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Robert Baltovich | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 17, 1965 |
| Alma mater | University of Toronto |
| Known for | Wrongly convicted of murder |
Robert Baltovich (born July 17, 1965) is a Canadian man who was wrongly convicted in 1992 of the murder of his girlfriend, Elizabeth Bain, in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. He spent eight years in prison and nearly another decade trying to clear his name, before being found not guilty in a retrial on April 22, 2008.
On June 8, 1990, Baltovich graduated with a degree in psychology and history from the University of Toronto at Scarborough. There he met fellow student Elizabeth Bain and a relationship developed. [1] Bain disappeared on June 19, 1990, after telling her mother she was going to "check the tennis schedule" on campus. On June 22, her car was found with a large bloodstain in the back seat, later identified to be Bain's blood. Her body was never found. Detectives Brian Raybould and Steve Reesor took over the case. [2]
On November 19, 1990, Baltovich was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Justice John O'Driscoll presided over his case, with crown prosecutors John McMahon and Paul Amenta. His trial lawyers were William Gatward and Michael Engel. His case continued in the courts for several years, during which he consistently maintained his innocence. His lawyers suggested that the so-called "Scarborough rapist" (the term used for the then unidentified serial killer Paul Bernardo) might be responsible for the murder. [3]
On March 31, 1992, Baltovich was convicted of second-degree murder.
On December 2, 2004, the Court of Appeal for Ontario set aside the conviction, delivering what news reports called "a scathing attack" [4] on the conduct of the original trial judge. This fell short of the acquittal that Baltovich's counsel had argued for. On July 15, 2005, Ontario's Ministry of the Attorney-General announced that Baltovich would face a new trial on charges of second-degree murder, at an unspecified date, and remain free on bail in the meantime. During that time, Baltovich worked as a librarian for the Government of Ontario.
In 1999, Baltovich got in contact with the Association in Defense of the Wrongly Convicted (now Innocence Canada). James Lockyer and Joanne McLean took over his case and filed for an appeal. [3] On March 31, 2000, Baltovich was released on bail, pending the outcome of his appeal. In September 2004 his appeal was finally processed; once more his case gained national attention when his lawyers alleged that he had been wrongfully convicted and that Bernardo was guilty of Bain's murder. They pointed to circumstantial evidence suggesting links to Bernardo, evidence not available during Baltovich's original trial because Bernardo's identity as the "Scarborough rapist" was then unknown. Asked about the matter, Bernardo denied involvement in Bain's disappearance. [5] Baltovich's defense also pointed to issues with hypnotizing eyewitnesses to 'help with their memory'. The case R v. Trochym (2007) [3] deemed that any evidence obtained through hypnosis is inadmissible in court.
On March 31, 2008, jury selection began in the second-degree murder trial. The trial, slated to begin in Toronto on April 14, 2008, was delayed, with the Crown (prosecution) giving no reason. When the trial resumed, the Crown declined to call any of the more than 50 witnesses they had planned, citing "recent developments, including the cumulative effect of the pre-trial evidentiary rulings rendered to date in this case, other evidentiary issues, and changes to case law". [6] With no Crown case, the judge directed the jury to make a finding of not guilty on April 22, 2008. [7]
In January 2010, the Attorney-General concluded that the payment of financial compensation was not appropriate.
On April 21, 2010, a civil suit alleging malicious prosecution, negligent investigation and negligent representation was filed on behalf of Baltovich. The defendants named include John McMahon, now a judge with the Superior Court of Ontario, and Paul Amenta, a practicing Crown Attorney in Toronto. Det. Sgt. Brian Raybould and Det. Sgt. Steve Reesor, the two lead detectives in the case, are also named as defendants.
In May 2014, Baltovich's lawyers applied to amend his statement of claim. Media reported that during examinations for discovery related to Baltovich's civil suit, previously undisclosed forensic evidence had surfaced indicating that Det. Sgt. Brian Raybould had met with two forensic experts three days after Baltovich's arrest in November 1990 during which time he was told that the police theory of the crime - that Baltovich had killed Elizabeth Bain on June 19, 1990, hidden her body nearby in Colonel Danforth Park and that he had returned three days later to retrieve her body and drive it out of Scarborough in her car - was not supported by the forensic evidence found in Bain's car and that, according to Baltovich's lawyers, the theory presented at Baltovich's first trial was "flawed and untenable." It is also alleged that Det. Sgt. Brian Raybould doctored his notes in an effort to conceal the existence of the meeting by removing pages referencing the meeting and replacing them with another page from his notes from a later date.
In United States law, an Alford plea, also called a Kennedy plea in West Virginia, an Alford guilty plea, and the Alford doctrine, is a guilty plea in criminal court, whereby a defendant in a criminal case does not admit to the criminal act and asserts innocence, even if the evidence presented by the prosecution would be likely to persuade a judge or jury to find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This can be caused by circumstantial evidence and testimony favoring the prosecution and difficulty finding evidence and witnesses that would aid the defense.
Paul Kenneth Bernardo is a Canadian serial rapist and serial killer dubbed the Scarborough Rapist, the Schoolgirl Killer and, together with his former wife Karla Homolka, one of the Ken and Barbie Killers. He is known for initially committing a series of rapes in Scarborough, Ontario, a suburb of Toronto, between 1987 and 1990, before committing three murders with Homolka; among these victims was Karla's younger sister, Tammy Homolka.
Circumstantial evidence is evidence that relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact—such as a fingerprint at the scene of a crime. By contrast, direct evidence supports the truth of an assertion directly—i.e., without need for any additional evidence or inference.
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Karla Leanne Homolka, also known as Karla Leanne Teale, Leanne Teale, and Leanne Bordelais, is a Canadian serial killer who acted as an accomplice to her husband, Paul Bernardo, taking active part in the rapes and murders of at least three minors in Ontario – including her own sister, Tammy Homolka – between 1990 and 1992.
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James Lockyer is a lawyer and a prominent social justice activist in Toronto, Canada. He is a founding director of the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted (AIDWYC). He has been involved in exposing more than ten wrongful convictions in Canada, including the cases of Guy Paul Morin, David Milgaard, Clayton Johnson and Gregory Parsons. Several of these cases have become the subject of public inquiries.
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Jong-Ok Shin was a Korean English language student living in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. She was murdered in the early hours of the morning of 12 July 2002 as she walked home from a night out with friends. Omar Benguit was arrested for the murder of Jong-Ok Shin on 22 August 2002, by Dorset Police, and was later convicted after a second re-trial in 2005 at Winchester Crown Court. Benguit was sentenced to life imprisonment and has had two failed attempts at the Court of Appeal. His first appeal was in 2005 and second was in 2014. He now remains at a category A prison in England and still maintains his innocence.
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