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Confessions: Mr. Big and His Gang
In Wingert, a 19-year-old man was killed after violently being beaten to death. After two years and no leads, police investigations finally led to a primary suspect who was believed to have been the individual responsible for the young man’s death. In order to strengthen their case and attempt to elicit a confession, police began an operation known as “Mr. Big.”
Convicted Child Killer to Argue Wrongful Conviction 37 Years Later
In 1983, Phillip Tallio was accused of sexually assaulting and suffocating his 22-month old cousin. Despite a psychologist who spoke with Tallio at the time and found that he had the mental capacity of a 12-year-old, Tallio pled guilty to second-degree murder and has been incarcerated for 37 years.
Explaining the Recent Homicide Spikes in U.S. Cities: The “Minneapolis Effect” and the Decline in Proactive Policing
Major cities across the country have recently suffered dramatic increases in homicides. The increases are remarkable, suddenly-appearing, and widespread in cities across the country—although often concentrated in disadvantaged neighborhoods
Prosecutors and Defence Seek to Overturn 505 Year Drug Sentence
In 1991, a California federal judge sent a clear messge in the war on drugs when he sentenced four men convicted of laundering cartel csh to over 500 years in jail each.
Entrapment – Police Suspicion and Dial-A-Dope Phone Numbers
The Supreme Court of Canada recently decided that police may conduct investigations into dial-a-dope drug trafficking operations where they have reasonable suspicion that a phone number is being used for drug trafficking
Hearsay Admissibility: R v Bradshaw
Hearsay is an out of court statement offered for the truth of its contents. The general rule is that hearsay is inadmissible. Hearsay includes verbal and non-verbal statements as well as implied statements.
NXIVM Sex Trafficking Ring
Keith Raniere, the founder and leader of Nxivm, was convicted today by a federal jury in Brooklyn of all seven counts of a superseding indictment charging him with racketeering and racketeering conspiracy
Unreasonable Verdict – Recovered Memories
On November 2, 2017, Angus Waterman was found guilty by a jury and convicted of indecent assault and gross indecency against a male from incidents that occurred between 1974 and 1981 (the Criminal Code offences were on the books at that time).
Ramen Noodles Used in Attack
The drama went down in a girl’s washroom in a British Columbia washroom just before Christmas of 2018. Two girls had had been embroiled in an ongoing feud and finally came to blows with an unlikely weapon entering the mix – a boiling hot bowl of ramen noodles.
Admissibility of Expert Evidence
As trials become more complex, expert opinion evidence has increasingly become an issue. More and more, trial judges are having to warn themselves against falling into the trap of turning trials into a battle of the experts.