Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Wednesday, October 23. 2013

Today's schedule is B-AG-A-D-C

B Block Social Studies 10 - Today we're off to the library to begin work on a Rebellions Editorial activity. After we've taken attendance and logged on to the computers in the library read through the following description of your activity:

You are a newspaper editor for either the Toronto Telegraph or the Montreal Gazette. It is 1840; Mackenzie has been pardoned and is living in Toronto again while Papineau is exiled and living in France. You are going to write an editorial (opinion piece) on the rebellions of both Upper and Lower Canada. Write a one paged editorial arguing that the rebels were either justified in their actions or were traitors to the King and England. Remember it is 1840, one year before the Act of Union, but Durham's recommendations would be public knowledge in the colonies by now (responsible government, union of the Canadas, more equality of the churches, and more local control in governance).

You'll have today and tomorrow in the library to work on this activity. This is a project mark so it would be wise not to waste your time or blow this assignment off (especially considering the end of the term looms nigh!) Look here for more:
William Lyon Mackenzie
Durham's Act of Union
Musee McCord Museum "The Aftermath of the Rebellions flash movie
Early Toronto Newspapers
Township Heritage
1837/8 Patriot War

A Block Law 9/10 - Today we'll look at warrants through both the R. v. Wise (1992) and R. v. Ruiz (1991) cases along with the "plain view" principle. After, we'll look at release procedures and habeas corpus along with disclosure, preliminary hearings, pre-trial motions, and plea bargaining.

D Block Law 12 - Today we are in the library to begin work on a Canadian Criminal Defense project. Find three recent (in the last two years) criminal cases where a defense discussed in this chapter was used. The defenses are: Alibi, Non-Insane Automatism, Intoxication, Insane Automatism, Battered Woman Syndrome, Self-defense, Necessity, Duress, Ignorance of the law, Mistake of fact, Entrapment, Double jeopardy, and Provocation.

Summarize the cases by answering the following questions:

1. What are the facts of the case?
2. What are the criminal charges?
3. What defense was raised, and what arguments were presented to support the defense?
4. If there was a decision in the case, identify whether or not the defense was successful. If there is no decision yet, provide an opinion on whether you think the defense will be accepted by the courts or not.
5. Provide a personal opinion on the case

Make sure you include:

Name of Case: Give the complete case name indicating all parties. Ensure the appropriate format is used, depending on whether the case is civil or criminal.

Name of Court: Refer to the name and particular level of court where the case was heard.

Citation:
This is the legal case reference from the law-reporting series or online case-reporting site. Use this complete and accurate citation when first referring to the case.

Summary of Key Facts: Summarize the key facts and events of the case in one to two paragraphs. Make sure all the information you include is legally relevant. This is point 1 above.

Applicable Laws: Refer to the legislation that was at issue (for example, section 235 of the Criminal Code or Section 11d of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms). This is point 2 above.

Issue: Identify the issues to be decided by the court in a clear and concise manner, and express these issues in question format. For example - Was the search unreasonable and therefore a violation of section 8 of the Charter? Did provocation occur, and, if so, should the charge be reduced from murder to manslaughter? This is point 1 and point 3 above.

Case Decision or Judgment: Identify the decision of the court (e.g., the appeal was allowed, a new trial was ordered, the accused was found guilty of the crime, etc.). This is point 4 above.

Reason for the Case Decision or Judgment: State the rationale for the judgment by clearly summarizing the factors considered by the judge in his or her decision. This is point 4 above.

Places to find cases - CanLII is a non-profit organization managed by the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. CanLII's goal is to make Canadian law accessible for free on the Internet. Click through the databases on the side (provinces and territories) and search by year (2012-2011-2010)...anytime you see Supreme/Superior court or court of Queen's Bench you'll find serious criminal casesd (remember look for R. v. in the case citation). Canoe is is a leading Canadian internet portal offering news, sports and entertainment from Sun Media. Crime news stories can be found in the Crime portion of the News section.


C Block Criminology 12 - Today we'll watch Chapters 1-8 in the movie "The Corporation" and you will need to work on the following questions:


  1. Should corporate executives be found guilty of murder if they fail to take reasonable measures to protect their staff and an employee subsequently dies?
  2. Is it fair to blame a single executive for the activities of a company that has thousands of employees?
  3. Can Corporations Commit Murder? If a corporation is considered as a person in law (as it is in the US) who can be held liable (responsible) if a corporation kills people? 
Please do not forget that the documentary is an opinion piece...it is trying to persuade you that a corporation acts like a psychopath. Not all business is bad but we do need to understand the "corporate view" of white collar criminal activity. The Official Site of The Corporation can be found here. For the first two questions use page 256 of the CRIM textbook for help.

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