ghostie said:
Now the test is, essentially, just whether there is "some evidence" (although the statute actualy just says "evidence") on which the person could be put on trial, with no reference to whether there is a possibility of conviction.
Order of committal
29. (1) A judge shall order the committal of the person into custody to await surrender if
(a) in the case of a person sought for prosecution, there is evidence admissible under this Act of conduct that, had it occurred in Canada, would justify committal for trial in Canada on the offence set out in the authority to proceed and the judge is satisfied that the person is the person sought by the extradition partner; and [rest omitted]
...this probably seems pretty academic, but the difference is HUGE. Under the old system, the United States of America would have had to show that there was sufficient evidence to establish a prima facie case for guilt that Emery had committed the extradition crimes. Now they just have to show that there is some evidence that he committed the crime - enough to charge him even if the possibility of a conviction is very low.
Excellent post ghostie!!!! The way it reads does bring that conclusion doesn't it.
hifisex said:
Even with these sorts of treaties (which I assume our government didn’t agree to under duress) we’re still very much a sovereign nation. If anything agreements like MLAT protects the civil rights of the signatory countries as it prevents US law enforcement from unilaterally snatching someone on foreign soil and bringing them back for prosecution.
Canada is sovereign? You gotta be kidding right? Ask the Bank of Canada what happens when they try to change interest rates and you'll find that they have to get approval from the Federal Reserve first. Now Canada must provide passenger lists even on Canadian aircraft flying over US airspace. The defense of Canadian territory is an extension of American policy via NORAD: Canada is merely a buffer zone used by the US, with infrastructure such as railroads, etc. in Canada being built because of NORAD demands for US missile placements. MLAT is the last mile: it does not prevent US law enforcement from snatching on foreign soil - without MLAT they legally could not anyway. MLAT demands the assistance of foreign LE to assist the US in capturing foreign nationals for the breaking of US laws even if they are broken outside of US jurisdiction. Now Canadians are subject to US laws with the same strength (or weakness) of evidence, as ghostie says,
some evidence that he committed the crime - enough to charge, the very same test Canadian LE must pass to charge for a crime on Canadian soil. You're letting your pride as a Canadian color your perceptions about your sovereignty - better you stop clinging to your ideas about what you think you are and face the reality. And don't you forget the effective opposite of MLAT: SOFA - the governing of US military personnel on foreign soil, meaning US persons are exempt from jurisdiction of the foreign country. A famous case exemplifying SOFA was when two US soldiers ran over and killed 2 S.Korean school girls with their tank: the US soldiers could not be tried in Korean courts, though the incident happened in Korea. Instead, they were tried under the US system and merely reprimanded.
Slowly but surely we are going towards world government. It will creep up on most of you because you've got you'd rather believe the vain fantasies that are going on in your head, or your brain has been reduced to pablum from watching too much reality TV, or you're too much of a yuppie pursuing your next BMW purchase to take notice. One world, one legal system , one system of commerce, one effective citizenship. All the small details to be determined by the most influential player. Soon you won't even be able to buy an apple without your purchase being registered with an authority that sends that information into central databanks. You won't be able to move from one location to another without authorities knowing. Everywhere you visit will be logged. You break one law in one jurisdiction, and you might find yourself arrested for the breaking of laws in multiple jurisdictions. Too bad the one system of commerce is largely already in place, and the one legal system seems well on its way, all US-driven.
You better learn your Pledge of Allegiance now.
