Contrasts in Placatory Awards

Wrongfully convicted. That's a category, an unfortunate classification no one might ever imagine they might find themselves included within. Convicted of a major offence, a crime of such magnitude that you would lose whatever was dear to you. Accused of being a a pederast, an inhuman monster who preyed on a child. None other than his own four-year-old niece. Found guilty of sodomizing and strangling the child.

Thanks to the deliberation of a highly respected medical practitioner, a pathologist, along with three other doctors, all of whom convinced themselves, and freely gave their professional opinions, representing damning evidence of guilt against William Mullins-Johnson. Who was sentenced for his purported crime, and was incarcerated for twelve dreadful years of his life. Perhaps his incarceration wasn't the worst of his sentence.

Having been found guilty of a crime he strenuously denied having committed, he lost the trust of his family. With the revelation of the disgraceful conduct of pathologist Charles Smith, came the light of day. With not only Mr. Mullins-Johnson's exoneration of guilt, but others, including parents of children who were found guilty of their murder, because of the pathologist's wrongly convincing testimony.

To further complicate the wrong done against Mr. Mullins-Johnson, Dr. Smith lost critical evidence during the review of the case, causing the wronged man to spend an added six-year period longer than he might have, had he been exonerated initially, with the help of the missing evidence. Dr. Smith had convinced himself that child-torturers and -murderers lurked everywhere within normal families.

"In the end, it was found that the pathology evidence upon which the court had relied in support of his conviction was completely flawed. The court of appeal concluded that in fact, there had been no crime, that he did not assault his niece."

Ontario's Attorney General apologized to the wrongfully convicted man, and to his family for the dreadful miscarriage of justice. And the Government of Ontario is prepared to pay a $4.25-million settlement to Mr. Mullins-Johnson. As though there is any kind of usefully acceptable recompense for the agony of suffering that the man was forced to undergo.

Penalty for Dr. Smith for ruining so many peoples' lives? Bad press, and being drummed out of his profession, one he admitted to having little facility for, but despite his misgivings over his own professional (dis)ability, he continued to work as a pathologist and proceeded to give evidence damning innocent people; knowingly accusing the innocent.

Contrast that to a Canadian of Syrian descent who travelled on a dual passport to questionable destionations, during a time of high alert for Muslim terrorists, when security impressions were tense and people were swept up in a general search for additional threats. A man who suffered the fear and indignity of incarceration in a Syrian prison where he was purportedly tortured.

He and his supporters held Canada and the United States partially co-responsible for the incident of mistaken intent and identity which caused him to be illegally rendered to Syria as one of their nationals, where he was immediately taken into custody and interrogated, security and policing officials there convinced he represented a threat.

On his return to Canada he brought a legal suit against the Government of Canada for its laxity in overlooking the need to give him all the protection that a citizen is owed by his government - albeit under the impression he posed a threat to society. And for sharing security suspicions of his intentions as a possible agent of a terrorist organization with American security counterparts.

The $10-million (as opposed to the $37-million sued for) that the Federal Government agreed to give Maher Arar as compensation for his trials and tribulations seem rather out of whack in comparison to what Mr. Mullins-Johnson suffered and received in compensation. Simply by way of perception. Searching for adequate and propitiatory justice.