Our Crime Panel discusses the struggle by AHS to keep up with demand for criminal psychological assessments, using the faint hope clause to get parole and quid pro quos in the legal system.
A man was charged, tried and convicted of second degree murder, but now a court asks, did he have the ability to form intent?
Jeremy Newborn was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of John Hollar in May 2016. Hollar died as a result of injuries he sustained from a beating by Newborn on an LRT car. Now on December 11 a hearing will examine whether Newborn had the intellectual capacity to form an intent to kill.
Following the attack Newborn was held at Edmonton’s Remand Centre where it was reported he suffered a psychotic breakdown after drinking illicit moonshine. Newborn was taking into hospital to be assessed before being returned back to Edmonton’s Remand, an action both defence and crown argued against.
In November 2017, a Court of Queen’s Bench judge reversed that decision, and called for Newborn to remain in hospital. Newborn is one of many convicted criminals being sent for psychological or psychiatric assessment, a number AHS says has doubled in the last three years. Additional forensic psychiatrists, forensic psychologists and forensic psychometrics, have been hired by AHS in an attempt to keep up with demand, but officials say they still can’t meet deadlines.
Convicted murderer Keith Schell is hoping to use a unique clause in Canada’s criminal code to seek parole.
He received a life sentence of 25 years following the murder of Adnan Pervez. The murder was made by mistake as Schell was hired to kill the victim’s brother, Usman Pervez. Now 17 years into his sentence, Court of Queen’s Bench associate Chief Justice John Rooke decided that a court would hear Schell’s “faint hope” clause application when determining when he should be eligible for parole.
The faint hope clause allows anyone serving a life sentence with a parole ineligibility of over 15 years to apply to have their sentence reduced. The application requires approval from a judge and a jury. The Harper government scraped the clause in 2011, but by law those who committed crimes prior to change can still apply.
Plus, according to a Calgary judge, six months is not enough time behind bars for the woman who helped arrange a bank robbery.
Justice David Gates did not offer a harsher sentence for the suspect, instead, he allowed her lawyer to apply to withdraw her previously made guilty plea. The judge is able to make such allowances due to a Supreme Court ruling from 2016 that allows Judge’s declining joint submissions from the Crown and Defence. The Judge is not required to accept the application.
Should judges have the ability to deny joint submissions?
Our Crime Panel guests include: Dino Bottos, defence lawyer; Keith Spencer, retired criminologist and Erin Gibbs Van Brunschot, University of Calgary
