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FSC360 > Wrongful Convictions and Canadian Reports > Flashcards

Wrongful Convictions and Canadian Reports Flashcards

1
Q

Which term is more broad, “miscarriage of justice” or “wrongful conviction”?

A

Miscarriage of justice

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2
Q

What is a miscarriage of justice?

A

Could represent a number of different scenarios, including errors in law affecting either the public or the accused.

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3
Q

Give examples of miscarriages of justice.

A

Sentence too harsh or too light
Trial procedurally unfair
Factually innocent person convicted

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4
Q

How is wrongful conviction defined in academia?

A

A factually innocent person convicted of a crime they did not convict.

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5
Q

Why is it important to recognize and understand wrongful convictions?

A

Shows flaws in the system and suggests how the system may be improve.

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6
Q

How frequently do wrongful convictions occur?

A

It’s impossible to know

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7
Q

Why is it impossible to know how many wrongful convictions have occurred?

A

We only know those that have been discovered and corrected.

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8
Q

How many wrongful convictions have been identified in the US since 1989?

A

3405

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9
Q

How many wrongful convictions have been identified in Canada?

A

90

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10
Q

Who wrote Convicting the Innocent: A Triple Failure of the Justice System?

A

Bruce MacFarlane

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11
Q

What was the triple failure of the justice system outlined by MacFarlane in Convicting the Innocent?

A
  1. An innocent person is wronged
  2. A guilty person is allowed to go free
  3. The victim’s family must come to terms with the fact that the person they thought was responsible was not
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12
Q

List the factors contributing to wrongful convictions (9)

A
  1. Eyewitness ID error
  2. False confessions
  3. False guilty pleas
  4. Unreliable witnesses, jailhouse informants and perjury
  5. Evolution and errors in forensic science
  6. Rush to judgment and tunnel vision
  7. Professional misconduct and noble cause corruption
  8. Ineffective assistance of counsel
  9. Systemic racism/discrimination
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13
Q

What is the greatest cause of wrongful convictions?

A

Eyewitness identification error

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14
Q

Give the context for R. v. Lavallee

A

Appellant was a female who had killed her abusive partner and forensic psychiatrist concluded she had been ‘terrorized’ by her partner

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15
Q

What were the issues at hand in R. v. Lavallee?

A
  1. Forensic psych evidence on battered woman syndrome admitted
  2. Assist jury in determining if Lavallee believed she had no other option but to shoot
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16
Q

What did the forensic psychiatrist conclude in R. v. Lavallee?

A

Appellant shot her partner as a desperate act as she sincerely believed she would be killed that night.

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17
Q

What was held in R. v. Lavallee?

A

SCC restored appellant’s acquittal

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18
Q

What significant change to the legal position of women in Canada was implemented prior to Lavallee?

A

1983 - sexual assault against one’s wife made a criminal offence

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19
Q

What review did R. v. Lavallee inspire?

A

Ratushny Self Defence Review

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20
Q

What was the concern arising from Lavallee that eventually inspired the Ratushny review?

A

Self-defence overlooked as a defence for women in abusive context.

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21
Q

What was the purpose of the Ratushny Review?

A

Justice Lynna Ratushny appointed to review whether there were Canadian women convicted of homicide who may have acted in self defence.

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22
Q

How many women serving a sentence for homicide in Canada were there at the time of the Ratushny Review?

A

236

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23
Q

Of the 236 women convicted of homicide, how many responded to the application to participate in the Ratushny Review?

A

98

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24
Q

When was the final Ratushny Report released?

A

1997

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25
Q

How many cases did Justice Ratushny recommend remedies for? What did each of these cases consist of?

A

7 cases
3 pardons
3 remissions
1 new appeal

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26
Q

How many recommendations from the Ratushny Report were accepted?

A

1

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27
Q

How many women were released from prison as a result of the Ratushny Review?

A

None

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28
Q

What are the two camps of thought in regards to the Ratushny Review?

A

Success due to the fact it occurred at all.
Failure due to the fact no women were released from prison.

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29
Q

When was Guy Paul Morin arrested?

A

1985

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30
Q

How many trials did Guy Paul Morin have?

A

2

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31
Q

When was Guy Paul Morin convicted?

A

1992

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32
Q

What was Morin’s conviction?

A

First Degree Murder of 9-year-old Christine Jessop

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33
Q

When was Morin exonerated?

A

1995
Ten years post arrest

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34
Q

What was the evidence of innocence regarding Morin?

A

DNA from semen on Jessop’s underwear excluded him as the perpetrator

35
Q

What were the 4 types of evidence admitted in Morin’s first trial?

A

Hair in Christine’s necklace “match” to Morin
Hair in Morin’s car “match” to Jessop
Fibers from Morin’s car could have same source as fibers on Christine
Two jailhouse informants testifying Morin confessed

36
Q

What led to police suspecting Morin prior to his interview?

A

Jessop’s family described him as a “weird-type guy” and a clarinet player.

37
Q

Outline the testimony of the 5 new witnesses introduced in Morin’s second trial that eventually led to his conviction.

A

Police constable: Morin did not seem concerned on the night of the disappearance
Band member: Shocked at the “uncaring way” Morin remarked on Christine’s death
Christine’s BFF: Morin white knuckle gripped hedge clippers
Neighbour: Morin chased Christine away from his car at some earlier point
Christine’s Mother: Heard a man’s voice screaming after funeral - believed it was Morin

38
Q

When was the inquiry into the Morin case held?

A

1998

39
Q

What was found in general at the 1998 inquiry into the Morin/Jessop case?

A

Hair and fiber evidence essentially valueless and overstated
Fibers represented lab contamination
Tunnel vision
Jailhouse informants unreliable

40
Q

What was the October 2020 break in the Jessop cold case?

A

Genetic genealogy led to new suspect Calvin Hoover as source of DNA from semen

41
Q

What 4 failures of the York Regional Police were found in the Morin inquiry?

A

Failure to…
Preserve evidence at Jessop residence
Canvass neighbourhood and document witness memories at earliest opportunity
Fingerprint residence
Systematically prioritize “hot leads”

42
Q

Give an example of a “hot lead” that was not prioritized in the Jessop investigation.

A

Sighting of a man who appeared to keep a child forcibly in a car
Follow-up 12 days after police had information

43
Q

How was the scene not protected in the Jessop investigation?

A

Not protected from severe snow storm
Failure to conduct grid search

44
Q

How was evidence improperly protected in the Morin case?

A

Evidence of witnesses “developed” through interview process and inappropriately conducted
Inadequate written record of interviews and selective audio recordings

45
Q

What was the issue with the notes produced in the Jessop/Morin case?

A

Chief ID officer produced 2 notebooks, with different entries for same events

46
Q

Describe the crime of which Thomas Sophonow was wrongly convicted in 1981.

A

16-y/o girl strangled in donut shop where she worked in Winnipeg

47
Q

What was the description of the suspect in the Sophonow case?

A

M, 21-30
Brown hair
Cowboy hat, boots

48
Q

What was the twine evidence in the Sophonow case?

A

Suspect was confronted on bridge.
Threw items, including twine, over railing.
Twine believed to come from west coast.
Later found it was produced in Manitoba

49
Q

What was the evidence used to convict Sophonow?

A

Twine
Similarity to composite
Was in Winnipeg at time of crime

50
Q

What was the key evidence against Sophonow?

A

eyewitness ID

51
Q

What key piece of evidence for Sophonow was ignored at trial?

A

Had confirmed alibi
Giving out toys at children’s hospital at time of murder

52
Q

Outline the procedural history of the Sophonow case.

A

Trial 1: Mistrial
Trial 2: Convicted
Appeal: Conviction quashed, new trial ordered
Trial 3: Convicted
Appeal: Acquitted

53
Q

What was recommended at the 2001 Sophonow inquiry in respect to live line-ups?

A

Double-blinded procedure
Officer should advise witness that he does not know if suspect is in lineup or who he is
At least 10 persons + fillers of similar resemblance to suspect + degree of uncertainty statement + recorded verbatim

54
Q

What was recommended at the Sophonow inquiry in terms of photo pack line-ups?

A

Double blinded
Same recommendations as live line-ups
Photo presented sequentially
Prior to presentation, officer should advise it is just as important to clear the innocent as it is to ID suspect

55
Q

What additional recommendation in regards to trial procedure were made at the 2001 Sophonov inquiry?

A

Expert witnesses about eyewitness ID and frailties
Jury instruction setting out vast majority of wrongful convictions arisen as result of faulty eyewitness ID

56
Q

When was the Manitoba Forensic Evidence Review Committee established?

A

2003, shortly after Driskell found innocent by flawed hair microscopy

57
Q

What was the mandate of the Manitoba Forensic Evidence Review Committee?

A

15 year retrospective review of Manitoba homicide cases that relied on hair microscopy evidence

58
Q

What were the two cases identified by the Manitoba Forensic Evidence Review Committee?

A

Kyle Unger and Robert Sanderson

59
Q

What testimony was made at the Unger and Sanderson cases?

A

Experts testified that hair evidence at crime scene consistent with known scalp hair samples

60
Q

How did both Unger and Sanderson get acquitted of their respective crimes?

A

mtDNA proved that hairs belonged to neither individual nor to their maternal relatives

61
Q

What was the conclusion of the Sanderson case as far as we know?

A

2005: Manitoba justice concluded case against Sanderson remained strong

62
Q

What was the conclusion to the Unger case?

A

Innocence Canada submitted s. 696.1 application and new trial ordered
2009: Crown advised that it would not be proceeding with retrial

63
Q

What was the purpose of the FBI/DOJ Microscopic Hair Comparison Analysis Review?

A

Did this microscopic hair comparison analysis testing meet accepted scientific standards?

64
Q

Of the 500 cases reviewed in the FBI/DOJ Microscopic Hair Comparison Analysis Review, how many included erroneous statements?

A

96%

65
Q

Of the at least 35 cases where the accused received the death penalty reviewed in the FBI/DOJ Microscopic Hair Comparison Analysis Review, how many had identifiable errors? How many of these people died?

A

94%
9 people executed
5 other died while on death row

66
Q

What was the Goudge Inquiry?

A

Launched in response to a series of wrongful convictions related to Dr. Smith’s problematic testimony between 1991 and 2001.

67
Q

What was found about Smith’s educational background in the Goudge Inquiry?

A

Not trained or certified
Did not disclose inadequate knowledge

68
Q

What was found about Smith’s autopsy practice in the Goudge Inquiry?

A

Failed to account for contradictory evidence
Documentation careless and uneven
Seldom attended scene
Failed to obtain all relevant information

69
Q

What was found about Dr. Smith’s interaction with the criminal justice system in the Goudge Inquiry?

A

Not mindful of expert’s independent, objective role
Speculated
Used anecdotal evidence
Lied under oath

70
Q

What was one of the most important recommendations at the Goudge inquiry?

A

Guard against bias by “thinking truth” rather than “thinking dirty”

71
Q

When was Smith stripped of his medical license?

A

2011

72
Q

How many recommendations from the Goudge Inquiry were implemented?

A

Almost all

73
Q

What is meant by “thinking dirty”?

A

If a child has died, assume something was criminally wrong to have resulted in this death,

74
Q

What did the Motherisk Commission review by J. Lang examine?

A

The use of drug and alcohol hair-strand testing in criminal and child protection cases from 2005-2015.

75
Q

What were J. Lang’s 4 findings after the Motherisk Commission?

A

Testing was inadequate and unreliable.
Operations did not meet internationally recognized forensic standards
Hospital did not provide meaningful oversight
The use of hair testing in legal proceedings has serious implications for fairness

76
Q

What was the aim of J. Beaman’s report of the Motherisk Commission?

A

To determine whether the testing had a substantial impact on the CAS and court decisions

77
Q

How many cases did J. Beaman find Motherisk test results had a substantial impact on? How many of these cases involved Indigenous families?

A

56
12.5%

78
Q

How did the Motherisk Commission report define substantial impact?

A

Means a Motherisk test that materially affected the outcome of the case, having regard to one of 3 factors.

79
Q

What were the 3 factors outlined in the Motherisk report’s definition of substantial impact?

A

Creation of a status quo with respect to the child’s living arrangments
Position of the CAS respecting the direction of the case
Decision of the court

80
Q

What was a positive outcome of the Motherisk commission?

A

Forensic Laboratories Act
Accreditation required to carry out lab tests requested for legal purposes

81
Q

What was the purpose of the Forensic Laboratories Act?

A

To enhance oversight, accountability and transparency.

82
Q

What was the main finding of the FPT Heads of Prosecution Committee Report (2018)?

A

With respect to forensic evidence, education is a continuing and continual priority

83
Q

What is important when considering wrongful convictions?

A

Occur as a result of many systemic issues converging in one case.
Not typically caused by one problem occurring in isolation.

84
Q

What are the 4 ways lessons from past wrongful convictions can help to improve the criminal justice system?

A

Apprehending the correct perp, preventing future crime
Protecting the innocent
Assisting victim and their family
Upholding the administration of justice

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