Ghomeshi not guilty? How about “not proven”?

The courts need another option. On Thursday, Ontario Justice William Horkins found former CBC host Jian Ghomeshi “not guilty” of five sexual-assault-related charges involving three different women. Legally, it was the right decision. But it isn’t the right conclusion. As Judge Horkins acknowledged, not guilty “is not the same as deciding in any positive way […]

Jian Ghomeshi: Justice, the courts and the court of public opinion

Did he do it? Of course. Did the crown prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, Jian Ghomeshi sexually assaulted three women? That’s more complicated. Let’s start with what we know. Three women went to police alleging Ghomeshi sexually assaulted them, each story strikingly similar: Ghomeshi punched and choked them without consent, without warning, and with no […]

2014: The year the conversation changed

I followed last week’s news stories about Dalhousie dental school with a mixture of oh-no shock and not-again recognition. The week began with revelations about a misnamed, misogynous Facebook group: “The Class of DDS 2015 Gentlemen.” Thirteen male graduating dental students had shared anti-women screeds, voted on which female classmate they’d most like to “hate […]

Justin Trudeau, the allegations and the options

Halifax NDP MP and deputy party leader Megan Leslie says she “cannot believe” Liberal leader Justin Trudeau went public with allegations of “serious personal misconduct” by two Liberal MPs against two NDP MPs. But really, given the state of the nation — the fascinating, mostly thoughtful, sometimes insightful, occasionally knee-jerk conversations triggered by recent Jian […]

Jian Ghomeshi, Gerald Regan and the court of public opinion

What a wild, weird week! The bodies from the Parliament Hill shootings and the Quebec murder-by-car had not been buried, their meaning not yet processed, when the CBC announced last Sunday it was severing ties with its most famous radio host, Jian Ghomeshi, for reasons unspecified. By that evening, Ghomeshi had specified his version in […]