Editorial Comment: Hennessey & Cheeseman - Scapegoats or Villains?

(Don't forget, my daily editorial comment airs weekday mornings at 6:20 with Bruce Kenyon and the Morning News, and again at 12:20pm with Wayne Nelson and Today So Far)

 

Tuesday's editorial comment:

 

While the world is a better place without James Roszko in it, there is clearly a deep and lasting remorse that he was not brought to justice for murdering four RCMP officers.

 

Given that fact, did we look for scapegoats? Did we feel the need to find someone to punish for what Roszko did?

 

Well, we found two people - Shawn Hennessey and Dennis Cheeseman. Yesterday, the Alberta Court of Appeals - in a split decision - upheld the manslaughter sentences handed to the two men.

 

The two had pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but had argued that the sentences were too severe.

I think any honest assessment of what we now know ought to lead to that conclusion.

 

The judges ruled that based on the agreed statement of facts, the original judge did not make an error in handing down the sentences.

 

Yet, there's all sorts of reasons to believe that the agreed statement of facts is not an accurate account of what happened.

 

It seems quite clear that Hennessey and Cheeseman - like so many others - lived in tremendous fear of James Roszko. There's also good reason to believe that Roszko had sexually assaulted Dennis Cheeseman.

 

Given that, we should also be highly suspcious of the Mr. Big sting that RCMP used on Cheeseman.

 

We also know that when Roszko had quote, asked for help from Hennessey, Roszko was packing a pistol and Hennessey's wife and two young children were in the home.

 

One can judge the decisions these two men did and didn't make that fateful night. It is wrong to say they wanted to help James Roszko or that they wanted these officers to die.

 

I'd also highly recommend reading the Edmonton Journal's excellent investigative series on the case.