If you'd rather place an order by talking to one of our cheerful order desk clerks, please call 1-888-232-4444 (USA and Canada only) or 250-383-6864. From Europe, ring our UK order desk clerk at local rate number 0845 230 9601 (UK only) or 44 (0)1865 722 113.

Poor Man's Justice

by David Mitchell

339 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-1901; ISBN 1-4120-1523-5; US$27.65, C$34.95, EUR22.75, £15.77

The true story of the author's encounter with the 'tangled roots of justice' - this is the book the justice system doesn't want you to read!

Read more!

About the Book      About the Author      Excerpts      Catalogue Information

About the Book

Preface

In recent years the modern media has been shining a light on our public courtrooms. Sensational stories of greed and betrayal, murder and mystery captivate us as we are taken on inquisitive voyages through the legal process. We have seen how individual wealth can be a great equalizer against any publicly-funded judicial system. We have watched defense attorneys and prosecutors clamor for attention and notoriety on a number of cases. And while some may disagree with the public display our legal system is subject to, the unbridled scrutiny of the process has enhanced the level of fairness brought to these particular cases. To that extent, we should applaud the television pundits who regularly keep us abreast with checks and balances.

The fact is, what society is watching, and sometimes engaging in during these debates, is justice, just as it is administered in our criminal and civil courtrooms every day. Desensitization of the public, achieved through dehumanization and degradation of an accused or accuser, is a common strategy that is routinely practiced throughout our judicial process.

Whenever I find myself watching these intriguing debates, I always hear someone talk about due process. But when I found myself entangled in the justice system, absent any public scrutiny and without any means to pay for a defense, I discovered due process was not always present. And when it was not present, it was only replaced with one thing, undue process, or what I call poor man's justice.

Poor Man's Justice is a true story that takes the reader behind the closed doors of Canada's justice system. Unlike most true crime stories, this story is not about guilt or innocence. Instead, it shows the aftermath of sentencing, when a man who admitted guilt to the crime for which he is in jail, must struggle with a court, correctional, and parole process that punishes him for crimes he never committed, manipulating him emotionally and giving him no opportunity to confront his accusers and clear his name.

Poor Man's Justice raises a multitude of questions: What should happen when the justice system crosses the line into abusive behavior? Where does the responsibility for this abuse rest?

Why is there a lack of accountability in our courts, the Correctional Service of Canada and the parole process?

The strength and stature of a society are heightened when that society demonstrates a willingness to protect all of its citizens. To achieve this, it needs a judicial process that will look after victims' rights, while ensuring that the legal and civil rights of accused and incarcerated citizens are maintained.

So when a justice system abandons the fairness that should accompany due process, and instead tilts towards a better-safe-than-sorry philosophy, society quickly finds itself debating the meaning of the word "justice," which spawns a multitude of questions. What's right? What's wrong? What's fair? What's just? Who wins and who loses?

Poor Man's Justice illustrates the unfairness that has accompanied a slow and deliberate dismantling of due process in Canada's legal system. It is my hope that this book will help turn that tide and aid society as it searches for answers and directions that will protect the legal, civil, and human rights of all its citizens.

---

About the Author

David Mitchell was born and raised in the small town of Vanderhoof (BC, Canada), a community founded in the early 1900's by Herbert Vanderhoof, a Chicago publisher who dreamed of building a retreat for artists and writers.

David, one of seven children in a family of modest means, showed his ability as an athlete at an early age. At 13, he captured his school's track and field championship, winning 6 events out of 6. At 15, the community kept the local ice arena open for 2 extra weeks, allowing David to prepare for an expected trip to the Wrigley Cup (now the Air Canada Cup). Sadly, the trip did not materialize when Kamloops, the expected BC championship team that had asked David to play in the Canadian Championships, was upset in the BC finals.

After being scouted by the Boston Bruins, the following year David attended a training camp for the Estevan Bruins, a Junior A hockey club in Saskatchewan. Unfortunately David received an eye injury which forced him to abandon his dream of one day playing goal for the Boston Bruins. However, blessed with his athletic ability, David became a skilled forward and still managed to fulfill his lifelong dream of playing professional hockey in the Eastern Hockey League.

After returning home to Vanderhoof, David won the scoring championship and MVP in one of Canada's oldest and most competitive senior leagues before getting married in 1974.

The completion of Poor Man's Justice, a ten-year project, once again highlights the persistence and determination David has shown throughout his life.

Photo: the author with his three children, Jeff, Aimee and Steven

---

Excerpts

Chapter 2, pg ll

"Dad!" Jeff yelled again. "What's happened?...What's happened?...Dad, talk to me!"

Images of flailing hands, pounding fists, a body on the floor raced through my head, jumbled and unclear. Were they real? Had I dreamed them?

Chapter 6, pg 67

Elizabeth glanced over my shoulder at the closed door. I sensed some fear in her voice as she hesitantly responded, not answering my question, but hinting that more was going on than I realized. "David, I'm very concerned about what is going on. These people play for real and they are not happy with you. I'm afraid for you, and this trip to Kamloops scares me." Elizabeth leaned closer, this time speaking just above a whisper. "I'm afraid something is going to happen to you and you will not be coming back!"

An icy chill shook me violently. "I don't understand. Are you saying my life is in danger?"

"I don't know," she answered. "I'm just very afraid something's going to happen."

Chapter 11, pg 121

"You think this is amusing, Mr. Mitchell," the administrator said as he glared over the top of his spectacles, much as he had done months before when he announced my transfer back to Kamloops as a witness for a murder trial. "You think you're something, taking on this system, hey! This is serious, Mr. Mitchell. You are in my court today!...Now, HOW DO YOU PLEAD?"

"Not guilty, your honor."

"GUILTY! GUILTY!" Kinnar screamed. "THIS COURT FINDS YOU GUILTY!!"

Chapter 14, pg 154

A knock on the apartment door startled me. Such an early morning visitor seemed unusual, and I hesitantly unlocked the deadbolt before opening the door a few inches.

"What...?"

Chapter 15, pg184

"JEFF...AIMEE...STEVEN?" I screamed.

"David! Fight these people, fight back! Don't let them hurt you, Don't let them hurt your kids!...Stand up and fight back!"

"What's happening? What's happening? I can't breathe!"

I relaxed my grip and a blast of cold night air rushed down my throat. I felt a tear come to rest on my upper cheek. Exhausted, I unwrapped the sheet and dragged it over me, then slowly curled up on the floor, in the Hole at the Matsqui Penitentiary.

Chapter 17, pg 211

Through the blur, I squinted into the teary and bloodstained face of a quivering shadow. A ghostly image it was, filled with fear and riddled with pain and uncertainty. I closed my eyes and tried to shut out its woeful wails and lonely cries of despair. Suddenly, a tear dropped onto my cheek and I realized a part of me was missing. My childlike innocence, imprisoned in eternity...lost forever! Forever gone

Chapter 20, pg 238

I reached into my coat pocket and Vannier recoiled at the sight of the black object that appeared in my right hand.

Chapter 21, pg 261

"There are people in contempt of the justice system, in this court, and in this country...sitting on the benches around here," I said angrily, shouting back at the judge as I stepped out of the courtroom.

---

Catalogue Information

---