Manufacturing Guilt (2nd edition)

Wrongful Convictions in Canada

Barrie Anderson, Dawn Anderson

Manufacturing Guilt, 2nd edition, updates the cases presented in the first edition and includes two new chapters: one concerning the case of James Driskell and another regarding Dr. Charles Smith, whose role in forensic pathology evidence led to several wrongful convictions. In this new edition, the authors demonstrate that the same factors at play in the criminalization of the powerless and marginalized are found in cases of wrongful conviction. Contrary to popular belief, wrongful convictions are not due simply to “unintended errors,” but rather are too often the result of the deliberate actions of those working in the criminal justice system. Using Canadian cases of miscarriages of justice, the authors argue that understanding wrongful convictions and how to prevent them is incomplete outside the broader societal context in which they occur, particularly regarding racial and social inequality.

Contents

• Acknowledgements
• Marginalization and Wrongful Convictions
• The Case of Donald Marshall
• The Case of David Milgaard
• The Case of Wilbert Coffin
• The Case of Guy Paul Morin
• The Case of Thomas Sophonow
• The Case of Steven Truscott
• The Case of James Driskell
• The Case of William Mullins-Johnson
• Ending Wrongful Convictions
• References

About the Authors

Barrie Anderson retired from the Department of Sociology at the University of Regina in 1996, after teaching there for more than twenty years. Before becoming an academic, he worked as a labourer, truck driver,  psychiatric nurses’ aid, game warden and professional photographer. During his career, Barrie was keenly aware of and involved in social justice issues. Barrie passed away in February of 2007.

Dawn Anderson teaches as a sessional instructor in both the Sociology and Justice Studies Departments at the University of Regina.  She received her Ph.D. in sociology from York University where she wrote her dissertation on the topic of sentencing and Aboriginal offenders.  She is co-author of the first edition of Manufacturing Guilt and has co-authored an introductory text on conflict resolution.

Excerpt

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