The jury at serial killer Robert Pickton's trial never heard from a woman who got away from his pig farm in
The unnamed woman testified at Pickton's preliminary hearing but not at his trial. She told the court she was paid for sex at Pickton's farm in 1997, four years before the last victim Pickton is accused of murdering. She said Pickton came up behind her and put a handcuff onto one of her wrists, and she quickly grabbed a knife and slashed him across the neck. Both ended up in hospital with life-threatening injuries and a key was found in Pickton's clothes that matched the handcuffs, though charges against him in the case were later stayed.
The woman was not allowed to testify at the trial because the judge ruled her evidence had the potential for prejudice. And in so finding the judge was right.
Pickton was not on trial for the assault on the unnamed woman but for murdering others. Trials are complex enough without bringing in unrelated misdeeds. And, as mentioned in a recent posting, with the acquittal rate in
BUT …
Four years before Pickton killed his last victim (and how many he killed in that four years will never be known) there were very good grounds to charge him and a basis to search the pig farm. Apparently this was not done because the unnamed woman was mentally unstable. What could have been had the search gone ahead? Or if the charges were proceeded with?
2 comments:
I guess we'll never know.
No doubt though Pickton's lawyer at that time argued that he was just a lowly pig farmer who had a misunderstanding with a whore. Nothing to see here....
Maintain the illusion of effective policing and don't make waves. That $6 billion dollar illegal drug industry greases a lot of palms.
.. and all those feet washing up on shore are perfectly normal.
Nothing to see, move along.
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