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Topic: Cairns gets off easy in wife's murder b/c she "provoked" him

cruisedirector
recent-rabble-rouser
Babbler # 2849

posted 13 June 2003 05:10 PM

So, this guy gets a short sentence for beating his wife to death with a hammer because she "provoked" him
http://makeashorterlink.com/?D6DE35BE4
Um, isn't "provocation" what we used to call "motive." And check what the jury considered provocation!

From: Toronto | Registered: Jul 2002 | IP: Logged

Michelle
Moderator
Babbler # 560

posted 13 June 2003 05:40 PM

Hey, he hired a prostitute after killing his wife. Wouldn't it have been easier for him just to pay his wife for it instead? Then he wouldn't be in this mess.

From: I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell. | Registered: May 2001 | IP: Logged

Mr. Magoo
guilty-pleasure
Babbler # 3469

posted 13 June 2003 05:48 PM

Maybe the one he hired was a little cheaper than $500!

My understanding, which comes only from seeing those ads in the back of Eye magazine, is that this kind of dough should get you several prostitutes...

From: ø¤°`°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°°¤ø,¸_¸,ø¤°°¤ø, | Registered: Dec 2002 | IP: Logged

Michelle
Moderator
Babbler # 560

posted 13 June 2003 05:58 PM

Good point. I mean, $500 for sex - who wouldn't kill over such a provocation? That's highway robbery! It's not like he could have just divorced her or something - or maybe just left her in Vegas (alive) and gone off to hire the prostitute. In fact, that might have been even better revenge - "Sorry honey, you're too expensive, I think I'll find someone who is a professional, and cheaper to boot."

Seriously though. I can't believe the jury actually thought this was provocation. Sorry folks, there are many other responses than murder to dealing with a gambler, or dealing with a wife who won't "put out".

From: I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell. | Registered: May 2001 | IP: Logged

jeff house
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 518

posted 13 June 2003 06:55 PM

That decision surprises me. I would think that normally, the alleged provocation in this case was so insignificant that the judge might not even let the jury hear about it.

Before a defence can be put to a jury, there is an "air of reality" test; unless there is an "air of reality" to the alleged prosecution, the jury may not be told about it.

I note the prosecutor also says this:

quote:
Mr. Van Alstine said provocation wasn't the only issue the judge and jury considered.

So there may be more to this than we yet know....but if there is nothing substantial, I think they will appeal.

From: toronto | Registered: May 2001 | IP: Logged

Trisha
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 387

posted 14 June 2003 03:36 PM

There is no "provocation" that justifies murder. If this guy gets away with this, the belief about anything will justify any killing. Women who have been murdered by spouses or lovers will be even less safe than they are now (which isn't very safe).

Everybody has problems and everybody does or says something stupid or hurtful at some time or another. This wife went too far, but it's not an excuse for killing her. Manslaughter is the term usually used for an unmeditated killing and that's the only term acceptable here. The time this guy serves should have to be a lot more. The killing was brutal. He still had no right to take her life, no matter what the circumstances.

From: Thunder Bay, Ontario | Registered: Apr 2001 | IP: Logged

jeff house
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 518

posted 14 June 2003 06:07 PM

quote:
There is no "provocation" that justifies murder.

True. But the Criminal Code homicide sections make it clear that "provocation" reduces murder to manslaughter, as it is thought to affect the level of intention which goes into a killing.

From: toronto | Registered: May 2001 | IP: Logged

Trisha
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 387

posted 14 June 2003 10:20 PM

Yes, and manslaughter is a reasonable name for unmediated murder. Even then, four years is not a long enough time for someone to to fully appreciate the gravity of what he's done. He'll likely be up for parole a lot sooner than that. He should at least be in long enough for a full anger management and related programs.

From: Thunder Bay, Ontario | Registered: Apr 2001 | IP: Logged

Smith
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 3192

posted 16 June 2003 07:42 PM

How sordid.

He had grounds for divorce, but apparently that idea didn't occur to him.

But he doesn't sound like a very bright chap.

From: Muddy York | Registered: Oct 2002 | IP: Logged

manitoulingirl
recent-rabble-rouser
Babbler # 3982

posted 17 June 2003 07:13 AM

Having worked for years in shelter movement the very consideration of provocation is disturbing to me. The reality is in Ontario the murder of women by their intimate partner has risen more then any other province in the last two years. Other homicide rates have gone down but not the murder of women. It is also very typical for judges and juries to view murder of a woman by their partner in a more lenient fashion. If they were judging the murder of a stranger who had been beaten with hammer, the chances the consequences would have been much more severe.

From: Mindemoya, Ontario | Registered: Apr 2003 | IP: Logged

Rebecca West
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 1873

posted 17 June 2003 10:41 AM

There are a number of decisions on the books where men who have murdered their wives have used the provocation defense to, literally, get away with murder.

When doing some work for a healing circle in the then-operational Kingston P4W, I was astounded by the number of women doing time for killing their husbands/partners after enduring years of beatings and rape. They were found guilty of murder, of course, and sentenced accordingly. Apparently the provocation defense isn't as successful if you're a woman. And the Battered Woman Syndrome defense is a load of crap - it neuroticizes what fundamentally amounts to saving your own life, and is rarely successful.

From: London , Ontario - homogeneous maximus | Registered: Nov 2001 | IP: Logged

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