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(1 December 1997) — People with disabilities are expressing shock and anger over the constitutional exemption the Saskatchewan court granted Robert Latimer. Rather than serving the mandatory sentence for second degree murder (10 years without parole), Latimer will serve less than two years.

For Immediate Release

December 1, 1997

People with disabilities are expressing shock and anger over the constitutional exemption the Saskatchewan court granted Robert Latimer. Rather than serving the mandatory sentence for second degree murder (10 years without parole), Latimer will serve less than two years.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL FOR SASKATCHEWAN

(28 November 1997) — It is unfortunate Hana Gartner was not at the Latimer Trial so that her questions could have been grounded in the facts of the case rather than misinformation. The facts as established in the trial included that Tracy Latimer's pain was intermittent and situational, rather than "constant" as the interviewer and the Latimers erroneously described it.

by Jim Derksen

(27 November 1997) — Manitoba law professor Barney Sneiderman has developed a model statute which would reduce murder charges to manslaughter on the ground of compassionate motivation. The starting point for this model is the actual state of mind of the accused.

(25 November 1997) — Our community was relieved to see that Robert Latimer was convicted of the murder of his daughter Tracy. The verdict upheld our basic right as people with disabilities to equal protection and benefit of the law. However, over the last week the debate has once again shifted focus from the murder of Tracy to "how could we possibly jail Robert Latimer 'the salt of the earth' for ten years?" We find once again a significant outpouring of support for Robert Latimer and his family.

(21 November, 1997) Halifax—Members of the Canadian Association for Community Living, a national advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring the rights of individuals with intellectual disabilities, strongly support the decision of Mr. Justice G. E. (Ted) Noble, in finding Robert Latimer guilty of murdering his daughter, Tracy.

[19 November 1997]

I find it hard to add anything 'new' to the discussion about the Latimer trial, in view of the powerful contributions that have already been made by everyone from Teague Johnson to Cheryl Eckstein. But I also believe that it's important to add our voice to the other voices of families and friends.

We are parents of a child who might be described the way Tracy has been described in the course of her trial (sorry, her father's trial). If Robert Latimer goes free, it means three things:

(17 November 1997) — Most lawyers agree with the old adage that "hard cases make bad law." Tailoring our laws to fit a few exceptions almost invariably means that they will fail to fit a much larger number of typical cases. We believe that changing the laws to respond to overwhelming public sentiment that Robert Latimer deserves a lighter sentence will almost certainly result in many new problems for Canadian law and society.

To understand what these new problems will be, we need to consider three possible alternatives for making these changes:

(5 November 1997) — I wanted to say that I appreciate your organization's attendance at the trial and your defense of Tracy and others before the media. I read the Latimer Watch entries on the CCD web page and today was moved to reply because of what you wrote about parents. I am appalled at Latimer's defense of "necessity". I try to be an ally of people with disabilities. My own brother was banished from our family at birth because he had Down's Syndrome. He died alone in a horrible institution of pneumonia at the age of 8.