it had two within 10 days.
One involved a domestic dispute in which a husband shot his wife.
The death comes on the heels of a series of high-profile domestic violence
cases in southern Ontario. On July 6, the bodies of Bill Luft, his wife
Bohumila and their four children were found in their Kitchener home, the
victims of a murder-suicide. In June, at least three women were attacked by
their partners. Two died. And on Friday, Ganeshram Raghunauth, 29, of
Pickering was charged with
first-degree murder, two months after his pregnant wife, Hemoutie, 28, died
of poisoning.
Tuesday, July 18, 2000 Breakup ends in death
Slain woman was dumping accused: Cousin
By MIRA OBERMAN AND JULIE CARL, SUN MEDIA
STRATFORD -- A woman stabbed to death in her home had just days before
told her common-law husband she was ending their long-time relationship,
according to a close relative. The body of Laurie Lynn Vollmershausen, 35,
was found in an upstairs bedroom Sunday afternoon after police forced open
the door of her home.
"Basically the relationship was over, but (he) wouldn't let her go
I think he went over there basically to get her back," her cousin,
who didn't want to be named, said yesterday.
Joseph Theodore Willemsen, 53, has been charged with first-degree murder in
the slaying. He appeared in court yesterday to face the charge.
SLUMPED IN PRISONER'S BOX
Willemsen slumped in the prisoner's box, refused to speak to a
lawyer and had to be told twice to stand when the charge was
read. He was remanded to Stratford jail and is to appear in court
tomorrow.
Vollmershausen's cousin said the night before she was brutally stabbed
she'd taken a new boyfriend to a family gathering in
Woodstock. Police said things turned violent in the home after noon on
Sunday. Willemsen yelled to the couple's two young daughters to
get out of the house. Ashley, 10, and Crystal, 8, ran to the next-door
neighbour, their sometime babysitter. The woman phoned police at 1:16 p.m.
and an officer was at the Willemsen house in three minutes, said Stratford
Police Insp. John Hagarty. When no one responded to his knock, the officer
broke down the front door and found a trail of blood leading from the main
floor up the stairs.
At the top stood a wounded Willemsen. Vollmershausen's body
lay nearby in a bedroom. She had stab wounds to her chest and
neck, Hagarty said. When police arrived, Willemsen was bleeding from
"significant" wounds, apparently self-inflicted, to his left forearm and
his left thigh, Hagarty said.
**********
WOMAN MURDERED BY MAN
Tuesday, July 18, 2000
Woman shot dead in backyard
By GEORGE CHRISTOPOULOS, Toronto Sun
A young woman was slain last night after a gunman burst into the
backyard of a south Etobicoke home and shot her in the head.
The victim, in her 30s, was at the rear of a Hallmark Ave.
bungalow when a man opened fire around 11 p.m. "The guy walked into the
backyard and shot her," said a next-door neighbour who spoke on condition
of anonymity. It's not known whether the victim lived at the home or was
visiting at the time of the shooting. "Apparently the boyfriend wrestled
the gun away from the gunman," who then fled on foot before police arrived,
the neighbour said. Police cordoned off the murder scene in the Brown's
Line-QEW area as a team of forensic officers combed the home and backyard
for clues.
**********
DENG HAO WAN MURDERS 3 YR OLD DAUGHTER
July 17, 2000
Accused child killer struggled to build new life in Canada
Toronto engineer worked in bakery
Anne Marie Owens and Christie Blatchford
National Post
In his native China, Deng Hao Wan was a senior engineer with a major
steel-making company who acted as the company's representative on important
foreign assignments in Italy and liaised with U.S. firms.
Six months ago, apparently galvanized by the dream of increased success in
a new country, he brought his family to Canada. His story had the makings
of a classic immigrant tale, except for the fact that Mr. Wan spent last
weekend in custody after being charged with the murder of his
three-year-old daughter, Wen Yu. In the months before the shy little girl
was found asphyxiated in the upscale
Toronto home the family shared with about a dozen other people, Mr. Wan had
struggled to find a job befitting his qualifications.
Hindered by his English-language communication skills and the difficulties
of transferring his professional attributes to the Canadian job market, the
37-year-old had become increasingly disconsolate. Weining Song, a fellow
engineer and a director with the Chinese Professional Association of
Canada, counselled
Mr. Wan over the phone on how he might improve his chances of landing a
job. "What my feeling was is that he was not so confident
here," said Mr. Song, who was also born in China, but received his
engineering education in Canada. "He didn't sound confident when we talked.
I tried to encourage him."
He was put in contact with the new immigrant after a friend happened to
knock on Mr. Wan's door two months ago and heard all about his troubles. At
the time, Mr. Wan was so desolate that he cried as
he spilled out his story to the strangers. Mr. Song's friend, who did not
want his name used, said he "sensed a desperation in the man," who seemed
kind and keen to work, and felt inadequate about not being able to properly
provide for his family. After they spoke, Mr. Song had Mr. Wan send him a
copy of his résumé, which was filled with an impressive roster of
professional credentials and job experience. He suggested adding a
statement that made Mr. Wan
appear more confident about what he could bring to a Canadian firm.
After graduating with a master's degree from the respected Zheijing
University, Mr. Wan gained the bulk of his 13 years' experience with the
Maanshan Iron and Steel Design and Research Institute in Anhui province, in
eastern China. He worked on a project with General Electric, from the U.S.,
and acted as an English interpreter for a major project in Italy. Since his
wife Ping Ping Chow was also trained in engineering, the couple would have
seemed ideal
candidates for immigration: a highly educated young pair intent on bringing
their skills to Canada. Since coming to this country, however, Ms. Chow has
worked at a doughnut shop near the house the family was renting, and Mr.
Wan took a job at a bakery. Yan
Shen, who worked with Ms. Chow, said Mr. Wan was depressed at being unable
to find a job and had talked about returning to China, but his wife did not
want to go. Mr. Wan, whom police found bleeding from apparently
self-inflicted knife wounds in the same room as his dead child's body on
Friday, will return to court next week on
the murder charge.
**********
18 YR OLD MAN STABBED BY WOMAN
Woman charged in Heyden stabbing
Sault Star Staff
A Heyden man is in hospital with stab wounds and an 18-year-old woman is in
custody charged with trying to murder him early Sunday morning. The Terrace
Bay woman was arrested in Marathon by Marathon OPP late Sunday morning,
several hours after Kenneth William Frigault, 19, was stabbed once in the
chest. Sault OPP say that sometime around 4:30 a.m., a fight broke out
between two women and
the victim at the victim's house. One of the women left the home and was
approached by the victim a short distance away. He was stabbed with a knife
following a very brief conversation. Senior Const. Bill Mackan would not
say what the argument was about or whether the two
women were known to each other but said Frigault ``was the common
denominator between'' them. The suspect fled the scene prior to police
arrival. Frigault was listed in stable condition at the General Hospital
this morning and is expected to fully recover from his wounds. The accused,
who cannot be identified under the Young
Offenders Act, was to be returned to the Sault to appear in bail court this
afternoon.
**********
BILL LUFT, KITCHENER
http://www.therecord.com/news/news7152000_123519.html
Troubled life, tragic deaths
Bill Luft fought the demons of his bipolar illness -
the demons won
Steve Cannon
Kitchener Waterloo Record
July 15, 2000
Bill Luft smoothed the wet concrete with care, not wanting to smudge the
tiny handprints curing in the newly-patched ramp.
The walkway was not his to decorate, just one he'd promised the landlord
he'd fix. But so what? The prints were his children's, so the proud dad
scratched the names Dany and Nikki into the soupy mix
anyway. When asked by his irked landlord to explain, Luft seemed startled.
"I want these children to be remembered,'' he said.
"I want them to be remembered forever." It's been more than a week since
the devil in Bill Luft came screaming out in a night of madness and murder
at 146 Mooregate Cr. in Kitchener.
But Luft's suicide and the massacre of his young wife and four children
continue to sting Kitchener in a way this city has rarely known before.
It's not that people here can't grasp the idea of murder, for Kitchener has
known its share of violence. But in a city where "family values" are more
than a politician's catch-phrase,
children have been killed by the one man who was supposed to keep them
safe. "Who has the power to play God?'' neighbour Patty Pickles said the
day tragedy moved on to her quiet, tree-lined street.
"I can see someone wanting to take their own life, but the kids? Kids?"
What kind of man kills his own children? What kind of man stabs his wife as
she hugs her baby, then shoots his children as they sleep?
Psychiatrists such as Dr. David Palframan say depressed people driven to
murder-suicide often act on a twisted impulse of love.
In their minds, if "life is endlessly painful, then the people they love
the most should also, in a merciful way, have their lives ended, too,"
Palframan said. Was this true of Bill Luft? The answer likely died with
him, though friends believe he left clues to point them that way.
The Bill they knew was not a monster, but a charming, troubled man deeply
in love with his family and in mortal fear of losing them.
He could also be obsessive, boastful and angry when his grip on the bipolar
disorder that shared his mind grew weak. "I know it's pretty hard (for
people) to understand . . . what happened. But nothing
happened by hate. It was the sickness,'' Luft's mother, Miroslava, said in
a brief TV interview this week. So, who was Bill Luft?
Through family, friends, enemies, court documents, city and school records,
a sketchy story has slowly emerged of a man and his fractured life.
It's a story that takes us back to the late 1950s, before the Iron Curtain
hid Czechoslovakia from the rest of the world. It is into a world of
paternalism and old-world values that Bill Luft is born in 1958, the first
of three children for Vilem and Miroslava Luft.
The boy was only 10 when the Russian tanks rolled through his homeland,
chasing his family to Canada to avoid life under a communist regime. But in
later years, Luft would tell friends he made that mad dash to safety with
his parent's life savings secretly hidden in his clothes. He would tell of
passing armed guards, blissfully unaware of the cargo he carried until much
later.
How much of this tale is to be believed, his friends aren't sure. Bill Luft
also told people he invented bullet-proof tires used for security vehicles.
"But whenever he talked (about leaving Czechoslovakia), he just looked
terrified,'' says Pamela Snow, a one-time friend of Luft and later, a
bitter enemy. "He was just scared.'' Once safe in Canada, neighbours say
the Lufts lived in New Hamburg before moving in 1973 to a two-storey,
semi-detached unit on Mooregate Crescent that would be their home for the
next 27 years.
It was here that Bill Luft lived and died. It was here that he grew up,
made friends and studied at A.R. Kaufman Public School and
later at Kitchener Collegiate Institute.
It's unclear what kind of a student Luft was, but there was something about
the Canadian educational system that irritated him.
A man of strong principles, he intended to home-school his own children for
reasons that aren't yet clear. Was there something to the story Luft used
to tell about being teased for wearing extra
mittens and scarves to school to ward off winter's chill?
The teasing bothered him enough that Luft let his own son, Daniel, play
outside on cold days without gloves. If questioned by neighbours, he'd
shrug and say the boy had to be tough. No one, it seems, was going to tease
Bill Luft's children. "I have a dependency complex from childhood,'' Luft
writes in an affidavit filed last spring in small claims court. "I need to
feel accepted or I loose (sic) interest in my work."
As a teenager, Luft seems to have skipped through life without drawing much
attention to himself. If the demons were already stirring within him, he
hid them well. He is remembered along Mooregate Crescent as a quiet kid,
Lou and Ramona's big brother, the one who had a small group of pals but
didn't mind being alone.
By 1981, he was working summers in Wasaga Beach with his father, renting
Jet Skis to sunburned tourists and living with his folks.
Luft, it seems, rarely strayed too far from his childhood home as he worked
his way through a long series of jobs.
He managed the Pizza Place restaurant in downtown Kitchener for awhile,
made chairs at the Laz-E-Boy factory in Waterloo and brewing equipment in
Guelph. Losing that last job really stung, Luft told The Record in a 1995
story on a program for unemployed people he had recently joined. "It's not
only tough being out of work, it's degrading," he said. "It makes you feel
like a nobody and that's the worst part." It seems Bill Luft spent most of
his 42 years trying to become a somebody. Why not? He was smart and
articulate, the kind of man who seemed to know a little bit about a lot of
things.
He could wire your house or fix your ailing car, if you had the cash and
the time to wait for him to finish. Luft once boasted in court documents
about restoring an old motor home, "which, by the way, I built with my own
hands with love for my kids,'' he wrote. "I did so much work on that thing,
if I paid myself $1 an hour, I would owe myself $3,000.'' Luft may have
done small jobs, but he dreamed big. It's just that his ambition was always
writing cheques his abilities could not cash.
He enrolled in Conestoga College to become a mechanical engineer, but
records show he had bad grades and quit after a year. By 1993, things were
changing. Luft seemed especially eager to get steady, well-paying work. He
was, by then, 35 years old and dreaming of getting rich by selling minivans
in Europe after the fall of communism. He was also married. The romance of
Bill and Bohumila Luft is not from dime-store novels or late-night movies.
They reportedly met through an advertisement Bill placed in a Czech
newspaper, were married after a whirlwind courtship and were caring for a
son by the end of 1993. His bride was Bohumila Kalkusova, a dark-haired
beauty from a small Czech village who fell for this Canadian man 15 years
her senior. They returned to Canada and a three-bedroom apartment not far
from his parent's house, but the honeymoon was short. There was tension in
the home, hints that Bohumila wanted out of the marriage. Work became
scarce, taking with it money and hope.
Luft's bipolar condition was emerging now, twisting his view of the world
he often raged against.
This once charming man was becoming short with neighbours, picking verbal
fights with those who questioned him. Luft became, in the words of a
Kitchener paralegal who crossed swords with him, "a
machine with no off switch.''
It's unclear yet when Bill Luft was first diagnosed with bipolar disorder,
a mental illness which Dr. Vijay Kumar of Grand River Hospital says can
swing people's moods from despair to euphoria.
Nora Hrazdilkova, a friend of Luft's wife, insists Bill attacked medical
staff the night his daughter was born and was admitted to hospital for
psychiatric evaluation. Yet, as far as anyone could see, Luft was always
good to his children. Outwardly, he adored them and they adored him. But
in the summer of 1997, his pretty young wife left him for a 23-year-old
waiter in the Czech Republic. It was, in Luft's eyes, a betrayal that cut
like a knife. "I needed so much to trust someone, after what my wife did
to me," Luft wrote in an affidavit. "No one I turned to could help me." In
need of cash and a place to live, Luft had taken work at Pamela Snow's
Bayfield
bed-and-breakfast, trading his renovation skills for reduced rent.
All the while, he pined for his wife. He ran up thousands of dollars in
phone calls to friends in the Czech Republic, trying to get Bohumila back.
Eventually, she relented. Pregnant with her third child, Bohumila was back
with Luft by Christmas. Her friends insist Bohumila surrendered under the
threat of losing her children and meant to one day return to her new love.
Luft, in his court filings, remembers things differently. "In November of
1997, I got a message on my answering machine from my wife (saying) she had
learned her lesson and wanted to come home,'' he wrote. "She was in Europe,
where she and my two-year-old daughter were stranded with no
money." With no money.
Those were words Luft was hearing a lot lately. It was getting harder to
hold a job and nearly impossible to stretch his disability pension to cover
his growing family's needs. Adding to the strain, Luft and Snow were
snagged in an ugly legal fight over money and
work done at the bed- and-breakfast. More cracks began to appear in Luft's
fragile mental state. He was moody and easily angered now. In court
affidavits, he WONDERED IF HIS FORMER LANDLORD WAS USING SOME KIND OF "MIND
CONTROL" ON HIM.
Adding to the dangerous mix, child welfare officials from Huron and Perth
counties had been looking into his business. In court files, Luft wrote
about accusations he GAVE HIS SON AN AXE FOR HIS FIFTH BIRTHDAY AND LET THE
BOY PLAY WITH GUNS. There were suggestions he beat his children, that he
was cheating welfare and letting his kids sleep on the floor. "The whole
thing," he wrote, "is made up and unfounded." But he was fighting a war on
too many fronts.
More often now, he would retreat to his room to watch religious videotapes
and pore over the Bible, perhaps searching for peace in the words of God.
Depression, Luft wrote, gripped him for days and weeks at a time. Money
was tight. Work was scarce. Questions from concerned child welfare workers
were rattling him. Luft was growing desperate. Phone records show he sat
one day and called every electrician in the Waterloo Region phone book in
alphabetical order, likely looking for work. Soon after, Luft moved his
family out of Bayfield, first to the village of Sebringville and later into
his childhood home. It would be their final move, but it could not ease the
tension. Nearly broke, the legal war with Snow was dragging on and Luft was
beginning to fear he might lose the case. "If you can't afford to fight,
you can't win,'' he wrote.
Worse, friends say he was beginning to suspect his wife was preparing to
leave him again. "Lately, he wouldn't talk much, he was always rushing
around,'' Mike Plecity, a longtime friend, told reporters. With spring came
another crushing blow. The Luft's youngest child, David, was born with
spina bifida, a congenital defect of the spine. Dealing with the demands of
a sick child can tax the patience of any parent. What must it have been
like for Bill Luft? Hospital workers in London, where baby David was being
treated, noticed Luft was "anxious and unsettled." Worried, they called
Family and Children's Services of Waterloo Region, the third agency to be
warned of potential problems with the family. Luft checked himself into
Grand River Hospital for counselling and medication and was home within
days.
But the machine Bill Luft had become was running full bore now. No one, it
seems, could find the off switch.
Within three months, he and his family would be dead. What ultimately
triggered Luft's final rampage may never been known.
It's clear the man known to his family as a loving father was gone now,
lost in the haze of an illness that had consumed him.
According to reports gleaned from preliminary conclusions in a report, Bill
Luft's first victim was his wife. Taking a kitchen knife, he confronted her
upstairs sometime late last Wednesday night or early Thursday. He stabbed
Bohumila in the abdomen, nicking the baby she was holding. Luft then shot
his infant son to death with a .22 calibre rifle. David was not yet three
months old. Following a trail of blood, forensic officers believe the
wounded mother made her way downstairs, where she died. Upstairs, Bill
Luft's murder spree continued. Five-year-old Nicole, whose handprints Luft
had once preserved in a concrete walkway, may have been awake when her
daddy shot her, reports say. It is believed the oldest boy, Daniel, and his
kid brother Peter, were both sleeping when they were shot.
His grisly job complete, Luft then turned the gun on himself and squeezed
the trigger one last time. No one heard the shot.
It was the final act of a troubled man known well by only his family and
the close circle of friends he kept. But in death, Bill Luft ensured that
he be forever remembered as one of Canada's worst
mass murderers. It's a memory that will last a long, long time, like
handprints in a concrete sidewalk.
************ BLACK & BLUE & SS TOO ********
# KENORA COP RESIGNS: SEX ASSAULT OF MINOR GIRL
Chronicle Journal Thunder Bay July 13
A Kenora police officer convicted last month of sexual interference
involving a minor has quit the Kenora Police Service. JOHN HENSRUD
submitted his resignation Tuesday to police Chief George Curtis. Hensrud
said he was concerned about the integrity of the police force in the
community and that he wanted to bring closure to the matter as quickly as
possible.
The 29 year old officer was arrested July 8, 1999 and charged with
invitatiion to sexual touching and sexual interference involving a 13 year
old Ignace girl. He was suspended from duty with pay following the
charges. He was found guilty of both charges on June 27 and is awaiting
sentencing.
Kenora taxpayers were furious that Hensrud could continue to collect his
pay even after being found guilty. They made their feelings known by
contacting city councillors and Curtis. Since the first week in July,
Curtis said, he has had meetings with Hensrud and has spoken with his
lawyer, Greg Brodsky. It was agreed that as a result of Hensrud's
convictions he would not be able to remain with the police service. Hensrud
had two choices: proceed with a Police Service Act charges hearing and, if
found guilty, be fired; or resign.
The incident occurred at an Ignace home July 12, 1999 when Hensrud was off
duty. Hensrud pleaded not guilty to the charges. He is to be sentenced in
Dryden court on August 21. The maximum sentence on each charge is 10 years
in jail.
# SECURITY COP KILLS MAN, HOUSING
Monday 17 July 2000
Man dies being subdued by police
LEVON SEVUNTS
The Montreal Gazette
A man died while being subdued by police officers in subsidized housing on
Papineau St. yesterday. The tragic events began with a frantic call to
Urgences Sante from a tenant saying that his friend had gone into a violent
fit. Ambulance technicians called in the Montreal Urban Community police
because 43-year-old Luc Aubert of Repentigny was very violent, said Andre
Champagne, an Urgences Sante spokesman. The man was pepper-sprayed and
handcuffed but the four officers called to the scene did not use excessive
force, Champagne said. The man suffered what looks like a cardiac arrest,
he said. The technicians tried to resuscitate him but he was pronounced
dead at Notre Dame hospital. Neighbours said it wasn't the first time
police had visited the first-floor apartment and that their building is
known for its drug problems. "I'm not surprised at all that this happened,"
said Mark D'Astous, who lives just down the hall from the apartment. "There
were a lot fights and often you could smell the stench of pot coming from
that apartment."
The Surete du Quebec has begun investigating the death, standard
procedure whenever there is a death involving one of province's police
forces.
*********
NATIVE NEWS
DAVID TROTT
Accused killer 'so delusional'
The Vancouver Province July 17 2000
Jack Keating
The man accused of abducting and killing nine-year-old Jessica Russell has
lost all sense of reality, his stepfather said yesterday. Twenty-year-old
David Trott, who has been charged with first degree murder of the Maple
Ridge girl, has been in custody since being arrested and charged May 7 with
Jessica's death.
"I've had about 10 calls from David, including two (yesterday) and he's so
delusional," said Harvey Borley, Trott's stepfather. "He's blaming
everybody from Hells Angels to the CIA. He's so delusional, it's become
ridiculous." Trott's behaviour in Surrey provincial
court last Thursday on charges stemming from a rampage that that
caused about $5,000 damage to a cell at the Surrey pre-trial centre,
suggests he's getting worse, said his lawyer, Howard Smith.
"He was hysterical," said Smith. "He's convinced someone in custody is
going to kill him. He's absolutely convinced he's going to die."
Trott, who is isolated from other prisoners, suffers from fetal alcohol
syndrome, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and bipolar syndrome
(manic depression). His deteriorating condition raises questions about his
fitness to stand trial for the death of Russell, the lawyer said. Smith
said he plans to suggest to the Crown that Trott undergo an assessment to
see if he's competent to give instructions in his defence. Normally that
involves observation by a psychiatrist for up to 30 days, probably at the
Forensic Psychiatric Institute near Vancouver. Borley said he will appear
in Abbotsford provincial court today to support an application by Smith to
have Trott assessed. "We're doing an application to have him mentally
assessed," said Borley. "And we're going to support that application. "I
think that's the best thing, check him out at a forensic centre that looks
after the criminally insane."
After his arrest, Trott was put on anti-psychotic medication but he told
Smith he was no longer getting the drugs. Smith said Trott appears subject
to wild mood swings. "He'll phone my office one day and be completely stark
raving, and the next day he'll talk to me and he's calm," he said. A
preliminary hearing on the abduction and murder charges is scheduled to
start on Jan. 15.
Tuesday, July 18, 2000
Trott needs psych test before murder trial
By CP
ABBOTSFORD, B.C. -- The man accused of abducting and strangling
nine-year-old Jessica Russell was ordered yesterday to undergo a
psychiatric assessment to determine his mental competency for trial.
David Trott, 20, was sent to the B.C. Forensic Psychiatric
Institute in suburban Coquitlam after his defence lawyer argued
Trott's increasing paranoia and incoherence raise questions about
whether he knows what's going on. "I'm starting to doubt this young man
understands the nature of the legal proceedings and the consequences,"
Howard Smith told the court.
Crown prosecutor Carolyn Kramer did not challenge the application.
Trott was charged with abduction and first-degree murder after
Jessica's body was discovered in a burned-out trailer near
Mission on May 5. Trott gazed vacantly around the courtroom and near the
end asked Smith what he was charged with.
Michael Newton
WOMAN SUES OVER ABUSE IN FOSTER HOME
Mom sues over abuse in foster home
Kathy Tait, Children and Families Reporter The Province
July 20 2000
A woman who claims she suffered four years of emotional, physical and
sexual abuse in 14 foster homes is suing the B.C government, her social
worker and former foster parents. Gloria Biron, a 28-year-old
Prince George mother of two, is seeking general, aggravated and punitive
damages for negligence and breach of duty. Biron's suit names foster
parents Christine and Larry Leischner. It also names
social worker Winnie Cook and the B.C. director of child services and
alleges they failed to keep her safe while she was in foster placements
from 1985 until she left government care at age 17 in
1989.
The suit also names a former child in care who sexually assaulted her at
age 14 in 1986 at the Leischner foster home. The youth pleaded guilty to
sexual assault and was put on probation and into therapy. Biron's statement
of claim alleges Cook and the Leischners "were aware or ought to have been
aware that (the youth) had a history of sexual impropriety and posed a
threat," yet "they permitted (him) to reside in the same house as (Biron)
and to be inadequately supervised."
The suit alleges:
- The government and the social worker failed to supervise and ensure the
foster parents provided a safe environment.
- The foster parents failed to adequately supervise the youth convicted of
sexual assault and ensure he was unable to enter Biron's bedroom
unsupervised.
- The government failed to provide counselling and rehabilitation to Biron.
In statements of defence, Christine Leischner, a registered social worker,
says that when the youth was placed with her and her husband they were not
told he had a predatory sexual history. Later, when it became clear the
boy's behaviour was offensive, the Leischners say they asked the ministry
to remove him. Feeling their own children and foster children were at
continued risk, the Leischners say they
resigned as foster parents before the ministry moved him.
The statement of defence from the director of child services and social
worker Winnie Cook denies the director can be sued, denies he or Cook were
responsible for the placement of foster children in appropriate resources
and denies negligence. It claims that the Leischners were not government
employees or agents but were independent contractors and denies the
government was responsible in law for their activities.
They also deny that the youth was known to have a history of sexual
impropriety. They say Biron refused counselling. Biron's lawyer Wendy
Holland say a trial date has yet to be set.
Teacher accused of tearing apart family
Kathy Tait, Children and Families Reporter The Province
Gloria Biron says a teacher who was obsessed with her triggered the process
that broke up her happy family and put her and her two
sisters in foster homes. She has filed a complaint with the B.C. College of
Teachers. Biron said she was in Grade 7 in Prince George in 1985 when the
teacher, then 30, began sending her love notes,
gifts and flowers. She says he also molested her. She said the teacher
told child-protection authorities the children were being
physically abused by their father. The teacher's plan, she says,
was to get approval from child-protection authorities for her to live with
him. Biron says when she was taken into care she believed
it was because of her father's verbal abusiveness and the fact that he
occasionally used a belt to physically discipline his children.
She said she later found out that the ministry suspected her dad was
sexually abusing his daughters, even though the girls repeatedly told their
social worker he wasn't. She says the ministry carried out an "unrelenting
vendetta" against the family despite an RCMP investigation which resulted
in no charges. Biron and her sisters were sent to different foster homes
and were rarely allowed to see their parents, who unsuccessfully fought the
apprehensions.
Marie Kerchum, deputy registrar of the teachers' college, said the teacher
is currently employed on Vancouver Island.
The education ministry investigated the teacher in 1986 and as a result put
him on six-months probation. Child-protection records show the same teacher
was the subject of at least one previous alert by a social worker. Kerchum
said it will be up to registrar Doug Smart to determine if Biron's
complaint should be investigated by a sub-committee of the college.
********
TEACHER PORNOGRAPHY, NO CHARGES LAID
Committee hears charges teacher sexually exploited students
By FRANK DOBROVNIK, The Sault Star July 20 2000
A disciplinary committee has heard allegations that a former high school
teacher in a community east of Sault Ste. Marie sexually exploited several
of his female students by, among other things, having them model nude for
him over the course of a decade. But no
criminal charges were ever laid, although police investigated the
complaints. On Monday and Tuesday, a three-member disciplinary panel of
the Ontario College of Teachers in Toronto heard from three of the man's
former students.
The women, now aged 21 to 30, told how while they were high school students
their teacher used his position of authority to persuade them to pose for
provocative photographs. ``They were quite emotional and told of feeling
vulnerable at the time their teacher
befriended them, and their friendship developing to the point where he
asked them to do these pictures,'' said OCT media relations officer Denys
Giguere. The three also spoke of the ``character changes'' they
experienced as a result, Giguere said. They described feeling looked down
upon by other students and staff, several of whom their teacher told about
and showed the photos to, he said. ``They talked about their confusion as
teenagers doing these pictures,'' he said. ``They also felt that what they
were doing was inappropriate, was dirty, but they didn't know who to talk
to or what to do, and that led to anger,'' he added.
The panel imposed an interim ban on the man's name and the community in
which he still resides. Evidence was presented that at the time the
incidents began to come to light in 1997, members of his family had been
threatened and had their home pelted with eggs and car
windows smashed.
Four former students had been scheduled to present evidence but the hearing
was cut short because the three-member panel agreed that ``the case was
clear'' against the accused, Giguere said.
A 14-page notice of hearing describes similar incidents between 1988 and
April 1997 involving a total of 14 students. There is a permanent ban on
identifying the victims. A pattern emerged: the girls were befriended by
the older man, who exposed them to
sexually explicit art and photographs before inviting them to pose for him.
Some of those who accepted were photographed with other students,
sometimes in poses with S&M overtones. The notice of hearing describes how
while one girl was a student of his in Grades 10 through 12, he:
``tied (her) hands behind her back and photographed her in the nude (and)
blindfolded, wrapped in a cloth, plastic or rope with her wrists and ankles
tied;''
``took photographs of (her) and (another student) chained together to a log
and tied to a tree wearing ripped clothing;''
``made body casts and sculptures of (her) posed nude and partially nude . .
. having first applied Vaseline to (her body), which involved his touching
her breasts and vagina;''
``put his hands underneath (her) bathing suit and touched her breasts and
vaginal area;''
and ``took photographs of (her) partially nude in his office at the said
school;''
The accused, who had been hired in 1976, resigned from the former North
Shore Board of Education in July 1997. The man, who still lives in the
community, was not present at the hearing but had
representation. His lawyer, Ian Fellows, had no comment Wednesday except to
say ``There have never been criminal proceedings in this matter.''
An investigating officer in the area police service acknowledged that no
charges were laid following an investigation into allegations of possession
of child pornography and sexual
assault. ``The Crown attorney's office and police determined that there
were no criminal offences (and) nothing that contravened the Criminal
Code,'' said the officer, though adding that ``his
actions were inappropriate and dealt with at the school level.''
Giguere said the panel may hand down a decision as early as the end of the
week. The OCT, which is responsible for granting and revoking teaching
certificates, is actually powerless in this case because the accused has no
certificate for failing to pay his teacher's fees, Giguere said. ``That's
what they're juggling with _ how to find a way that whatever they impose
can be enforced.''
However, a finding of professional misconduct would still be posted on a
U.S. database, the National Association of State Directors of Teacher
Education and Certification, that is shared by more than 30 countries.
********
MATTHEW HALL PEDOPHILE/PORNOGRAPHY WILL BE ASSESSED
AT ROYAL OTTAWA
Greco decides Hall will be allowed two psychiatric tests
By LINDA RICHARDSON, The Sault Star
July 19
Convicted sex offender Matthew Hall also will be assessed by a
defence-selected psychiatrist, a judge decided Tuesday. But this
examination will not interfere with the assessment, arranged by the Crown
as part of the process to have the 24-year-old man declared a dangerous
offender. The assessment by the prosecution's psychiatrist will begin Oct.
3 in Toronto. Ontario Court Justice James Greco agreed Tuesday to order
Hall transferred to an eastern Ontario detention centre so he can undergo a
defence assessment at the forensic unit of an Ottawa hospital. This 60-day
assessment will take place before the Crown examination if a bed is
available or once the Toronto assessment is completed.
``The court is anxious to see the accused has an examination by a
psychiatrist of his choosing,'' the judge told defence counsel Michael
Bennett. Greco said he couldn't order the examination under the Criminal
Code section that provided for the appointment of the Crown's psychiatrist.
But he said he was prepared to order the man's transfer to facilitate the
Ottawa examination sought by the defence.
Greco noted there was no Crown objection to this.
If a bed becomes available before Aug. 2, Greco said he is prepared to make
an order directing either the city police or Ontario Provincial Police to
transport Hall to the Ottawa Carleton detention centre. Otherwise, he will
make the order after Hall is returned to the Sault Jail following the
assessment in Toronto. The bill for transporting the man to Ottawa, as well
as the assessment cost, will be paid by the province, the judge said. In
June, Greco ordered Hall to undergo testing at a Toronto facility after
hearing Crown and defence arguments on who should be appointed to conduct
the battery of tests.
It's the first step in the process of seeking dangerous-offender status for
Hall, who has been convicted of dozens of child porn offences and numerous
sex-related charges.
If the prosecution's dangerous-offender application is successful, Hall
could be behind bars indefinitely. Hall was convicted in April of 43
charges, after he pleaded guilty to distributing, importing and possessing
child pornography, as well as a number of sex-related offences involving
children. He also admitted sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl and
sexually touching an eight-year-old boy in
Haileybury in 1997. As well, he entered guilty pleas to seven counts of
invitation to sexual touching involving a number of young local girls. The
charges against Hall stemmed from a four-month undercover Internet
investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police Pornography Unit (Project
P). During the trial, the court spent two days viewing hundreds of graphic
and explicit images of young children police seized from Hall's computer
and disks and heard details of the sex-related charges. The hundreds of
computer images showed adults, often men masked to hide their identities,
engaged in oral sex, intercourse and other sexual acts with children, some
as young as toddlers in diapers.
********
KENNEDY PEDOPHILE ATTEMPTED ABDUCTIONS
Man held over incidents with 2 young girls
By Linda Richardson, The Sault Star
July 20
He was arrested Tuesday after city police received complaints about two
attempted abductions. The first complaint involved a 12-year-old girl, who
reported she was approached about noon near the intersection of Pine Street
and Ontario Avenue. A man in a car stopped the girl, who was riding her
bicycle, and asked for directions, police said. He then asked her to check
his car's taillights and allegedly attempted to grab her as she moved
around the vehicle. The girl, who was able to flee to the nearby Sault
armoury, said the man indicated he had a knife and told her to get into the
car. The second incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. when an eight-year-old
girl was approached by a man after she came out of a convenience store at
Bruce and Wellington streets. The girl had parked her bike near a dumpster
and the man allegedly moved it near his open car door. Police say he
grabbed the girl and threatened to choke her unless she got in the vehicle.
The girl was released when she started to scream. A witness jotted down the
vehicle's licence number.
Kennedy, of 157 Pim St., Apt. 2, faces two counts of attempted abduction,
two counts of threatening and one count of assault.
******
KEVIN KELFORD PEDOPHILE
Thursday, July 20, 2000 'Bizarre' state plagued pedophile
By RICHARD ROIK, Ottawa Sun
July 20
A repeat pedophile's psychotic state turned so "extremely bizarre"
this spring he was drinking his own urine and wearing women's
panties the day he molested as many as three children.
Kevin Kelford, 34, had also tried using a rubber doll to alleviate his
sexual frustration just before the uncontrollable urges and the
voices in his head drove him to act on the helpless west-end
children.
"He lacked the ability to understand fully what he was doing,"
forensic psychiatrist Dr. Jack Ellis told an Ottawa court yesterday.
DRUG PROBLEMS
Justice Bernard Ryan promptly agreed, finding Kelford not
criminally responsible by way of mental illness. Kelford now likely
faces years in the Brockville Psychiatric Institute before his fate is
reconsidered. A psychiatric report indicates the use of cocaine, cannabis
and alcohol appears to have tipped the precarious balance Kelford had been
maintaining through prescribed drugs. "This combination of substances was
causing him to become extremely focused on his sexual side," Dr. Ellis
said. On April 1, Kelford was first spotted allegedly touching a young
boy's groin area before he grabbed a 13-year-old girl's buttocks in the
Carling Ave. and Grenon Ave. area.
He then threw a nine-year-old girl to the ground in a park and "humped" her
to the point of ripping her jeans. Only her screams scared him off. When
police later arrested him, he was wearing nail polish, makeup and women's
panties.
'TOO MUCH MONEY'
Kelford first became a patient at the Royal Ottawa Hospital in the
late '80s when he molested two young girls who'd been swimming.
His world became unhinged again two years ago when he ran into
"a bit too much money" and started hanging around prostitutes and
strip bars, where his consumption of alcohol and drugs grew.
******
THOMAS ALBERT ROGERS SERIAL RAPIST, RELEASED FROM WARKWORTH
'Serial rapist' says police mislabelling him
Cheryl Stepan
The Hamilton Spectator July 20
A Niagara Falls man says police are crucifying him by warning the public
that he is a "high-risk serial rapist" who has been released from jail.
Niagara police notified the media yesterday that Thomas Albert Rogers, a
convicted rapist, was free after serving time for his most recent offence
of trespassing by night. The notice -- the second police have issued about
Rogers -- named the central Niagara Falls street where he is living. From
the apartment he shares with his wife of three years, Rogers described the
police action as cruel. "I'm tired. I'm 47. I just want to get on with my
life. Who's going to hire me? Who's going to hire me now?" he sighed, as he
inhaled on a cigarette. "I went to jail years ago for some bad things. I
was young, I made some mistakes. It was a serious crime. I pay for it every
day of my life."
Rogers was sentenced in 1987 to nine years for breaking into the homes of
two Niagara Falls women and sexually assaulting them. He also has a
criminal record for other sex-related offences, police said. Detective
Brian Smith described the Niagara Falls attacks as "violent sexual assaults
on strangers." He said Rogers is enough of a potential risk that a public
warning is warranted -- despite the adverse affect it could have on Rogers.
"He's been charged with some pretty serious offences. There are certain
cases ... where the need to protect society is greater than the need to
protect the individual's privacy and we feel that's the case here," Smith
said.
The notification lists Rogers previous offences, and provides a physical
description of him:
White male, 6' tall, 175 lbs, short brown hair with a full mustache, hazel
eyes and tattoos on both arms -- a complete skeleton with a green leaf on
his right arm, and an eagle on his left forearm.
Rogers was released from Warkworth Institution in 1996 after serving his
full sentence. Correctional Service Canada classified him as a "high risk
to reoffend." Niagara police issued a warning at that time when he returned
to Niagara Falls. In March, he found himself back before the courts, this
time sentenced to five-months for lurking outside the home of a Niagara
Falls woman. At the time, the judge described him as one of the "worst
offenders."
Rogers claims he was under the woman's awning to get out of the rain. He
was released from jail July 16. Smith said Rogers' Niagara Falls neighbours
need to be warned so they can "keep an eye on him in case he decided to
turn back to his evil ways. "I don't want to have wide-spread panic. This
is just to keep people on their toes," he said, adding it is not unusual
for Niagara police to issue such warnings. In Hamilton-Wentworth, sending
out a public warning is a "last resort" said Deputy Police Chief Bruce
Elwood. Prior to doing that, a high-risk offender committee works on other
management strategies, including placing the individual on court-imposed
restrictions, community support and police monitoring.
Rogers insists he's no longer a danger. He said at the time of the rapes,
he was an "angry young man." He couldn't read or write because of dyslexia
that went undiagnosed and he had trouble holding down a job. "I was
frustrated with my life. It was a power and control issue. I've come to the
realization of what I did. It ruined their lives and it ruined my own at
the same time."
He said when he was released from prison in 1996, he worked a number of
jobs without complaint -- but he thinks that's all over now.
"My name is mud now through the papers. I had a good job (at the time of my
last arrest) and it's all gone -- everything's gone."
Reaction from neighbours to Rogers' presence was mixed. "I don't want him
here, that's for sure," said one woman, who didn't want her name used.
"What about the kids in the street?" But another resident said Rogers
deserved to live in peace. "He's been released so what are you doing to do?
He has to get on with his life. I think he has a right to live anywhere,"
said Douglas Roszel, 78. Jacki Carson, 52, was a little more hesitant and
said she'll be taking precautions. "I don't like it, but I know people have
to live somewhere when they've served their time," she said. "Is he cured?
No, I doubt it. I realize he can't help it." She said she'll be sure to
lock her doors on the quiet street where she's lived for seven years.
But Rogers' partner, Wanda Candler, says neighbours have nothing to fear
from Rogers. She insists he is not a threat. "There's nothing wrong with
me. I'm not stupid to put myself into an abusive situation and I certainly
wouldn't have my son living with me."
Meanwhile, Rogers said he's afraid to leave the house alone these days and
said they'll be moving as soon as they get the chance. "I know I'm not safe
to go out anywhere. I'm paranoid. Somebody could point the finger and me
and accuse me and I could go away for life."
*******
GERALD HICKEY
Thursday, July 20, 2000 Arrest in sex assault
Woman was attacked in broad daylight
By MICHEL HELL, TORONTO SUN
A man charged yesterday with a brutal daylight sex attack on an
elderly woman in a Toronto park two weeks ago killed a New
Brunswick woman 10 years ago, The Toronto Sun has learned.
Gerald Hickey, 38, charged yesterday with the attempted murder
and aggravated sexual assault of a woman as she walked in
Duncanwoods Park July 2, was released from prison last November after
serving a nine-year term following a manslaughter conviction.
A jury found Hickey not guilty of first-degree murder in the 1990
bludgeoning death of 72-year-old Stella Murphy at her rural home in
Lorne, N.B, and instead convicted him of manslaughter.
Hickey, arrested early yesterday by Toronto Police at his home,
made a brief court appearance. He was remanded in custody until
a July 25 bail hearing. Toronto Police Sgt. Jim Muscat said the
65-year-old petite Asian woman was struck over the head with a blunt object
before being sexually assaulted. She is recovering and has been released
from hospital to a downtown rehabilitation centre.
UNCONSCIOUS
After the attack, the woman was found lying unconscious in the
grass by a relative. Hickey testified at his 1990 trial that on the night
of Murphy's death, she attacked him with an axe when he refused to be
seduced by her into having sex because she was too old. While struggling
to defend himself, Hickey told the jury, he bit Murphy on the body, the axe
accidentally hit her in the face and
then she fell and fatally bumped her head.
Corrections Canada officials confirmed Hickey was released from
Dorchester prison Nov. 24, 1999 but could give no other information because
of privacy laws. Because of an abysmal prison record, Hickey was detained
by the National Parole Board for the full nine-year term. Upon his release,
he returned directly to Lorne -- a mining and logging town with a
population of 1,200 -- and lived in a house he inherited from his mother.
"When he came out, he carried an air of arrogance and a lot of people were
pissed off," said a local resident who requested anonymity. "There was an
open hatred towards him." Local residents said Hickey left town around
March or April and after stints in Calgary and Edmonton in Alberta, slowly
made his
way to Toronto.
*******
PATRICIA DAWN REAL, MURDERED
Shot woman 'smitten' with new boyfriend
DANIEL McHARDIE and EGLE PROCUTA
The Globe and Mail
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Toronto -- There were no answers yesterday to mysteries surrounding the
killing of a 46-year-old woman in a quiet Etobicoke neighbourhood on Monday
night by a gunman who escaped by bicycle.
At about 11 p.m., Patricia Dawn Real, a mother of two adult children,
pulled up with her boyfriend in his white 1976 Corvette at
the small house where she lived on Hallmark Avenue, near Highway 427 and
Evans Avenue. Her killer followed them down the driveway
into a dark back yard, where she was shot twice, police said. The boyfriend
struggled with the gunman, but he was able to break
free and got away. Next-door neighbour Michelle Mathison said
she went outside after hearing the shots and saw another man who lived in
the house. "He was very upset. He said to me, 'Get back in
your house. There's been a shooting.' Patricia's boyfriend was a mess. He
was crying." She said that a woman visiting her house saw
the couple arrive and the gunman, dressed in black, walk quietly up to Ms.
Real. After the shots were fired, he stumbled as he jumped
on a mountain bike before riding away, she said. "He got out of there like
a bat out of hell." Neighbours said Ms. Real had not been in the area long.
None knew her boyfriend, whom police did not name. The Corvette is
registered to a Toronto man. Lisa Morrow, a friend of Ms. Real's for 10
years, said the couple were "smitten."
"She had a boyfriend and she was in love with him. They had no problems,"
Ms. Morrow said, adding that Ms. Real, who worked as a
telemarketer, had always been popular. "She was wonderful, all the boys
were crazy about her. She was tall, smart and funny."
Neighbours said residents of the house would gather around a swimming pool
about four times a week for barbecues. In 1997, Ms. Real survived an armed
robbery in the Dominican Republic. She and an
Etobicoke man were chased by machete-wielding bandits on a motorbike. She
suffered a broken leg and cuts to her face requiring dozens of stitches,
when her motorbike crashed after a 15-minute pursuit.
Thursday, July 20, 2000 Killer cursed dying woman
'Bitch,' he spat out after putting two bullets in her head
By JONATHAN KINGSTONE, TORONTO SUN
Patti Real's killer fired two bullets in her head at point-blank range,
then put his face next to hers. "Bitch," the gunman said to the dying woman
as he held her up by the back of her neck. It was, police say, "basically
an assassination." The chilling scene was described to The Toronto Sun
yesterday by Real's boyfriend, Peter Seeley, who witnessed the slaying,
struggled with the killer and then cradled Real in his arms as she lay
dying in the backyard of her Etobicoke home Monday night. In the weeks
before her murder, Real, 46 and a mother of two grown boys, had told those
close to her she was "petrified" of a man she'd broken up with who had
lately been stalking her. "She died in my arms," Seeley, 44, said,
struggling with his emotions as he recalled the terror on Hallmark Ave.,
near Browns Line and Horner Ave. "She was staring up at me," he said. "I
was hoping she'd get through this. Then she passed away.
"She was the best thing that ever happened to me. The best thing
that ever happened to anybody who came around her."
Real and her former common-law husband, Ron Harper, made headlines three
years ago when they were attacked while vacationing in the Dominican
Republic. They told reporters they were attacked with machetes and robbed
after a flat tire left them stranded in a shanty town. Real's family said
she broke off the five- or six-year relationship with Harper, who's in his
50s, about six months ago. Soon after that she began dating Seeley, a
friend of more than 20 years. On the night of the murder, Seeley said he
picked up Real from her telemarketing job and arrived at the bungalow
around 11 p.m. They walked to the backyard, where police said the gunman
was lying in wait. "He followed them and basically assassinated this lady,"
Det. Stephen Bell said. Seeley said his girlfriend's last words were:
"Sweetie, I'm going to go downstairs and get us a glass of wine." "I had my
back to her when I heard the shots. I turned around and there he was. He
was still holding on to my girlfriend."
Seeley described how the gunman had Real by the neck, holding
her up. "I just jumped at him. My hands just went for his hands,"
Seeley said, adding the killer broke free and levelled the gun at his head.
Seeley said the gunman was black, with a slim build and in his 20s. Real
is not known to have had any former boyfriends who were black. Police would
not comment on reports the killer was a hitman. Real, who had been in an
abusive relationship, spent her last weeks being harassed and living in
fear.
'CONFRONTED' HIM
Neighbours remember a man parking on her street, watching her
coming and going, and the night before the murder, Seeley said the
man "confronted" him in a neighbourhood bar. "She was petrified of him,"
said a woman close to Real. "She had been saying for weeks that something
was going to happen to her. She believed he was going to do something to
her." The woman said Real didn't go to police out of fear the man would
retaliate. "She was a beautiful person," said Kelly Holmes, 40, one of
Real's four siblings. Holmes said her sister donated one of her own kidneys
to another sister four years ago in an unsuccessful attempt to save her
life."Patti had a very big heart," Holmes said. "She was a very special
person to a lot of people."
********
WHITE RIBBON CAMPAIGN
July 20, 2000 Men urge other males to stop cycle of violence
By MARISSA NELSON AND MIRA OBERMAN, London Free Press 7 19
It's time for men to stop domestic violence, instead of perpetuating it, a
men's group says. The White Ribbon Campaign released a list of seven
recommendations to kick-start an end to the recent string of domestic
murders. "Our silence makes us complicit and our inaction makes us part of
the problem," said White Ribbon co-chair Jack Layton, also a Toronto city
councillor. "If we had killings at this rate that were to do with gangs,
men would be calling for change, but we're not seeing that." The group's
plan calls for more money for shelters, stiffer sentences for men who break
bail and for abusers to go through a risk assessment before they're freed.
Layton said men such as police officers and lawyers should be leading the
way. "There's a sense of helplessness when you see these happening every
week," he said. London women's advocates hailed the move. "We still live in
a world where leaders are still mostly men. That's why it's important that
men get involved," said Megan Walker, executive director of the London
Battered Women's Advocacy Centre.
Jan Richardson, executive director of Women's Community House, said
the White Ribbon proposals are good, but she worries about the focus on the
justice system when "most women don't access the justice system."
For Tim Kelly, executive director of Changing Ways, which counsels men who
abuse, "it's important for men to stand up and take action . . . if you're
not on the receiving end of oppression, you don't necessarily stop it."
Stratford's women's shelter, still recovering from the slaying of a city
woman, has also released a series of recommendations to stem the tide of
domestic violence, focusing on increasing funding for crisis centres and
education programs.
"It has been two years since we've gone more than a day or two with an
empty room," said Anne McDonnell, head of Optimism Place.
"There's a very large problem with people blaming the victim," said Julie
Moore, Optimism Place's legal advocate. She wants the focus shifted to
awareness programs in schools to end the cycle of violence. In the two days
following the slaying of Laurie Lynn Vollmershausen, Optimism Place has
received 53 calls from distressed women.
WHITE RIBBON SEVEN-POINT PLAN
- Courts should give stiffer sentences to men who defy bail or probation
conditions or restraining orders.
- More provincial funding for crisis lines serving women.
- More funding for women's shelters.
- All leaders in the legal system call on men in policing, the judicial
system and government to lead efforts for increased safety of women and
their children.
- Mandatory risk assessments on domestic violence offenders before
they're out of custody, and increased monitoring.
- Those who pose a high risk be detained until the victim's safety can be
assured.
- Men deemed by professionals as emotionally distressed be assisted to
appropriate crisis services.
*********
WILLIAM SHRUBSALL DANGEROUS OFFENDER APPLICATIONS
Thursday, July 20, 2000
Shrubsall faces two dangerous offender motions
By RACHEL BOOMER -- The Halifax Daily News
The Crown wants to have American fugitive William Chandler Shrubsall
declared a dangerous offender - twice. Using Halifax evidence and witnesses
from Shrubsall's home state of New York, prosecutors will argue Shrubsall
should be jailed indefinitely for the brutal baseball-bat attack on store
clerk Tammy Donnison. They'll make that argument next February. In
November, they plan to ask another Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge to
declare Shrubsall a dangerous
offender on an earlier conviction for aggravated sexual assault and
robbery. "Past facts and offences, as well as matters which may be pending,
will be placed before that judge," Crown attorney Rob Fetterly said
yesterday. He said the Crown must apply twice for the indefinite jail term
because each dangerous-offender application is tied to a separate
sentencing.
Killed mother when he was 16
Under the dangerous-offender provisions of the Criminal Code, the court can
order an indefinite sentence in cases where a convict has been persistently
aggressive. The court can also order the designation when a person's
behaviour has been so brutal that they're unlikely to conform to society's
standards. Shrubsall, 29, served 16 months in jail for killing his mother
when he was 16,
the day before his high school valedictory speech. He later fled to Nova
Scotia while being tried for sexual offences against a 17-year-old woman.
He was convicted June 30 of beating and robbing Donnison in a downtown
store in February 1998. Donnison was in a coma for days. On May 3, he was
convicted of aggravated sexual assault and robbery for attacking a
19-year-old student on Tower Road in May 1998. Shrubsall is appealing that
case.
Shrubsall has yet to be tried on allegations he sexually assaulted, choked
and confined a young woman on June 21, 1998. Crown attorney Paul Carver
told the court yesterday Shrubsall still hasn't been assessed by a
psychiatrist.
The Crown has enlisted Dr. Peter Collins, a prominent Ontario forensic
psychiatrist, to evaluate Shrubsall, but Shrubsall refused to be
interviewed in June. Defence lawyer Lonny Queripel said it wasn't
appropriate, because Shrubsall was being tried for the attack on Donnison.
In August, the Crown plans to either have Shrubsall sent to Toronto to be
assessed by Collins, or to the Nova Scotia Hospital.
*********
LUFT 'DESCENT INTO DESPAIR'
Papers reveal Luft's descent into despair
Court records give insight into life of man who killed his family
By Peter Edwards
Toronto Star Staff Reporter July 20
KITCHENER - He feared his wife was sexually involved with a satanist. He
worried his 4-year-old son was far too interested in guns and their killing
power. He gave up trying to pay crippling credit card debts.
Those were some of the demons haunting Bill Luft, 42, who snapped two weeks
ago and knifed his wife Bohumila, 27, to death, then fatally shot their
four children - Daniel, 7, Nicole, 5, Peter, 2, and 2 1/2-month old David -
before turning a gun on himself.
Court documents released yesterday give some insights into Luft's deeply
troubled mind in the fall of 1997, when he and his wife battled for custody
of their children. The custody fight ended in early January, 1998, when
Bohumila Luft returned from the Czech Republic, pregnant with the child of
another man, so that the Lufts could try to make their marriage work.
Things only got worse over the next two years, leading to his bloody
rampage. Luft, a handyman, was unable to land a full-time job and felt
enormous stress
because his infant son David was born with spina bifida, friends and
neighbours said. The legal motions for custody were unsealed yesterday by
Mr. Justice Donald Downie of the Ontario Court of Justice, after surviving
Luft family members dropped their opposition to a request to open the file
by several media outlets,
including The Star. There are no allegations in the documents
of physical abuse or the abuse of drugs or alcohol.
Luft's family has acknowledged that he was manic depressive, but there's no
mention in the files that Luft had the condition, or that
any social agency had any inkling of the demons inside his head.
What's painfully clear in the hand-written documents is that Luft was a
deeply unhappy man in the fall of 1997, after his wife moved to the Czech
Republic to live with a new lover, taking their daughter Nicole, who was 2
years old. The court papers also show Luft's meagre financial resources,
with a total monthly income of $1,779.63 coming from wages, public
assistance, pensions and a baby
bonus. He had staggering credit card debts, needing monthly payments of
$1,000, which he had stopped paying. In the court papers, there is a note
from Luft that states he feared what might happen if they were served on
his wife.
``I fear that serving my wife if at all possible, would or could endanger
the well-being of my daughter and possibly even my wife,'' Luft writes.
``The reasons for this, is that I strongly feel that my wife is either a
victim of, or involved with a satanic cult of some sort.'' Luft describes
his wife's new lover as a man with satanic powers and practices, and writes
that she was ``almost acting like she was under orders'' of her new
boyfriend.
Luft describes his shock that she could actually leave him and their home,
and blamed this on the new man in her life. The Lufts were married in
September, 1993, and separated in May, 1997. ``I felt that she was in some
way manipulated or even threatened in some way to do what she did,'' he
writes of the separation. ``She was cold and without any feelings toward
me. . . .'' Luft writes his wife made no effort to keep custody of their
son Daniel, then 4. ``She
coldly gave him up without one tear, but when I mentioned giving up Nicky
my daughter, she threatened to kill me.'' Their son Daniel went to the
Czech Republic to see his mother and her new boyfriend,
and came home to tell a bizarre tale of life there, Luft writes.
``He said that they sing at home,'' Luft writes. ``My wife never sings. . .
. They lite (sic) up a lot of candles, big ones, and they have stars on the
floor. . . .''
Daniel's behaviour was bizarre after contact with his mother and her
boyfriend, and he often said his sister, who remained in the Czech
Republic, was dead, Luft writes. ``He also suddenly became interested in
knives and handguns, describing to me how they
work and how they can kill.''
The file also contains a counter-application from the Czech Republic from
Bohumila Luft. ``The marriage was all fine at first and then they stopped
communicating (or understanding) each other,'' a translated version states.
``Has another man living with her, but that certainly has no bearing on
this divorce. That getting back together with husband would not work. The
upbringing and care of the children she is able to provide.'' She noted
that Daniel was particularly close to his father, which is why he was with
him.
The legal skirmish ended abruptly on Jan. 8, 1998, with a terse note in the
file that reads, ``Parties reconciled - application withdrawn.''
Bill Luft told court wife was in satanic cult
July 21
KITCHENER, Ont. (CP) - A man who killed his wife and four children in a
murder-suicide on July 6 was awarded interim custody of his two oldest
children in October 1997 after telling the court their mother was in a
satanic cult.
The information is contained in a family-court file released Wednesday,
nearly two weeks after Bill Luft, 42, stabbed his wife Bohumila, 27, and
shot their four children, Daniel, 7, Nicole, 5, Peter, 2, and David, 2 1/2
months. Court records show the Luft family was troubled long before the
tragic murder-suicide.
On Aug. 14, 1997, Bill and Bohumila divorced in their native Czech
Republic, after she left him for another man, Pavel Novak.
The two agreed that Bill would keep their son, Daniel, and Bohumila would
keep their daughter, Nicole in the Czech Republic. But a little more than a
month later, Bill had a change of heart and wanted to have custody of
Nicole as well. In an affidavit dated Sept. 30, 1997, Bill Luft said he was
deeply concerned for his daughter's safety because Bohumila and her new
boyfriend appeared
to be in a satanic cult.
''She is only being manipulated by him (Pavel),'' he swore in his
affidavit. Bill had emigrated to Canada during the 1960s. In the early
'90s, he went back to then Czechoslovakia, where he met Bohumila. He
returned to Canada after the divorce. But after filing his affidavit, Luft
was awarded interim custody of both Daniel and Nicole. The couple's two
youngest children were born after the custody dispute. One of the last
entries in the file is a quick note from a judge saying ''parties
reconciled.'' That note is dated Jan. 8, 1998, a few weeks before Bohumila
rejoined Bill in Canada.
The affidavit and court order are part of a 62-page file that was sealed by
Justice Gary Hearn on July 6, the day of the murders.
On Tuesday, Bill Luft's brother and sister implored the court to keep the
records sealed from media organizations looking for insight into one of the
worst murders in Canadian history. But on Wednesday, their lawyer admitted
the documents could not be kept from the public. ''The case law simply
doesn't support my clients' position,'' said Bernard Cummins to Justice Don
Downie. ''I have instructed them it would be futile to'' try to stop the
release the
information, Cummins said.
Thursday, July 20, 2000
Killer said wife a satanist: Court papers
By SARAH GREEN, TORONTO SUN
KITCHENER -- Bill Luft's once-estranged wife was part of a
satanic cult, exposing their children to bizarre rituals with candles and a
"big star on the floor," according to allegations made in court documents
during a brief 1997 custody dispute. Luft -- a diagnosed manic-depressive
who returned to Kitchener with Daniel, then 4, while his wife, Bohumila,
stayed in the Czech Republic with Nicol, then 2, following their August
1997 divorce -- alleged his son suffered nightmares that his sister was
dead.
"Sometimes he said that he killed her himself with a stick, being
very concise to tell me he made a hole in her," Luft wrote in a Sept. 30,
1997 affidavit asking for custody of the two children. "He also suddenly
became interested in knives and handguns, describing to me how they work
and how they can kill."
Luft was awarded temporary custody of Nicol and Daniel on Oct.
1, 1997, but withdrew his application in January 1998 after the
couple reconciled. He filed for custody fearing Nicol was in danger while
living with her mother in the Czech Republic. Luft also believed Bohumila
would try to bring Daniel back to Europe.
The documents were contained in a family court file that was
sealed July 6, 2000 -- hours after Luft shot to death Bohumila,
Daniel, Nicol and sons Peter, 2, and David, 21/2 months. He then
killed himself. Justice Donald Downie released the file yesterday after
Luft's brother and sister made no objections in court.
According to documents, Luft alleged Bohumila was heavily
influenced by her new boyfriend, Pavel, who allegedly threatened
Nicol with a knife during a satanic ritual.
"I felt that (Bohumila) was in some way manipulated or even
threatened," he wrote. He said Bohumila "coldly" turned Daniel
over to him, but "when I mentioned giving up Nicky, my daughter,
she threatened to kill me." He said he agreed to the divorce because she
was living with another man.
*******
THOMAS WATSON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SUSPENDED SENTENCE
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Jilted spouse's anger 'understandable': Judge
By HANK DANISZEWSKI, London Free Press Reporter
A London man who assaulted his brother and former wife in a jealous,
drunken rage was given a suspended sentence by a judge who said the
man's anger was "understandable." But Jan Richardson, executive director of
Women's Community House in London, said courts should not be excusing
domestic violence. "Violence is wrong and it is a choice . . . Where in the
Criminal Code of Canada does it say 'It's OK if you're provoked?' "
Richardson said. Earlier yesterday, Thomas Watson was back in Ontario
Superior Court after pleading guilty in May before Justice Chester Misener
to two counts of assault and one count of break and enter. Watson, 31, was
arrested July 15, 1999, after he broke into his former home on Mornington
Avenue where his former common-law wife was living with his brother. Watson
also has two pre-school children living at the home.
Watson broke down the back door about 3:30 a.m., waking the sleeping
couple. He beat his brother with his fists and struck his wife on the face
before he left. He was found by police in some bushes, sobbing and
intoxicated. "I came to kick the . . . out of my brother who stole my wife
and kids," he told police. Crown attorney Peter Kierluk urged a jail
sentence as a general deterrent, noting Ontario's recent rash of domestic
violence incidents. Kierluk also said Watson needed treatment in an
institution for long-term
alcohol problems. But Watson's lawyer, Chris Bentley, said the violent
outburst was caused by what Watson considered an "egregious breach of
trust" when he was asked to leave his home in May after his brother
appeared to develop a romantic relationship with his common-law wife. The
brother had originally moved to the house as a boarder. Bentley said
Watson has remained sober since the incident, has found a job and has
custody of his children every second weekend. Misener sided with the
defence, saying although Watson broke into the residence it was a place
he'd considered his home for several years. He said after a long night of
drinking, Watson brooded over the loss of his home and family. Misener said
he didn't believe in jailing Watson for "general deterrence" -- to warn
other possible offenders. "People believe that because they wear a black
robe they can send a message. That's just ridiculous."
While he said the courts can never condone violence, he said he believed
most "right-thinking Canadians" wouldn't want to see Watson severely
punished. "I don't think that one in 10 would want to see him go to jail."
But Richardson said courts have to take a role in ending domestic violence.
"Like it or not, we use the court as a way to set social standards in our
society . . . The bench plays a role in a united message that 'this is
going to stop.' " Besides the suspended sentence, Watson was given three
years' probation.
******
IAN YOUNG (34) TRIED TO SMOTHER WWII VET
Wednesday, July 19, 2000 WWII vet: SOB tried to kill me
Guest attacked him
By GRETCHEN DRUMMIE, TORONTO SUN
An elderly Good Samaritan told court he thought he was dreaming when he
awoke to find a man he'd taken in smothering him with a pillow and mumbling
"grandfather, grandfather, grandfather."
"It was apparent the son of a bitch was trying to kill me. I felt he
was trying to put me away. I couldn't breathe," testified the feisty,
78-year-old, decorated World War II veteran. Ian Young, 34, has pleaded not
guilty to 11 charges, including attempted murder and theft of the man's war
memorabilia.
IN NEED
The veteran, who can't be identified, said he met Young at a
Toronto restaurant he frequented and had given him money and
clothing because "he was a chap in need." The veteran testified that in
early November 1998, he got a call asking him to bail Young out of jail. He
gave Young a key to his home and Young stayed there off and on after that.
He said he went to bed Nov. 16 feeling ill and awoke to find Young
smothering him. He hit Young with his fists and fingers, then bucked them
off the bed on to the floor. "As I hit the floor I blanked out," he
testified. He awoke in the hospital "with a pretty little nurse girl
pounding on my heart and I said: 'I'm back miss. Thank-you very much.'"
Woman attacked by friend's assailant
`This is a setup,' victim was told
By Shellene Drakes and Tracy Huffman
Toronto Star Staff Reporters
July 20 2000
After attacking an elderly man so severely he was sent to hospital, the
assailant sexually assaulted the victim's 66-year-old friend when she
stopped by the senior's apartment the next day, a court has heard. As the
woman went into the bedroom to pack a bag for her ailing friend, Ian Young
followed her, she testified yesterday.
``He said, `I thought you were smarter than that. This is a setup,' '' she
told Crown Attorney Paul McDermott.
The woman, whose identity is protected by the court, was grabbed and pushed
on to the bed, court was told. Young, 34, faces 11 charges including
attempted murder, sexual assault causing bodily harm, confinement, robbery
and possession of stolen property in the
November, 1998, incidents. He has pleaded not guilty. In earlier testimony,
the woman's 78-year-old friend testified that Young tried to suffocate him
with a pillow the previous night. The victim had taken pity on his younger
acquaintance by bailing him out of jail and letting him sleep on the couch
of his apartment. But the senior awoke to find Young attacking him in his
bed, he testified.
He survived and made it to hospital but, confused and in denial about the
attack, he didn't tell his friend when he sent her to collect some
belongings, he said. He said she should enter the apartment only with the
protection of the superintendent, but she entered alone and soon Young was
forcing her to have sex, the woman testified before Mr. Justice John
Hamilton. After she was sexually assaulted, Young tried to force her to
perform oral sex, she
testified. When she refused, he assaulted her again, she said.
Later, ``he sat on the edge of the bed and offered me a cigarette,'' she
testified. Young didn't say much after the attack but he asked the woman
if she wanted a drink, she said. The woman said that when she went into the
kitchen to get a glass of milk, Young followed her and ``stood over me with
a knife or a letter opener.'' Young took the woman's money and credit cards
from her purse and told her he was going to take a trip, she said. He took
the keys to her car and left the apartment. ``I jumped off the
chesterfield and went to the door to make sure it was locked and locked
it,'' she said.
She said the phone wasn't working but when she went to the balcony of the
apartment in the Yonge St.-Eglinton Ave. area, she saw Young driving away
in her car. She left the building and called the police. The trial
continues today.
*******
BROTHERS SEX ABUSE CASE AGAINST RC CHURCH REJECTED
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Brothers' sex abuse suit against church rejected
By ROXANNE BEAUBIEN, London Free Press Crime Reporter
A London Superior Court judge has rejected a bid to sue the Roman
Catholic Church by three brothers seeking damages in a civil suit for
sexual abuse by a priest. In a decision released this week, Justice Kenneth
Ross said the church is not a legal entity that can sue or be sued. The
church, along with the London diocese, the London District Catholic school
board and Rev. Barry Glendinning were listed as defendants in an
$11.6-million claim filed by three London brothers sexually abused by
Glendinning in the late 1960s and early '70s. Toronto lawyer Peter Lauwers
argued that while the Roman Catholic church isn't recognized as a legal
entity, dioceses are because they were given corporate status by statue in
1845.
Lauwers called the decision an important one because the issue has
come up in other provinces.
John Swales, 41, his brothers Guy, 39, and Ed, 37, their sister and parents
have filed a statement of claim seeking damages for sexual assaults the
three men suffered by Glendinning, then a professor of liturgy at St.
Peter's Seminary. Glendinning was convicted in 1974 of sexually abusing six
children, including the Swales trio.
Paul Ledroit, lawyer for the Swales, couldn't be reached for comment
yesterday. The diocese has yet to file a statement of defence because,
Lauwers said, the legal team has been waiting for this decision.
********
RICHARD LAVIGNE HANDICAPPED WORKER, SEX ASSAULT
Wednesday, July 19, 2000 Worker faces sex charge
By LISA LISLE, Ottawa Sun
A 44-year-old Carleton Place man is facing sex charges after a
mentally handicapped Almonte man he was hired to help complained to police.
After a five-month investigation into allegations of forced fellatio,
Richard Lavigne, a support worker at the Community Living
Association of Lanark County, was charged Friday with sexual
assault and sexual exploitation of a person with a disability.
Lavigne, who has worked at the organization since 1981, was
suspended with pay as soon as Community Living got wind of the
allegations.
"We need to protect both the people we support and the rights of
our employees," said the association's executive director Rick
Tutt. Police allege the victim was brought to Lavigne's apartment where he
was forced to perform fellatio on the accused. There is no
allegation of physical assault or forcible confinement. The victim
came forward a few days after the incident. The association's
administration is expected to meet with its lawyers today to discuss
Lavigne's termination. "I have no idea why this is being said," Lavigne
told the Sun.
********
16 YEAR OLD GIRL STABBED FRIEND
Wednesday, July 19, 2000
Teen girl 'very sorry' after stabbing friend
By JASON CUMMING, Ottawa Sun
Nothing ever suggested the teenaged girl from such a virtuous
family would even consider plunging a switchblade into a classmate's belly.
And as the hard-working 16-year-old St. Patrick's high school
student was yesterday handed a three-month group home stint for
the hallway attack which "maimed" a male acquaintance, lawyers,
cops, a judge and even the accused remained completely perplexed about what
made her snap last fall. "You just don't fit the crime," bewildered Justice
Andre Cousineau said. "It seems to be totally, completely out of character
for you, but you did it. This is what scares me, your explosive, violent
reaction."
GUILTY PLEA
The teen -- who pleaded guilty to the seemingly motiveless
aggravated assault two months ago -- couldn't express why she
jabbed the Grade 12 student during a slapping match after the
final bell last Nov. 2. "Everything I did was wrong," she told the judge
before receiving the open-custody sentence, dabbing at tears between
sniffles. "I just don't know how to explain it but I'm very, very sorry. I
just wish this had never happened."
Court heard the girl is a "worker ant" who toils for up to 60 hours a week
at a fast-food joint to help support her family, earns high grades, and has
a good relationship with her parents, abiding by
their values.
Cousineau ruled that a strong signal must be sent that school
violence will not be tolerated. The 18-year-old victim spent five
days in hospital and the effects of the knifing linger -- preventing
him from playing sports eight months later. His attacker also faces 18
months of probation and a weapons ban.
Michael Newton
JOHN CLARKE TORONTO COALITION AGAINST POVERTY
Queen's Park rioter says violence works
Richard Mackie
Saturday, July 15, 2000
Toronto -- John Clarke, the man at the centre of the Queen's Park riot one
month ago, says violent protests are the best way to force the provincial
government to stop "attacking" the poor and homeless. In an interview on
the Global Television program Focus Ontario, he said, "People are dying on
the streets. People are being evicted in huge numbers. There's a crisis of
poverty. People are angry. And people are determined to challenge it." Mr.
Clarke, the senior organizer for the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty, was
at the head of the demonstration against homelessness by 500 people at
Queen's Park on June 15 that saw rocks, bricks and firebombs thrown at the
legislature building and at police.
********
3 YR OLD GIRL MURDERED BY FATHER
July 15, 2000 Girl, 3, murdered
Dad was distraught over poor job prospects, friend says
By JONATHAN JENKINS -- Toronto Sun
Ping Ping Chow came home yesterday after working the graveyard shift at a
local coffee shop to find her three-year-old daughter murdered, allegedly
at the hands of her husband. A co-worker of the shattered woman, who was
helped by police from the North York house she rented with more than a
dozen other tenants, said Chow's husband was depressed and angry because he
couldn't find a good job. "In the first month he was here, he had an
interview but there was no offer," said Yan Shen, who worked with Chow at
the Coffee Time near Yonge St. and Cummer Ave. "He was very upset that he
could not find a good job," she said.
No questions
Homicide Det.-Sgt. Al Comeau did not take questions at the scene on
Greenfield Ave. in the Sheppard Ave.-Bayview Ave. area and only made a
brief comment before heading to 32 Division headquarters.
"We have a three-year-old female deceased victim," Comeau
said. "We also have a male who is her father who has been arrested
for the murder of this young girl." Police would not confirm a report the
toddler was strangled, but did say the child's father was taken into
custody suffering from knife wounds believed to be self-inflicted.
Co-worker Shen, 29, said the couple came to Canada about two months ago.
Ping Ping Chow found the Coffee Time job through one of her housemates,
while her husband worked at a bakery. "She just told me that her husband
was not very optimistic," Shen said. "He wanted to return to China. She
didn't want to go." Both Ping Ping Chow and her husband were trained as
engineers in Anhui province, a rugged and impoverished area of eastern
China near Shanghai, she said. "A lot of new immigrants come from China
with a high level of education but I don't think Canada needs a lot of
highly educated people," Shen said. "Most of us just work in general
labour."
Loved daughter
Shen said Chow would occasionally bring her daughter by after
the night shift and often joked about how much the little girl could eat.
"She loved her daughter very much," Shen said.
The two-storey home on Greenfield Ave., a neighbourhood of
classy brick homes and expansive yards, had a BMW parked in
the driveway and was divided into 11 apartments, Shen said. "Sometimes I
saw the girl and her father play together in the
garden," said neighbour Cathy Sun, 36. The names of the victim and the
accused have not been released.
********
HUSBAND POISONED PREGNANT WIFE
July 16, 2000 Hubby held in poison death
By IAN ROBERTSON -- Toronto Sun
The husband of a pregnant Pickering woman who police revealed yesterday was
fatally poisoned on Mother's Day has been charged with deliberately killing
her. Ganeshram Raghunauth, 29, told Durham Regional Police on May 14 that
he found his wife Hemoutie Raghunauth, 28, dead on the bathroom floor of
their Beaton Way home. An autopsy showed no anatomical cause for her death,
but
toxicology tests conducted over the last two months showed she
was poisoned, Sgt. Jim Grimley said. He said the victim worked at a
financial institution and the couple had recently moved into their
Pickering home. Raghunauth was arrested Friday on a first-degree murder
charge after appearing in a Newmarket court on fraud charges laid by York
Regional Police.
********
WINNIPEG: CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
July 15, 2000 Tip of kiddie porn iceberg
Expect many more arrests, cops say
By BOB HOLLIDAY -- Winnipeg Sun
Police Reporter
The arrest of a 32-year-old Elmwood man Thursday night is just
the tip of the child pornography iceberg, say police. Officers found
thousands of pornographic images on the computer in the man's William
Newton Avenue home and expect to find many more when the forensic
examination is conducted on a seized computer and disks, said Sgt. Jay
Paquette. Since last September, when police charged a 16-year-old boy with
possession and distribution of child pornography, the man is the fifth
Winnipeg resident to face such charges based on a tip from German police,
said Paquette. As well, two people in rural Manitoba have been charged by
RCMP on files provided by German police. "Police in Wiesbaden, Germany
made contact with the accused and he sent images to them," said Paquette.
Working through Interpol, the file was sent to police here and
search warrants obtained for the man's Internet service provider
and computer equipment. More charges will be laid against child
pornographers as investigators become more computer literate, said
Paquette. "They used to be hard to locate, but now they have their own
on-line chat rooms and Web pages," he added. "The Internet is
the meeting place of choice for these people." Meanwhile, said Paquette,
hard copies of pornography are becoming rare. "You don't see many books or
videos anymore although we seize the odd grainy video." said Paquette.
********
STEPHAN YAWORSKI (20) 1 YR PRISON CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
July 15, 2000 Kiddie porn jail time hiked
By GRETCHEN DRUMMIE -- Toronto Sun
Ontario's appeal court yesterday hiked a sentence from 90 days
to a year for a young father-to-be involved in distributing kiddie
porn of "the vilest sort" on the Internet. Stephan Yaworski, 20, of
Hamilton, pleaded guilty to a charge of distributing child pornography.
Though the Guelph-area trial judge thought such a crime would normally call
for a sentence of 12 to 15 months, he was "moved" to impose three months
because of Yaworski's "intelligence, his academic achievements and his
desire to continue his education."
'MATERIALLY MISLED'
But the Court of Appeal said in a judgment that "the trial judge
was materially misled (intentionally or otherwise) as to
(Yaworski's) academic achievements and his standing at university
at the time of sentence. (Yaworski) was not enrolled in university
at the time of sentence." "This case involved the widespread distribution
over the Internet of child pornography which it is agreed was of the vilest
sort," wrote the three-justice panel. The judgment said Yaworski's
equipment was set up so that, once turned on, anyone could access the porn.
Yaworski, the court said, is now engaged and expecting a child, and has
already served the original sentence. The time served will be taken into
account.
Child porn distributor gets longer sentence
Natalie Southworth
Saturday, July 15, 2000
Globe & Mail
Toronto -- A father-to-be found guilty of distributing the "vilest sort" of
child pornography had his sentence increased yesterday to one year from
three months after an appeal court found he originally misled a judge to
believe he was a university student.
The Ontario Court of Appeal noted that Mr. Yaworski had acquired only a
handful of credits despite having been at the University of Guelph off and
on for four years. He earlier testified he never knowingly distributed the
pornographic images of children found on his computer when it was seized by
police in 1997. Given that the sometimes-student is engaged to be married
and his future wife
is expecting a child, the court imposed a 12-month sentence which includes
about six months he has already served.
********
23 YEAR OLD WINNIPEG WOMAN FOUND SLAIN IN NYC
July 15, 2000 Daughter's slaying horrifies parents
NYC murder 'too terrible for words'
By GREG Di CRESCE -- Winnipeg Sun Police Reporter
Susan and Wayne Loder are hurting. The parents of 23-year-old Jayme Loder,
whose body was found Wednesday in a New York City apartment with her throat
slit, said what happened "is too terrible for words." In the same suite,
New York cops found her boyfriend Todd Taylor, 34, with his hands nailed to
a two-by-four.
Taylor, who apparently dialed 911 with a pencil just before 4:30 a.m., told
cops three thugs robbed the suite, one armed with a gun, and slaughtered
Jayme. He said several thousand dollars were stolen from the apartment's
floor safe. The boyfriend's story is being scrutinized by the cops.
Meanwhile, Jayme's parents, who travelled to New York City on Thursday to
talk to homicide detectives, are fuming about media coverage. They are
especially steamed with reports saying their daughter was a stripper. "We
talked to police, friends of hers here, and the strip club she supposedly
worked at -- all of them assured us what was reported wasn't right," Susan
Loder said yesterday from New York.
100% CERTAIN
"And we're 100% certain our Jayme didn't work at the club," she
said, despite stories in The New York Post and The New York
Daily News saying otherwise. When contacted by The Winnipeg Sun, editors at
both newspapers said they stood by their stories.
However, the grieving Loders didn't think that really amounted to
much. "All they are interested in doing is selling papers. Not in people's
feelings. We're hurting and so is our daughter's memory," Susan said,
noting they will be returning to their home in The Maples with Jayme's
ashes on Monday. While in New York, Wayne and Susan said they are dealing
with some 20 detectives and have been told to keep mum about details
surrounding their daughter and what she was doing in the city.
Still, Susan did divulge that her daughter -- who had dreams of making it
as a model -- was earning a living working with her
boyfriend in the music scene. Police would neither confirm nor deny the
parents' claims about what Jayme did. "We are still investigating the
matter and can't comment for fear of jeopardizing our case," said Carmen
Melendez, police spokeswoman. But, police sources told The New York Daily
News that cops were keeping silent on the tie with exotic dancing out of
sympathy for the Canadian parents.
Furthermore, Robin Toews, a Winnipeg-born international model who knew
Jayme, said the Maples girl made no bones about working at a high-end
striptease club. "It was in that sort of lifestyle that she mixed with
people in the drug scene. I think it was her lifestyle choices that may
have caught up with her in the end," Toews said.
*******
HAROLD WATKINS 90 DAYS WIFE BEATING
Wife beater told alcohol no excuse; gets 90 days
By LINDA RICHARDSON, The Sault Star
Citing a higher-court decision earlier this week, a Sault Ste. Marie judge
sent a 43-year-old man to jail for 90 days for assaulting his spouse. The
Ontario Court of Appeal has said ``domestic violence has to be taken
seriously and it will be,'' Justice Martin Lambert said Friday. ``Alcohol
is no excuse for this type of behaviour and I don't accept it for a
minute,'' he told Harold Watkins after the man said he has a severe problem
with drinking. ``Talk is cheap. You may have an alcohol problem but you've
done nothing about it,'' Lambert admonished. Watkins pleaded guilty earlier
to assault and threatening death.
The charges stemmed from an April 8 incident where he had punched the woman
in the face and chest, then grabbed her by the hair and pushed her into a
cupboard. ``He was telling her she was dead, that he was going to kill
her,'' prosecutor David Kirk said.
The assistant Crown attorney called for a 90-day jail term, noting this was
the accused's fifth assault conviction since 1996.
A letter from the victim, who indicated Watkins becomes a totally different
person when he drinks, suggested jail wouldn't help the man. ``She's
somewhat supportive,'' Kirk said. ``But a strong message has to be sent
about the consequences of battering a spouse.'' Defence counsel Ken Walker
said his client, who is originally from Nova Scotia, has painful back
problems and is on a disability pension. ``He's suffered from alcoholism
for a number of years,'' Walker said, adding Watkins' criminal record is
``by and large alcohol-related charges.'' Lambert told the accused the only
thing that prevented him from imposing a greater sentence were
the pleas of guilt, which showed some remorse. ``Wake up and smell the
coffee or you will end up spending long sentences in jail,'' the judge
warned. ``Spouses will be protected.''
*******
BERGERON GRANTED PAROLE
Saturday, July 15, 2000 Cop killer granted full parole
Bergeron and accomplice killed two cops in N.B.
after kidnapping in '74
By PAUL COWAN, EDMONTON SUN
One of the last men to sit on death row in Canada has been given
full parole to live with his wife and daughter in Edmonton. Richard
Bergeron, 51, was granted full parole following a hearing in Edmonton
yesterday and the decision was expected to take effect
within the next few days. Bergeron, who changed his family name from
Ambrose, was convicted along with James Hutchison, 70, of shooting two
police officers dead in Moncton, New Brunswick, in 1974. They were both
sentenced to hang in 1975 but their sentences were commuted to life
imprisonment with no parole for 25 years in 1976 when the death penalty was
abolished. Bergeron became eligible for full parole last December following
his transfer to the Stan Daniels Centre in Edmonton from a federal jail in
Mission, B.C.
Since arriving in Edmonton, Bergeron has been on day parole which
allowed him to spend weekends with his wife, who he married in
jail, and his young daughter at their Edmonton home. The killing of Cpl.
Aurele Bourgeois - father of former Calgary Flames player Charlie Bourgeois
- and Const. Michael O'Leary shocked the country. The two officers went
missing during a bungled operation to catch Bergeron and Hutchison who had
just collected $15,000 in $10 bills after kidnapping the son of a local
restaurant owner. Their bodies were found three days later in shallow
graves.
Bergeron's full parole came despite an earlier parole board report which
said he had failed to comply with his obligation to undergo
psychological counselling while on day parole. But in yesterday's decision
the board said the cop killer had now taken the required counselling and
his risk level was manageable as long as he continues the counselling and
takes treatment. Not everyone was happy that Bergeron was granted parole.
"In my book life should mean life," said Canadian Alliance MP Art Hanger.
"In fact I think we should still have the death penalty. Since it was
abolished, along with corporal punishment, there has been a 400% increase
in crime - that figure speaks for itself."
********
AARON MOLODOWIC PAROLE (shot grandfather)
July 16, 2000 Community on edge
Town on guard as killer returns
By ROSS ROMANIUK -- Staff Reporter Winnipeg Sun
A central Manitoba town has seen tension rise and residents on
guard after a review panel's decision to allow a mentally unstable
killer to live in the community. Many of the 900 residents of MacGregor
have been on pins and needles since Aaron Molodowic, who gunned down his
grandfather nearly five years ago, was deemed fit to live in the community
by Manitoba's Criminal Code Review Board last month. "I'm sure there are
some people who have concerns," said a woman who lives in the town, 30
kilometres west of Portage la Prairie. "And I'm sure some people are not
impressed at all."
The neighbour's opinion is shared by several residents and
business operators, none of whom would give their names to The
Sun. A shop clerk said nerves have been frayed since the Supreme
Court overturned the 28-year-old's second-degree murder conviction last
April -- ruling he was not criminally responsible for
the slaying by reason of mental disorder -- and again when the
review board let him live outside custody.
STRICT CONDITIONS
"They always are when there's something like that," she said.
Though neither his lawyer Greg Brodsky nor the board will reveal
where Molodowic now lives -- many say he is often in MacGregor and drives
for a trucking company in the area -- those close to the case say strict
conditions of his release will keep those near him out of harm's way.
"Obviously the board felt that with treatment he would be able to function
in society without being a threat to anyone," said John Brown, who sits on
the seven-member board that has ordered Molodowic to remain in the
province. Brodsky insisted public concern is unwarranted since his client,
once diagnosed as "psychotic," has been ordered to take medication,
regularly see the province's chief psychiatrist and report to the board
every year.
"Because you have a broken leg, it doesn't mean you have a
broken leg for the whole of your life," Brodsky said. "He had a
condition and it's treated -- it's being managed." Dr. Stanley Yaren, the
Health Sciences Centre psychiatrist monitoring Molodowic, was on vacation
and couldn't be reached. Residents of MacGregor weren't notified that
Molodowic -- who never denied firing two bullets into his grandfather's
chest in August 1995 -- was going to be freed. Unlike Winnipeg police, the
RCMP doesn't have a public notification procedure for offenders who commit
anything other than sex crimes, said spokesman Sgt. Steve Saunders.
But many believe community warnings hurt people more than help
them. Cases such as Molodowic's perpetuate harmful "myths," say
some advocates for the mentally ill.
SCARY
"If this man is known to be violent ... then it's kind of scary that he's
in the community, but not because he's mentally ill," said Yvonne Block,
head of the Canadian Mental Health Association's
Manitoba division. Another MacGregor resident agrees. "Perhaps he should be
left alone to start over," the man said.
*********
HAMILTON
Addicted to fatal sex
Susan Clairmont
The Hamilton Spectator
CHOOSING BETWEEN LIFE AND SEXUAL PLEASURE -- Men from our community are
dying because of a little-known sexual deviancy called auto
erotic asphyxia or hypoxyphilia. It involves sexual arousal by oxygen
deprivation -- some use ligatures, nooses or chemicals -- and is so
addictive that willpower alone cannot stop it. Cinching a
belt around his neck so tightly it later had to be cut off, Jack stepped
off two thick volumes of Shakespeare and hoped for
euphoria. A few seconds was all that separated his self-control from his
helplessness. Three inches was the difference between life
and death. It was a gamble and Jack lost. He sacrificed his young life for
one single moment of sexual pleasure. It's called auto erotic asphyxia or
hypoxyphilia. It's not an easy thing to write about, but this story has to
be written. Men from our community are
dying because of this little-known sexual deviancy. And the wives and
mothers and friends who are discovering the bodies are saying they wish
they had known that people do such things. Because if they knew, they might
have been able to help.
Auto erotic asphyxia is listed under the heading Sexual Masochism
in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the
so-called bible of psychiatric medicine. The manual calls
hypoxyphilia (the medical term for auto erotic asphyxia) a
"particularly dangerous form of sexual masochism." The manual says
hypoxyphilia involves sexual arousal by oxygen deprivation obtained by
means of chest compression, noose, ligature, plastic bag, mask or chemical.
The addiction to this form of sexual gratification is so strong that
willpower alone cannot stop it. Therapy, chemical castration and, in some
extreme cases, surgical castration are the only treatments.
Hamilton-Wentworth police are so concerned about recent cases of
auto erotic asphyxia (AEA) that one officer has begun tracking
these deaths in an effort to identify patterns and prevent further
tragedies. There has been one confirmed case of death by AEA in
Hamilton-Wentworth this year, although police suspect others may
have been classified incorrectly. The man was in his early 30s. He
had children. He had carefully built three safety mechanisms into
the elaborate system he used to satisfy his desire. Safety
mechanisms can be things such as an easily undone knot, or a knife
within reach to be used to cut a rope. In this man's case, all three
mechanisms failed.
Jack must also have thought he could pull himself back from the brink of
death. Jack isn't his real name but he is a real person who was raised and
educated in our community. Not long ago, while living far away from home,
Jack, 26, waited for his roommate to leave the apartment before he prepared
to masturbate. He took off all his clothes except his track pants. He
fastened one end of his belt around his neck and tied the other end to a
door frame. He stood on his beloved books and then stepped off, awaiting
the high he would get as the oxygen supply to his brain was cut off. Jack
was likely confident that he could undo the belt just before he lost
consciousness. At 9:35 p.m., an hour after he left, the roommate returned.
At first he thought Jack was pulling a prank. Then he ran for a kitchen
knife to cut down his best friend.
Police originally thought it was a suicide. They finally determined it was
an accidental death due to auto erotic asphyxia. "I can't understand how he
could risk his life for a moment of erotic
ecstasy," says Jack's mother. The death of a child is always difficult. The
death of a child due to a strange, masturbatory practice is almost
impossible to understand. Jack's mother had never heard of auto erotic
asphyxia until the coroner put a name to her son's manner of death. Now she
is searching for answers.
"His entire family was unaware that he was obsessed with this
fixation," she says. "It was a complete shock and very difficult to
understand. I don't know where he learned this, how into it he was." Jack
was, by all accounts, a handsome, intelligent, lively young man. He studied
five languages, was a musical genius. Devoured books. His mother says Jack
didn't drink or use drugs. He dated a number of girls. He didn't seem to be
interested in pornography. "He was very gregarious. He never forgot
birthdays. He was a caring, sensitive person. He cried at sad movies. He
seemed to be the best friend of so many. It leaves such a hole in my life."
Just recently, Jack's mother found the strength to sort through her son's
belongings. Among his things she found a thin binder of articles Jack had
printed off the Internet. Most were about bondage. One was on AEA. He had
printed it out in 1997.
How do boys as young as eight and men as old as 80 find out about
AEA? There are two schools of thought and at first glance, the one Dr.
Stephen Hucker adheres to seems the most bizarre. Hucker, a forensic
psychiatrist at Hamilton Psychiatric Hospital, is quite probably the
world's leading authority on AEA. He has studied
118 such deaths in Ontario and Alberta and is one of the very few
experts in the world who treats patients addicted to AEA. He believes men
discover AEA by accident. Many patients have told Hucker that at some
point in their youth they had an experience during which they choked.
Perhaps a necktie was too tight or someone tried strangling them during a
school yard fight. Most of us would find that unpleasant, even terrifying.
Not these men. They began searching for ways to duplicate the exhilaration
it left them. Men have to be predisposed to enjoying the sensation, says
Hucker. Sexual preferences can't be created simply by being exposed to an
idea, he says. Reading about it on the Internet won't incite someone to try
AEA if they don't already have a sexual preference for it. "Some of us
would like to think of this as a deeply biological thing," Hucker says.
Another expert, forensic scientist Brent Turvey in California,
believes that men learn their behaviour from other men: Older
brothers, uncles, friends. They may refine their technique by surfing
pornographic sites on the World Wide Web. Auto erotic asphyxia has been
around much longer than the Internet. Researchers say stone statues dating
to 1,000 AD suggest it was known to the ancient Mayans in Mexico. The
Marquis de Sade described the practice in his erotic novel Justine, written
in 1791. The Czechoslovakian musician, Franz Kotzwarra, is said to have
indulged in this activity.
Hucker's theory seems more likely than Turvey's, given men's reluctance to
discuss masturbation. It is still one of the great sexual taboos in our
society, and most men prefer to do it in absolute privacy. The very fact
that AEA is done alone is what makes it so dangerous. The exact incidence
of AEA is unknown. People who do it and survive generally don't tell anyone
about it. Those who die from it are sometimes thought to be the victims of
homicide or suicide.
Such may be the case with the late Michael Hutchens, lead singer of the
superstar Australian band INXS. Hutchens was found dead in a Sydney hotel
room on Nov. 22, 1997. He was naked, hanging from his leather belt with
pornographic photos of his wife at his feet. There was no suicide note.
Though the singer's wife believed it was AEA (she has publicly spoken of
Hutchens' desire to try it and of their kinky sex life), a coroner ruled
the death a suicide.
For a British documentary examining Hutchens' death, Hucker was
asked to review the case file, including photos of the death scene
and the coroner's report. He concluded it was a fairly obvious case of
AEA. Hucker's research shows that between 1974 and 1980 there were about
eight AEA deaths in Ontario annually. The Federal Bureau of Investigation
estimates there are between 500 and 1,000 such deaths in the United States
annually. Detective Peter Bracci of the Hamilton-Wentworth police says that
until recently he has not tracked this type of death because they are
thankfully rare. He admits, though, that because they are unusual and
because officers do not have a lot of experience dealing with such cases,
it is possible that some AEA deaths have been mistaken for something else
over the years. Identifying cases of AEA is particularly difficult for
police. Often, when a body is discovered by a family member or friend, the
initial reaction is to "clean up" the death scene so that nobody else will
see exactly what they have found. Tell-tale signs of an auto erotic death
include pornography found at the scene and the body being naked or
semi-naked. Hucker's research comparing AEA to suicide shows that in every
single case he studied, if a body was found naked, AEA was eventually
determined to be the cause of death. Sometimes, by the time police arrive,
the evidence of AEA has been removed and the scene more closely resembles a
murder or a suicide.
All but 1 per cent of those who indulge in AEA are men. Case
studies have found fatalities involving boys as young as eight and
men as old as 80.
The largest number of deaths occur among young men because they have the
strongest sex drive and are therefore masturbating more often and because
they are more reckless than older men. A U.S. study published in 1987 by
Dr. William Sheehan and Dr. Barry Garfinkel of the University of Minnesota
showed that 31 per cent of all adolescent hanging deaths in a 10-year
period in two Minnesota counties were from auto erotic asphyxia.
When bodies are found, one-fifth of the fatalities involve cross-dressing.
There is some evidence that the practice may be slightly more prevalent in
the gay and sado-masochistic cultures than among men who don't fall into
those categories. The mechanics of AEA are biologically simple but
psychologically complicated. Reducing oxygen to the brain creates "a state
of giddiness, a state
of euphoria," says Turvey, who travels the U.S. investigating
possible AEA deaths for police, lawyers and insurance companies.
The "high" from the asphyxiation does not create a better orgasm
but rather accompanies the orgasm, thereby making the sexual
experience more gratifying. At the same time, there is a psychological
thrill that comes with submitting to such danger and then cheating death.
"It's not pain and suffering that's the real turn on. It's total control,"
says Hucker. "Being at the mercy of fate is arousing to them." The pattern
is often that the longer men experiment with AEA, the further they push
themselves toward the point of no return. The apparatus they use becomes
more and more elaborate and more dangerous. They become obsessed with it.
Experts say there are signs to look for: Frequently bloodshot eyes; youths
spending a great deal of time in the bathroom; marks on the neck;
disoriented behaviour especially after having gone off alone for a while
(repeatedly cutting off the brain's oxygen supply can cause brain damage);
possession of ropes, chains, plastic bags, gags or gas inhalation devices.
Hucker warns that males will go to great lengths to hide their activity.
"Frankly, this is not something people advertise," he says. Most men don't
want to be treated because their disorder "turns them on." For their own
safety and in some cases to save their relationships with wives and
girlfriends, some men do seek help. Occasionally, a boy or man will be
caught in the act and will be "forced" by a concerned relative or friend to
seek help.
Therapy is usually the starting point, according to Hucker, followed by
drugs. Prozac works for about 60 per cent of patients.
One man whom Hucker has been treating for years began by taking
sex-suppressing drugs. It worked for a while, but eventually his deviant
urges returned. Ultimately, the man decided to have surgical castration, a
rare treatment in North America. For him, the choice was between life and
fatal sex. Other men may not see it in such definitive terms. They believe
they are in control not only of their sexual urges but also of their very
life. The truth is, they have lost control of both.
Auto erotic asphyxia
What: Also known as hypoxyphilia, it is a particularly dangerous
form of sexual masochism.
How: It involves sexual arousal by oxygen deprivation obtained by
chest compression, noose, ligature, plastic bag, mask or chemical.
Who: All but 1 per cent are men. Case studies have found fatalities
involving boys as young as eight and men as old as 80. The largest
number of deaths occur among young men because they are more
reckless than older men, and they have the strongest sex drive and
are therefore masturbating more often.
Why: Reducing oxygen to the brain creates a state of giddiness or
euphoria.
The "high" from the asphyxiation does not create a better orgasm
but rather accompanies the orgasm, thereby making the sexual
experience more gratifying. At the same time, there is a psychological
thrill that comes with submitting to such danger and then cheating death.
Number of deaths: The exact incidence of AEA is unknown.
********
NATIVE NEWS
HELEN BETTY OSBORNE
July 15, 2000
Helen's dream lives on
Bursary named after victim
By TAMMY MARLOWE -- Winnipeg Sun Staff Reporter
The provincial government apologized to the family of murder
victim Helen Betty Osborne yesterday for a "clear lack of justice"
and established a trust fund in her name as an offering of peace.
"Many parts of the justice system failed Betty," said Justice
Minister Gord Mackintosh. "I think it's important that someone,
on behalf of the justice system, help to pave the way for healing."
In 1971 the partially nude body of Osborne, a 19-year-old
Norway House resident, was discovered near The Pas. She had
been raped and stabbed more than 55 times with a screwdriver.
More than 15 years went by before Dwayne Archie Johnston was convicted of
second-degree murder in connection with the teenager's death. The
Aboriginal Justice Inquiry concluded that police officers working on the
case did not take care to perform a proper
homicide investigation because Osborne was native.
HELPS NATIVE WOMEN
Yesterday, Mackintosh also announced the establishment of an
educational bursary fund in Osborne's name to assist young
aboriginal women in fulfilling a goal of becoming teachers -- the
same dream shared by Osborne before her murder. "My sister wanted to become
a teacher and come home to work with the children of our community," said
Osborne's sister Cecilia, who shielded her face after breaking down in
tears. "We are happy that her dreams will help others walk the path. Right
now the greatest number of aboriginal people are the youth, and it's
important for them to have a role model."
Initially, $50,000 from the Victims' Assistance Fund will be used
to establish the Osborne scholarship, and the first awards will be
given out for the 2001-2002 academic year. Aboriginal and Northern Affairs
minister Eric Robinson said he would also like to see the RCMP and the
federal government contribute to the trust fund to show their support for
healing. Mackintosh's apology to the Osborne family raised questions about
the possibility of the family seeking financial compensation for the
wrongdoings. While Cecilia Osborne wouldn't speak on behalf of her
relatives, she said she wasn't willing to bring the agony of Helen's murder
to the forefront again in that manner. "I don't see that as honouring my
sister," she said.
RICHARD CONDO
July 15, 2000 Criminal changes his mind
By CAROLINE MURRAY -- Ottawa Sun
A wife-beating career criminal who agreed to be shipped off to a
psychiatric hospital has now done a complete turnaround by
demanding to be returned to Ottawa. Richard Condo, 36, has refused an
extension for his incomplete 60-day assessment at the Penetanguishene
facility as the Crown seeks to have him declared a dangerous offender.
Condo was convicted in April of a string of offences that culminated with
him abducting and assaulting his now ex-wife Yvonne McGuire while he was
free on bail on May 31, 1999.
Condo, who already had more than 70 entries on his criminal
record before his latest convictions, had readily agreed to go to
Penetanguishene for a psychiatric assessment. Crown prosecutor Des McGarry
said yesterday Condo also initially agreed to extending the assessment's
timeframe before he abruptly changed his mind.
A hearing for the dangerous offender application is slated to begin
Aug. 3. Condo, a self-styled womanizer and author, first gained notoriety
five years ago when he bit off a portion of a special police constable's
ear at the courthouse. At his latest trial, Condo was also convicted of
assaulting his in-laws and then-estranged wife's divorce lawyer during the
weeks before he kidnapped McGuire in an ugly battle over the custody of the
couple's two children.