RSS FeedJudge found guilty of of corruption; 6500 convictions overturned
This story comes from Philadelphia:
All Ciavarella juvie convictions vacated
County judicial scandal ruling on about 6,500 cases is a victory for advocacy group Juvenile Law Center of Philadelphia
Seeking to remedy what it deemed a “travesty of justice,” the state Supreme Court on Thursday vacated the convictions of all juveniles who appeared before former Judge Mark Ciavarella from 2003 to 2008 and barred retrials in all but a small portion of those cases. [...]
The high court based its ruling on Ciavarella’s admission that he accepted millions of dollars from the owner and builder of two juvenile detention centers to which he sentenced youths [emphasis mine], as well as his “systematic” deprivation of the constitutional rights of juveniles who appeared before him. [...]
The District Attorney’s Office has come under fire for its failure to alert authorities to abuses of juveniles’ rights that were perpetrated under Ciavarella.
Some notes:
- What relations are judges allowed to have with detention centres? Is there legislature anywhere that makes explicit what judges may or may not accept from the owners, managers, etc of prisons? Was the issue here that Ciavarella accepted a hellish amount of money from the prison management, or that he accepted any at all? In other words, had he received a “reasonable” amount of money openly and transparently, would he have been alright?
- There’s no mention of what the judges’ punishments were, which suggests (that the paper thinks) that people are or should be satisfied with the overturning of the convictions. But that ignores the fact that these men negatively impacted the lives of at least 6,500 adolescents. At the very least, will these two be allowed to serve in court again? Will they serve any jail time?
- I wonder what remedies and health services will be offered to the people who were convicted under these men.
- I should look up Canadian judicial regulatory bodies. Suggestions?
Corruption
Montreal Mafia controls 80 per cent of road contracts, whistleblower says
“There is a group that controls contracts on [Montreal] Island, passing them around, one after the other, we call them the Fabulous Fourteen,” said Paul Sauvé, a contractor who says he was threatened into making political contributions for a contract to restore the roof on Montreal City Hall.
Where is Transparency International when you need it.
Bon Cop, Bad Cop
Today the dramatic and costly case against the Toronto drug squad officers see-saws yet again when prosecutors try to revive charges thrown out by a judge in 2008. The charges were tossed because the Crown took too long to bring the case to trial.
Dragged out trial loses a judge
Judge steps down in B.C. corruption trial
Judge Elizabeth Bennett is stepping down as the trial judge in the long-running political corruption trial involving former executive assistants to provincial Liberal cabinet ministers.
White-collar crime—acquittal
Ottawa mayor acquitted of influence peddling
[Justice] Cunningham said that O’Brien probably exercised “poor judgment” when he then encouraged Kilrea to speak to Conservative cabinet minister John Baird about the appointment, but did not commit a criminal offense.
The Schreiber-Mulroney affair
Karlheinz Schreiber optimistic he’ll remain in Canada
Schreiber told the Star last week he will use every legal means at his disposal to avoid being extradited, insisting that if he were tried in Canada on the charges he faces in Germany, the whole case against him would be thrown out.
Shell & The Elephant In The Room
First posted on Commercial Law International on June 9, 2009.
By Charles Wanguhu
A report by the Economist Intelligence Unit indicates that protecting a firm’s reputation is the most important and difficult task facing corporations. With the development of global media and communication channels, managing reputational damage is seen as crucial with events undertaken in even the remotest areas affecting the international brand of a corporation.
For Shell the stark reality of reputational damage is all too clear. After years and years of denial and expressing its innocence of the Ogoni affair (it still maintains its innocence), Shell has decided to settle a case brought against it out of court for a sum of 15.5 Million US $. The lawsuit had accused the company of colluding with Nigeria’s former military regime over the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and other peaceful anti-oil protesters.
Like Nike before it Shell remains in many minds as the poster child of a lack of corporate responsibility especially in big multinationals. The Saro Wiwa case is largely sited not only in commercial classrooms but across NGO conferences worldwide. Multinationals are viewed as bulldozing their way with the help of corrupt and dictatorial regimes to fulfill their interests with complete disregard to vulnerable communities.
The perception of Shell as the irresponsible corporate persists despite the fact that it has invested millions in engaging communities in areas that it works in and has increasingly taken on human rights in its business models and stakeholder engagement strategies.
In response to the case filed Malcolm Brinded, Shell’s executive director for exploration and production, was quoted,
“While we were prepared to go to court to clear our name, we believe the right way forward is to focus on the future for Ogoni people, which is important for peace and stability in the region.”
The settlement could be seen as a magnanimous move by Shell in some quarters with some already hailing the move as groundbreaking in terms of holding corporations accountable. However when looked at broadly the settlement will be seen as a coup for Shells PR team: instead of having weeks, months or even years of a contested trial where Shells actions or lack of thereof would be once again stirred up in everyone’s mind globally, a quick settlement offers a quick escape route.
All in all $15.5Million may well be considered a bargain when factoring in legal costs, reputation risks and lost revenue. There could well have been some champagne popped at Shell HQs but am sure downstairs in the legal department the wait is on with baited breath to see whether the floodgates have been open.
