Invasion of the Body Scanners
A drop in the bucket of press on body scanners, technically known as “Whole Body Imaging” technology:
The Don Jail: apparently it’s no picnic
A $17-million dollar law suit for one of the “most horrendous examples of in-custody tortures [lawyer Julian Falconer has] ever seen”, and another reported homicide at Toronto’s Don Jail – the third extremely violent act…
National rules for Taser use in the works
From the National Post: The federal and provincial governments are planning to create national standards to determine when police can zap suspects with Tasers, in an attempt to reduce a patchwork of practices among police…
Police got ur cell, wt abt ur txts?
As we hurtle forward into the pocket-sized technology age, Courts are expanding notions of privacy, and s. 8 Charter rights, into novel territory. Here is a Toronto Star story about police searches of cell phones…
Prisons and Budgets
An editorial this morning from the New York Times about why the incarceration rate in the US – the country with less than 5 percent of the world’s population, and 25% of the world’s prisoners…
What do motel rooms and Waterloo Region Grade 5 classes have in common?
Apparently, they both distribute the Gideon’s New Testament Bible. According to reports in the Kitchener-Waterloo Record, the Waterloo District School Board has been giving Gideons International approval to offer Grade five public school children a…
Top court transforms press freedom with new libel defence
Excellent news in the Globe and Mail today… The Supreme Court of Canada transformed the country’s libel laws Tuesday with a pair of decisions that proponents say will expand the boundaries of free speech. The…
Ban on gang colours violates charter: Sask. judge
CBC News – Saskatchewan legislation doesn’t hold up: The legislation, which came into effect in 2004, prohibits anyone from going to a licensed drinking establishment while wearing “any sign, symbol, logo or other representation identifying,…
What to do if someone SLAPPs you
Rabble.ca is a great source of news – articles, podcasts and such. Here’s an interesting column about SLAPP suits: A SLAPP is a lawsuit (or threat of a lawsuit) used mostly by private interests to…
Ottawa rejects recommendations to make government and courts more transparent
As the Toronto Star reports: Justice Minister Rob Nicholson this week refused to act on a Commons committee report urging changes to improve the right of Canadians to know more about the workings of the…