STORY: "Crown submits new evidence that could postpone Jacques Delisle bail hearing," by reporter Julia Page, published by CBC News on October 22, 2106.
SUB-HEADING: "Superior Justice Benoît Moulin to determine whether recent gun tests will be admitted as evidence."
PHOTO CAPTION: "Jacques Delisle, now 81, was sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of murdering his wife in 2012."
GIST: "The bail hearing for former judge Jacques Delisle could be suspended, perhaps for several weeks, if Quebec Superior Justice Benoît Moulin admits a new piece of evidence submitted by the Cr own. Delisle, 81, is asking to be released from prison while the federal justice department has another look at his case in the death of his wife, Nicole Rainville. As Crown prosecutor Michel Fortin started to present his evidence, he asked to introduce a new witness, Guillaume Arnet, a ballistics expert from the Laboratoire de sciences judiciaires et de médecine légale in Montreal. Fortin said Arnet has conducted tests that prove a gunshot to the head, when aimed at a 90-degree angle, would necessarily go through the skull on the opposite side. This theory would crush the argument, which points to Rainville's suicide, that the defence has been trying to prove since the beginning of Delisle's bail hearing. The defence's main witness, a forensic pathology expert from Ontario, testified that a perpendicular shot could ricochet off the skull and remain inside the brain. Dr. Michael Shkrum said this is what he believes happened in the case of Nicole Rainville's death. "The bullet went straight across, from the left to the right side of the skull," Shkrum testified Tuesday. Defence lawyer James Lockyer is applying for Delisle's release based on this new evidence, which was also submitted to the federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould for this rare ministerial review. Lockyer objected that the videos shot by Arnet and his testimony be admitted as evidence. He maintains that he only received them on Monday and would need time to prepare a cross-examination. "If I may, Mr. Delisle is an old man, like it or not, this bail hearing should not be delayed," said Lockyer. Lockyer also said that the gun used by Arnet was not the same caliber gun as the one that killed Rainville.........Moulin said he would examine the evidence over the weekend and announce on Monday if this new witness will be heard.........Earlier on Friday, the Crown prosecutor argued the defence's main witness doesn't have the expertise necessary to prove the former judge is innocent. Fortin continued his cross-examination of Shkrum, on the fourth day of Delisle's hearing. Earlier this week, Shkrum told the court he believes the gun that killed Rainville was shot at a 90-degree angle. This supports the theory of a suicide, which the defence has always maintained. The Crown is trying to discredit Shkrum's premise, claiming he has no expertise in ballistics evidence. When questioned by Fortin, Shkrum also acknowledged the bullet path he is suggesting, from the left side to the right side of Rainville's head, did not exclude the possibility of a homicide. The Crown said Shkrum shouldn't have given his opinion "coast-to-coast," on the CBC's the fifth estate, where the pathologist said he had a reasonable doubt Rainville's death could have been a suicide."
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/crown-submits-new-evidence-that-could-postpone-jacques-delisle-bail-hearing-1.3817182
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Harold Levy. Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
