Getting justice for those wrongfully convicted of crime

MILTON, ON. December 4, 2017 - Maplehurst Correctional Complex in Milton includes the Vanier Centre for Women, a correctional facility for female offenders. 2018 Toronto Star

By Stella Acquisto

Posted October 2, 2020 2:33 pm.

Last Updated October 2, 2020 7:06 pm.

Oct. 2 is Wrongful Conviction Day. The day, although recognized globally, was started in Canada by a group called Innocence Canada. Innocence Canada is a non-profit group that advocates for those who they believe are innocent of the crimes they were convicted of committing.

Here are two stories of people that were wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for crimes they did not commit.

Robert Baltovich

In November 1990, Robert Baltovich was charged with the first-degree murder of his then–girlfriend Elizabeth Bain, who had gone missing five months prior.

In June 1990, Elizabeth Bain, went missing after leaving home to check her tennis schedule at the University of Toronto, Scarborough campus. Her car was eventually recovered, and forensic testing showed blood on the back seat. Elizabeth’s remains have not been found.

Baltovich spent eight years in prison and almost a decade trying to clear his name.

“Basically from the time I was first arrested and charged to the time I was acquitted it was a total of 18 years,” says Baltovich.

On Thursday, the University of Guelph held a virtual event to acknowledge Wrongful Conviction Day and exoneree Robert Baltovich was a guest speaker. He says this day is important because it sheds a light on the fact that this type of injustice can happen to anyone.

Glen Assoun

Glen Assoun sat in a prison cell for 17 years. During that time he claimed he was innocent and it wasn’t until five years after that, he was finally able to clear his name.

“He was a fighter from the start, to the very end he refused to give up,” said his lawyer and member of Innocence Canada Sean MacDonald.

In 1995, Glen’s former girlfriend, Brenda Way, was found dead behind a Dartmouth, Nova Scotia apartment building. Glen was brought in for questioning, but because he had an alibi, police released him. A year later MacDonald says new officers took charge of the case, discarding the alibi and eventually charging Glen with this murder. His conviction on that charge led to a 17-year sentence.

“This case was over before it began, “ says MacDonald. “The case rested largely on witnesses who were disreputable, who colluded with one another, jailhouse informants, there was evidence of psychic visions.”

An investigation by the federal minister of justice found Assoun was most likely a victim of a miscarriage of justice, and on March 1, 2019, Glen’s name was finally cleared.

Glen’s case is still in the news today. Just two weeks ago at a press conference, the premier of Nova Scotia said he had instructed his attorney general to refer this case to the Serious Incident Response Team – the province’s police watchdog.

The organization will investigate allegations the officers that were involved in Glen’s case destroyed evidence that could have exonerated him sooner.