Trial by Media: When Speculation Turns to Libel

Lots of Support for Merritt Mom
CKNW. 4/15/2008

Friends in Merritt say support is strong for a local woman grieving the loss of her three young children.
The hunt for the killer continues.
The prime suspect is their father, 40 year old Allan Schoenborn.
Friends who set up a trust fund at a Merritt bank for Darcie Clark won't say how much money has been collected.
But they say donations have been coming in from all over BC, and from places like Winnipeg and Yellowknife as well.
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Unless I missed a whole lot, such as the completed RCMP investigation, charge assessment, Crown recommending criminal charges, a trial and conviction, media outlets have vastly overstepped themselves & committed libel by openly publishing and broadcasting that Mr. Schoenborn is a “killer.”

It is a hallmark of our criminal justice system and a defendant’s rights (once charged by the Crown) that they are innocent until proven and judged guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case, Mr. Schoenborn is known to suffer from mental illness, it is not a fait accomplait that he actually committed the crime, that he is guilty of anything, or that he would meet the test for being criminally responsible, if he were to have committed any crime. Things are very often not what they seem and because of the shocking and horrifying nature of the deaths of these children, it is easy to understand the thirst for justice, but it cannot include libelous actions on the part of anyone.

Ask yourself, what would you feel like if you were accused, tarred & feathered & found guilty in the court of public opinion and the media before your side could ever be learned. What if you weren't guilty? What if someone else did this to your children? One only has to pick up true crime stories to see that sometimes the most unexpected people do the most unexpected things. Facts and evidence are what count and what matter.

As we can see from the statements made by law enforcement officials below, the media has done a disservice from the start and misinformation has been published, distributed and transmitted about several facts of importance in this case from the very beginning. That should concern everyone, because someday it could be you, or someone you love. How many people's lives have been torn apart by false accusations of abuse? Many.
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Suspected killer of 3 children in B.C. has violent past: documents
RCMP warn suspect could have reached Alberta already
Last Updated: Monday, April 7, 2008 | CBC News

Police on Monday said earlier media reports that Schoenborn had been found dead in the trailer home along with his three children were wrong.

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Police release new photos of father of slain Merritt children
Last Updated: Friday, April 11, 2008 |CBC News

Excerpt:

Timeline still uncertain
It's still not clear how long the children were dead before their mother called police.

Linteau said the "time and cause of death" is not something police are willing to release at this time.

"We've never actually released that information. The only thing we have been saying is that contrary to some media reports that she was only gone a few minutes or 10 minutes, we can confirm that information is false," said Linteau.

Linteau did confirm the children's mother, Darcie Clarke, left the home, and Allan Schoenborn was in the trailer alone with his children for a period of time before police were called on Sunday.

Linteau would not reveal how long the children had been dead before their bodies were found, but at a news conference Thursday, RCMP Asst. Commissioner Al Macintyre said it was "considerably earlier" than was reported by Clarke just after 2 p.m. Sunday when Merritt RCMP were called to the mobile home.

At the same news conference, Macintyre would not comment on whether Clarke has been ruled out as a suspect, but later said, "Personally in my heart, I don't see the mother as a suspect. I could be proven wrong afterwards because something else will have been learned or determined."

Police said Clarke is in a safe location "undergoing care," but they will not reveal if she is still at the local hospital or somewhere else, or if she is under police guard.