OTTAWA - The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled a B.C. man can use the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to pursue a lawsuit after being wrongly imprisoned for 27 years for several sexual assaults he did not commit.
The landmark ruling clarifies the circumstances under which criminal prosecutors could be sued if they fail to disclose evidence to accused persons.
In 1983, Ian Henry was convicted of three counts of rape, two counts of attempted rape and five counts of indecent assault in attacks on eight women in Vancouver, and declared a dangerous offender.
In 2010, the B.C. Court of Appeal overturned Henry's convictions, citing a lack of full disclosure of evidence by prosecutors.
In 2001, Henry sued the provincial and federal attorneys general, the City of Vancouver and three members of its police department for withholding evidence that could have helped his defence.
The B.C. Appeal Court has since heard that evidence, which came to light during a 2002 police investigation that involved another offender who was implicated in 29 cases and lived near Henry.
More to come...
