Herald Column: The Stories Criminals (Want To) Tell

This week's Calgary Herald column from yours truly looks at the debate surrounding Colin Thatcher's new book, and whether the law can and should prevent convicted criminals from signing books deals or somehow profiting from their notoriety: 

...Nonetheless, the book's pending release has reopened the debate over whether the legal system can be used to prevent convicted criminals from cashing in on their notoriety.

 

In a broad sense, it is virtually impossible --Thatcher is out of prison and free to earn a living, and one could argue that any future income is linked to his profile.

 

Of course, it would be much easier to prevent convicted murderers from cashing in on their infamy if we only kept them behind bars. Perhaps the legislative tools of the state would be better geared toward preventing those convicted of first-degree murder from ever leaving prison.

 

Since that horse has already left the proverbial barn, the Saskatchewan government is going after Thatcher's finances--specifically his book deal with ECW Press.

 

That province followed the lead of other jurisdictions, including Alberta, in introducing--and rushing through--the Profits of Criminal Notoriety Act.

 

The legislation forbids "any money earned through the recounting of a crime" --Thatcher's publisher maintains that the book does not recount the crime and is therefore outside the realm of this law.

 

(...)

 

While society is rightly abhorred at the prospect of violent criminals profiting from their crimes --imagine cop-killer Albert Foulston (who is, shockingly, about to be released) signing such a deal--these sorts of laws may end up casting too wide a net.

 

Fortunately, there are not too many examples of this --perhaps the decency of Canadians (and the backlash from running afoul of it) is enough of a safeguard.

 

Although, if a remorseful criminal is trying to help keep young people from making the same mistakes --would compensation for that re-telling be such a bad thing?

 

Or what if the technicality of a conviction masks a deeper societal issue? I think Canadians will be eager to hear at some point from Robert Latimer. Should this law apply to him?

 

Another example may be Alberta rancher Brian Knight, who's facing some serious charges after he chased and shot a thief. Many have rallied to his cause, and the case has generated much discussion about self-defence and protecting one's property. A conviction and jail term would only intensify that discussion and prompt more interest in a post-conviction re-telling of the story.  

We did a segment about this case last week as we spoke with the publisher of ECW Press and a spokesman for a victims' rights group. You can access that segment at our podcast page or by clicking here (MP3).

 

UPDATE: The National Post's Kevin Libin has a fascinating piece on the many issues surrounding Thatcher's conviction and the evidence in the case.