OTTAWA, August 12, 2005 – Irwin Cotler, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, today announced his decision to waive solicitor-client privilege and make public the investigative report of the Hon. Fred Kaufman into the murder conviction of Steven Truscott.
"I believe the criminal conviction review process should be as transparent as possible, while respecting legitimate privacy and law enforcement concerns," Minister Cotler said. "Releasing this report will allow Canadians to see for themselves the comprehensiveness of the report and the complexity of this longstanding and high profile case."
In October 2004, Minister Cotler announced that he had determined "that there is a reasonable basis to conclude that a miscarriage of justice likely occurred" in 1959 when Truscott, then 14, was convicted of murdering 12-year-old Lynne Harper. He therefore granted Mr. Truscott's application for a wrongful conviction review and referred the case to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
In 2002, the federal government commissioned Mr. Kaufman to review transcripts, submissions and evidence in the case. The Minister's decision to grant Mr. Truscott's application followed his comprehensive review and assessment of the 700-page report and advice from Mr. Kaufman.
The Department of Justice's Criminal Conviction Review Group this week provided lawyers for Mr. Truscott and the Ontario Attorney General with a copy of the Kaufman report, edited for privacy purposes. They now have 30 days to notify the Department if they wish to protect additional information contained in the report. Once this process is completed to the satisfaction of parties, the report will be made public.
When rendering a decision on an application for ministerial review, the Minister is not making a finding of guilt or innocence, as he has no legal power to make such a finding. The Minister is simply returning the matter to the courts in circumstances where there is a reasonable basis to conclude that a miscarriage of justice likely occurred. Ultimately, the courts will decide the issue of the applicant's guilt or innocence.
For more information on the Truscott case, please refer to: http://canada.justice.gc.ca/en/news/nr/2004/doc_31272.html
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Ref.:
Mylène Dupéré
Office of the Minister of Justice
(613) 992-4621
Media Relations Office
Department of Justice Canada
(613) 957-4207
