PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Justice Brian Martin, who, years later, inquired into that original investigation, prosecution and trial, called Mr Eastman's conviction a "substantial miscarriage of justice". His decision in 2014 summarised the flaws: "The issue of guilt was determined on the basis of deeply flawed forensic evidence in circumstances where the applicant was denied procedural fairness in respect of a fundamental feature of the trial process concerned with disclosure by the prosecution of all relevant material. In addition, evidence of inadequacies and flaws in the case file and case work of the key forensic scientists were unknown to everyone involved in the investigation and trial." Justice Martin also chided the police and Office of the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions' inability – even then, almost two decades later – to understand the case's weaknesses. They contended the evidence remained overwhelming; the judge said it clearly wasn't, and that the passing of time had weakened it further. He said a retrial "would not be in the best interests of the community", and recommended that Mr Eastman be pardoned. Nonetheless, for reasons never adequately explained, the DPP pursued a further trial, despite the warning it was not in the public interest and would likely fail."
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EDITORIAL: "Eastman saga ends. Now to learn from it," published by The Canberra Times, on November 23, 2018.
GIST: "The
saga is over. Twelve of David Eastman's peers have judged him. After a
six-month trial, six days of deliberation and, at least initially, an
inability to agree, the jurors found him not guilty of murdering ACT
police chief Colin Winchester in 1989. Mr Eastman is a free man. Yet
his extraordinary legal battle is not quite finished. Mr Eastman spent
more than 19 years in jail for the killing and is expected to pursue
compensation for that imprisonment, worth potentially tens of millions
of dollars. The costs of this crime, and of the botched investigation
and prosecution that ensued, continue to mount. David Eastman has been found not guilty of the 1989 murder of AFP assistant police commissioner Colin Winchester. Meanwhile,
Mr Winchester's family and friends will likely never see justice served
on the police chief's killer. This is no happy ending. The
injustice began with Mr Winchester's murder almost 30 years ago. The
federal police, no doubt affected by their comrade's death and craving a
conviction, made poor decisions. Confirmation biases undermined their
work. Justice Brian Martin, who, years later, inquired into that
original investigation, prosecution and trial, called Mr Eastman's
conviction a "substantial miscarriage of justice". His decision in 2014
summarised the flaws: "The issue of guilt was determined on the basis of
deeply flawed forensic evidence in circumstances where the applicant
was denied procedural fairness in respect of a fundamental feature of
the trial process concerned with disclosure by the prosecution of all
relevant material. In addition, evidence of inadequacies and flaws in
the case file and case work of the key forensic scientists were unknown
to everyone involved in the investigation and trial." Justice
Martin also chided the police and Office of the ACT Director of Public
Prosecutions' inability – even then, almost two decades later – to
understand the case's weaknesses. They contended the evidence remained
overwhelming; the judge said it clearly wasn't, and that the passing of
time had weakened it further. He said a retrial "would not be in the
best interests of the community", and recommended that Mr Eastman be
pardoned. Nonetheless,
for reasons never adequately explained, the DPP pursued a further
trial, despite the warning it was not in the public interest and would
likely fail. The ACT government, rightly, supported the DPP's
independence. One wonders, though, whether the DPP acted independently
from the police, or whether it faced pressure to pursue Mr Eastman over
what had become, to many police, a personal matter. The best way
to honour Mr Winchester would have been to recognise, from the start,
the potential for the investigation to stray in the way that it did, and
to assign the task to disinterested outsiders. It is now too late
for that, but it is not too late to learn. It is time for the police
and the DPP to examine, and to admit to, the flaws in their decisions.
Neither have yet shown publicly they are prepared to do that; at every
step, they have dismissed criticisms of their handling of the case. Hopefully, Thursday's verdict will change that."
The entire editorial can be read at:
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/national/act/eastman-saga-ends-now-to-learn-from-it-20181122-p50hl4.htmlThe entire editorial can be read at:
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/
