Why Is Louis David Riel Innocent

The justice system is best known as a pursuit for the truth. It is managed by humans so, it is inevitable not to make errors such as ones that will lead an innocent to be wrongfully convicted. Such a scenario is the David Milgaard case where he supposedly raped and murdered a woman named Gail Miller but really, the foundations of justice were tampered with. The Canadian justice system failed terribly, dismissed millions of dollars and banished the citizens certainty in the system. Most importantly, this even diminished 20 years of a man’s life.

Riel was indeed guilty of treason since it was known by many that most of his actions involved defying the country, therefore it is easy to argue that he betrayed his country. By conspiring against the government, he convened with other groups to go along with his plans. Not only was Riel able to persuade the people, he was also able to take charge in action. Riel received the punishment that should not had been something as drastic as death by hanging, because it is arguable that Riel committed the crime for his people’s benefit.

All trial procedures in Canada are based on the adversarial system, this involves both the Crown and the defence. In our case R.v. Tisi since we were the Crown it was our job to prove beyond a reasonable doubt (doubt based on reason and common sense) that the accused committed the offence. For someone to be convicted, actus reus (wrongful deed) and mens rea (guilty mind) to be present for the offence to be proven. In R.v.Tisi, Donovan Tisi was charged with robbery and assault causing bodily harm resulting in a summary conviction. In the Criminal Code, assault causing bodily harm is under section 267(a) is defined as “Everyone who in, committing an assault, (a) carries, uses or threatens to use a weapon or an imitation thereof, or” Tisi was

Canadian Criminals are a major part of Canadian society. In our country if you were not the direct victim of a crime you tend to forget the members of society that take pleasure in causing societies grief. As in the case of James Hutchinson and Richard Ambrose, whose crimes were committed in December of 1974.1 They were convicted of killing two Moncton City Police officers. Today, years after the murders were committed Ambrose and Hutchinson are still the center of a major controversy that has plagued our parole system. In order to fully understand the controversy that Ambrose and Hutchinson posses you must look at the

Moreover, the government’s insufficiency caused Riel to act accordingly. Earlier, it was mentioned that the Canadian government was not authorized to take legal action until December of 1869. Though this was clearly recognized by the government, they sent surveyors in June of 1869 for settlers to live there. The government broke their own laws, hence it proves that Riel, due to the government’s flawed intentions, had to enforce his rule, by stepping on the chains. Unit Two: The Development of Western Canada, on page 36 highlights that in 1882, surveyors came to the Métis peoples North-West Settlements to examine the land once more. The Métis acted quickly and sent 15 petitions to the Canadian government for the rights of their land, none of which were answered. Once again, the government was incapable. The government could have prevented all the troubles, but due to their insufficiency and flawed system, they let the surveyors come onto the land. In addition to this, the government had signed many treaties with the Métis. But, the government, yet again, didn’t keep their word and didn’t follow the laws of giving them what the treaties had promised. To conclude, Riel was compelled to take arms. The lack of control, caused the government to spend millions and ended in destruction. Flashback Canada on page 196 stated, “Some new evidence suggests that the Chief Justice in Manitoba at the time of Riel’s

The Canadian government had no choice but to allow him to be extradited. If Leonard Peltier had anything good going for him, it was that he was in the land of the free; the home where everyone is innocent until proven guilty, unless you’re an Indian.

Louis Riel should have remained innocent because the government is to blame. Riel made peaceful attempts to improve the Metis' social status and prompt the Canadian government of their presence. Riel wrote many letters of concern to the government which were completely

“The only two people that know I am innocent, is myself and the killer.” Imagine being blamed for a crime you did not commit, and nobody would believe you no matter what you said. Steven Truscott had forty-two years of his life taken from him for being charged with a crime he did not commit. He was charged at only the age of fourteen for murdering and raping twelve year old Lynne Harper. He then became the youngest death-row inmate after one of the most famous trials in the history of Canada. Steven Truscott should never have been convicted for the murder and rape of Lynne Harper due to the fact the forensic evidence was questionable the

Aboriginal persons in Canada have been facing oppression ever since colonization began. Even when Canada gained independence from the British Empire, the oppression continued and still goes on today. One major contributing factor to the oppression of Aboriginal people in Canada is the actions taken by the Government. The Government of Canada has in fact mistreated and found to be partaking in wrongdoing when dealing with the Aboriginal population in this country. With this ugly truth being revealed, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission had to be tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government in the hope of resolving conflict left over from the past. (cite)

Although there is good reason to believe that at least some of the grudge informers should be prosecuted, not everyone agrees. Deputy 2 maintains that the grudge informers should in fact not be prosecuted. He argues for this position by asserting that the very essence of law was scarce in the face of a terrifying, anarchic regime, which functioned by instilling a “war of all against all conducted behind barred doors, in dark alleyways, in palace intrigues, and prisonyard conspiracies” (Fuller 3), a single phase of which were the acts of the grudge informers. He feels that it is not possible to judge their acts as either lawful or unlawful on the grounds that the Purple Shirts were not a lawful government, ergo the grudge informers did not live under a regime of law at all. He

The Canadian court system, like anything made by man, has flaws. One of these flaws is the wrongful conviction of many men and women like David Milgaard and Steven Truscott. These innocent men spent years of their life behind bars because of the court system, serving the sentence for a crime they did not commit.

Louis Riel was one of the most controversial figures in Canadian history, and even to this day – more than a century after his execution – he continues to be remembered. Many believed him to be a villain; others saw him as a hero. So who was he really? Born in St. Boniface at the Red River Settlement of Canada (present-day Winnipeg, Manitoba) on October 22, 1844, Louis Riel hoped one day to follow his father’s footsteps and become a great Métis leader just like him. Eventually, Riel was seen as a hero to the French-speaking Métis. In the Canadian West, however, most people regarded him as a villain due to his execution in 1885. Nevertheless, Louis Riel was not really a villain by heart; only a flawed man who made many mistakes in his life.

Among the many differing cases of wrongfully convicted Canadians, the case of Guy Paul Morin is very interesting. There were many issues that caused an innocent man from Queensville, Ontario to be convicted of the murder of Christine Jessop. We’re going to look at how the police failed to conduct a thorough investigation, how the court system failed, and how cases like this can be preventing in the future.

The Canadian Criminal Justice System is, for the most part, reflective of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and various Supreme Court of Canada case-law. Everyone who finds themselves on the opposing end of the Criminal Justice System is entitled to certain protections every step of the way, beginning even before the arrest; laws protect us from unreasonable investigative techniques, guarantee certain rights at point of arrest, and provide us with the right to counsel. The bail court departs from the ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ standard in that the crown only needs to prove on a balance of probabilities (Kellough, 1996, p. 175) in order to take away a person’s freedom. It is for this reason I decided to limit the scope of my

It is true that Darnay was tried numerous times for treason. He was, however, acquitted more than once with the help of Carton.