Abstract This paper explores the issue of whether or not the rules of evidence in Canada discriminate against defendants or, conversely, work in their favor. After examining a representative sampling of the available legal record, the writer concludes that - in both civil as well as criminal law - every effort is undertaken to protect defendants from evidence being admitted that might unjustly prejudice them in the eyes of a judge or, more likely, the eyes of a jury. Along the way, the paper looks at how judges have grappled with the challenges posed by new information-collecting technologies as they pertain to the issue of what is, and what is not, an appropriate document as well as what the legal concepts "trustworthiness" and "Best EvidenceRule" really mean - and what their implications are for defendants. From there, the paper proceeds to enter into a discussion of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and how it protects defendant prerogatives.
From the Paper "Generally speaking, the admissibility of documents in Canadian courts is more open to interpretation than ever before; for example, by the 1990s there was a growing trend towards trial judges exercising discretionary power with regards to what documents should be ruled admissible in courts and which ones should not be admissible. What should not be overlooked in all of this is that justices are making these determinations at a time when technology is changing the way in which technology is stored dramatically."
Abstract This paper explores the role of the exclusionary rule in the US legal system. The writer first defines exclusionary rules as a set of guidelines which dictate that evidence and or admissions of guilt obtained illegally will be excluded from being heard in criminal trials. Next, historical controversies involving this set of rules are discussed. Also examined is the manner in which law enforcement is affected by the exclusionary rule. The author also considers the need to seek a balance between collecting evidence yet protecting the individual's Constitutional rights. Finally, the author proposes changes for the exclusionary rule, which may include compensation when rights are violated.
Outline
Introduction
Controversy and History of the Exclusionary Rule Law Enforcement Effects
Protecting Good Faith Exemptions
Is it Time for Change?
References
From the Paper "The exclusionary law or laws, more appropriately, then go on to provide a set of rules that dictate that evidence and or admissions of guilt obtained illegally will be excluded from being heard in criminal trials. What this quite often amounts to is that criminals who are guilty can go free, if the evidence needed to convict them is tainted in some manner, having been acquired illegally, with certain exceptions, though many argue the exceptions and rules are unclear and are in constant need of redress by the courts. (Chun 2000:799) (Holland 2000:1107)"
This paper examines the evolution and evaluation of the exclusionary rule from its origins in the 1789 Virginia Bill of Rights to the modern landmark case of Mapp v. Ohio.
Abstract This paper explains that the exclusionary rule falls under the province of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution, which protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures from agents of the state; and upon which the Supreme Court ruled in 1914 that any evidence obtained in unlawfully or illegally was inadmissible as evidence during a trial. The author reviews important cases that have shaped the scope and spirit of the exclusionary rule, such as Leon v. United States and Vernonia v. Acton. The paper studies criticisms against the exclusionary rule, including arguments that by letting criminals get their cases dismissed on technicalities, the exclusionary rule subverts the justice system.
Table of Contents
Definitions of the Exclusionary Rule History of the Exclusionary Rule Boyd v. United States
Weeks v. United States
Wolf v. Colorado
Mapp v. Ohio
Exclusions to the Exclusionary Rule Criticisms of the Exclusionary Rule Arguments in Defense of the Exclusionary Rule Alternatives to the Exclusionary rule Conclusion
From the Paper "One of Madison's proposals was based on the Virginia law against general search warrants. Thus, the proposed Bill of Rights included a provision to guarantee citizens protection against unreasonable searchers and seizures, a provision that eventually formed the foundation for the Fourth Amendment. Furthermore, Madison also pushed for a clause protecting people from becoming witnesses against themselves. Madison and his supporters were concerned over previous practices in Church tribunals, where confessions extracted through torture were then used against a defendant in Court. This clause in turn formed the basis of the modern Constitution's Fifth Amendment."
Abstract There has been extensive psychological research into the question of whether jurors are able or motivated to effectively disregard evidenceruled inadmissible in a courtroom. This paper explains that as there has been significant variability among these studies, at this time no clear consensus on the matter has emerged. The writer examines how several key factors seem to affect jurors' abilities to disregard inadmissible evidence. The reasoning behind inadmissibility rulings has been found to affect this ability. Measures of need for cognition may predict ability to differentiate between reasons. It discusses how additionally, research has shown attenuating effects of deliberation, suspicion, and in certain cases, judges' instructions to the jury may increase biases. The paper concludes that overall, it seems that jurors are not able to sufficiently disregard inadmissible evidence.
From the Paper "The very foundations of the criminal justice system depend on jurors' ability and motivation to base their decisions solely upon legally admissible evidence. Therefore, any evidence ruled inadmissible must be disregarded. However, in cases where such evidence is entered and later deemed inadmissible, it is not completely understood whether jurors are able to disregard this information. If jurors fail to disregard such evidence, there is a danger of incorrect judicial outcomes and sentencing. However, if jurors are indeed able to ignore inadmissible evidence, justice is working in the way it was intended."
Tags: criminal, evidence, judicial, jury, justice, law, psychology, research, study
Abstract This paper offers a succinct history of Canada from the time of the early settlers until modern day. The focus of the paper is the battles between different countries to rule over the area and the affect that this had on the development of a multi-cultural country.
From the Paper "However, good relations with England and status as a commonwealth nation would cause considerable dissention among the French minority in Canada. Pro-British members of government supported several of Britain's war efforts, including those in the World Wars. Canada became a major political and economic world power in the twentieth century. Although bilingualism and multiculturalism were adopted as official policies of the state, French separatists in Quebec struggled fiercely for independence. The last of two official referendums for separation from Canada was defeated in 1995 by a narrow margin."
Abstract This paper states that few texts can make claims to possess the kind of methodical comprehensiveness as George Melnyk's "One Hundred Years of Canadian Cinema". The author discusses various aspects of the text to provide an evaluation of the importance of the book's contribution to the study of cinema in Canada. The paper includes the author's argument, the credibility of the evidence and the overall value of the book.
From the Paper "Few texts can make claims to possess the kind of methodical comprehensiveness that George Melnyk's One Hundred Years of Canadian Cinema does. It is a massive, tome of a book whose physical heft correctly suggests all of the intellectual and academic weight that the author imbued within the pages of the three hundred sixty-one page work on the history of the Canadian cinema. Not to give away my feelings on the book prematurely, but the work that Melnyk managed in composing this piece of much-needed non-fiction should be considered one of the author's greatest achievements. The remainder of this review will be divided into four sections. The first will examine Melnyk's thesis, argument, and goal in writing "One Hundred Years of Canadian Cinema"."
Abstract This four page undergraduate paper examines the impact of e-commerce on the Canadian retail industry. The writer notes that it is evident that from a retailer's perspective, successfully marketing e-commerce on the Internet is of vital importance to anyone in the retail business today. Further, the writer discusses that online retailing has quickly become an important and attractive method of reaching customers.
From the Paper "In critically analyzing the impact of e-commerce on the Canadian retail industry, it is evident that from a retailer's perspective, successfully marketing e-commerce on the Internet is of vital importance to anyone in the retail business today. Online retailing, which didn't even exist fifteen years ago, and which had only been a subsidiary element of most retail businesses until the mid-nineteen-nineties, is rapidly becoming a primary means of reaching customers and selling them one's products."
Abstract In recent months, the furor over the release of Karla Homolka has sparked heated debate and calls for a review of the Canadian justice system. The following paper examines three contentious areas of the Canadian legal system that seem in desperate need of a reassessment. The first of these revolves around the growing perception that the Canadian judiciary is arrogant, perhaps even irresponsible, and simply unresponsive to the concerns of ordinary Canadians. The second area revolves around the treatment of aboriginal peoples within the Canadian justice system and the third and last area revolves around the difficulty that Canadian law-makers and justices are having in reconciling the somewhat amorphous multiculturalism they embrace in theory with the fundamental liberal democratic tenets that under-gird the Canadian justice system.
Abstract The paper contends that the treatment of Japanese Canadians by the Canadian government during and after World War II was deplorable. The paper then discusses how the Canadian government acknowledged the racist character of these policies in 1988 and offered redress to the Japanese Canadian population.
From the Paper "Japanese Canadians during the Second World War were forced to contend with a decades-old torrent of racial discrimination that culminated in their internment and forced labor by the Canadian government. The treatment of Japanese Canadians during this period appears particularly cruel-even sinister-when one considers that of the Canadians evacuated from the Pacific Coast of Canada, most were Canadian-born and naturalized Canadian citizens."
Tags: japanese canadians, world war II, internment, deportation, War Measures Act
Abstract This paper reviews the Canadian film industry, one that is said to be a composite of three different unique bodies that have combined to create a dynamic film environment; albeit not a uniquely Canadian one. The paper goes on to discuss how while the indigenous Canadian film industry is still extant it might be described as moribund at best. If not for governmental support for the indigenous film industry, independent Canadian film making might already be extinct. The Canadian film industry is relatively healthy overall but the figures indicate strictly indigenous Canadian films, outside of one or two major production houses, may suffer revenue and market difficulties in the years ahead.
Abstract Summary: This paper introduces a variety of published work pertaining to subjects of the Canadian mass media. A tendency that is noted, in different places, is that of Canadians assuming that their media are free in comparison with the mass media influences of the United States, or the United Kingdom, for example. However, as is mentioned, the Canadian media seem to be shaped by their environment, and the environment beyond Canada to a significant degree.
Abstract The paper studies and compares the education systems and their goals in Canadian and the United States. It shows that these school systems share many aspects, including a striving for better education, a constant drive for better technology and a consistent effort to better educate their students. The paper explains that while the methods of instruction and the funding for the system may differ, each share the common goal of a quality education for all students. It argues that, by learning from some successes of Canadian schools, the United States could further its ability to better educate all students in the system. In today's global economy, and in the age of information, there can be no substitute for education. It shows that if, by learning from other nations, the United States is able to provide a better education to the people, then the sanctioning bodies must come together in unity.
From the Paper "The first of these values is equality of access. This value used to be defined as making public education available to a thin population across an entire continent (Fleming, 1997). Currently, equality of access is seen mainly as the eradication of the barriers to education caused by language, gender, race, or physical or mental disability. In fact, the Canadian Council of Ministries of Education, in their Pan-Canadian Protocol for Collaboration on School Curriculum in 1997 stated, ?The ministers wish all citizens to have a fair and equitable opportunity in education and wish to provide increased accessibility to education.?
Closely related to this fair education policy is the value of equality of educational opportunity. This value is described as the idea that the quality and choice of educational programs should not be lessened by where a person lives (Fleming, 1997). As part of the Pan-Canadian Protocol (1997), the ministry stated that one of the objectives of the Corroboration was the ?application of technology to curriculum and the use of distance education for delivery.?
Abstract This paper addresses this question in terms of both Canadian laws governing child pornography on the Internet, and the role of these laws in terms of wider international legislation and norms in this area. It will be argued that the key problem related to Canadian child pornography legislation and the Internet is not so much a need for stronger laws, but rather the enforcement of those that currently exist.
Abstract The problem for immigrants to Canada is cultural confusion. Immigrants do not know to which culture, that of their original country or that of Canada, they belong. This is the problem discussed by Bannerji in her essays on cultural conflicts for Canadian immigrants. In this paper I argue that Bannerji does not support the Canadian government's policy of "multiculturalism" towards the cultures of immigrants. Yet, while she retains an interest in her original country of India, Bannerji does not seem to have many cultural traditions of her home country. This is, I think, a sign of the cultural confusion that she says immigrants have.
Abstract This paper states that he Canadian health care system is broken. The author compares the Canadian health care system in relation to health care in other nations. The paper concludes that NAFTA has not significantly affected the disparate levels of health care available its three member nations.
From the Paper "The Canadian health care system is broken. This condition is not an unusual one in health care, unfortunately. Similar difficulties exist in countries with similar systems, such as Finland and Sweden. But broken health care systems are not limited to those countries with socialized medicine. Other countries, such as the United States and Mexico, also have difficulty providing consistently adequate health care in a timely fashion to all of their citizens. How do the problems within the Canadian health care correlate with those of other countries? "
