Dear Editor
More people are looking with mistrust on some of the people who administer the law in Canada.
For a while it was very much in the news about the judge who ignorantly told a rape victim she should have sat in a sink or kept her legs together.
A female judge badgered into hysteria a woman who was in court because she had suffered violence from her spouse, in a case that followed almost on the heels of the first case mentioned.
Recently a judge freed a taxi driver who had attacked a female passenger. “Even a drunk,” said the judge, “can give consent.”
Well, to quote Donald Trump, but for a different reason, the “so called” judge missed the point. A taxi driver is hired to transport passengers, drunk ones or sober ones, not to rape them.
So much for saying to someone who has had one drink too many, “I’ll call a taxi.”
I sat in court at a trial that should never have happened. It was more or less a frame-up. Two witnesses were called. Both said they would swear on the Bible. They put their fingers on the spine of the Bible. From that I thought they intended to touch the truth only in the way they touched the book.
I was right. They were, it seemed, determined to destroy the accused. The afternoon dragged on and on. The accused had gradually lost any nervousness he might have had and became eager to tell the truth and destroy the glib-tongued spine touchers.
It was nearly six o’clock. I thought the judge would announce that we would reconvene on the next court day, two days later.
No, he threw out the case on a technicality, a case of jurisdiction. I think he wanted his supper. He made it impossible for the truth to be told. The accused was still accused; he was muzzled.
It has been years since I have trusted representatives of the law, in general.
Whose fault is that? Who shall clean up the rotten apples? I’ll have another shot at it.
Christine Pike
Waseca
