Monday, November 20, 2006

Stoddard Online

Stodddard Online: . . . . SPECIAL TO THE WILBERT COFFIN CASE

By now you are no doubt aware of certain articles appearing in some of the eastern publications regarding the Wilbert Coffin case. As we all know, this case has been around for in excess of fifty long years. As a result, anytime that information not previously known about by the public can very easily be absorbed by a hungry society as the long awaited turning point that is almost guaranteed to break the case. This is where the public should tread with caution.

Judging from some of the comments on my web site, and through numerous e-mails on this latest revelation, there will be a cross section of the public who will be quick to say that I am just trying to steal someone else's thunder. If that is your approach, that is ok. My position on this remains the same, I am not ready to start doing cartwheels just yet. This case is not over. I wish it was, but it simply isn't.

You will have read of the possible involvement of a Mr. Jean Philippe Cabot in this case, naming him as a possible perpetrator of this crime. That is not new information. That story has been around for at least thirty years. You will have read in some of the recent articles that Mr. Cabot's son, Gabriel, has stated that he was a witness to his father commiting this crime. You may be hearing of that for the first time only now with the recent newspaper accounts. Again, this is not new. That part of the story is decades old as well. It was not publicly reported on previously because of one underlying reason, and one reason alone. That reason being , there would have been possible slander implications, simply because there was no sworn affadavit to back up the claim. Suddenly, the story emerges now in the press. It is ok here to say, Why now? The quick answer to that is because Mr. Gabriel Cabot passed into eternity in May of 2006, thus removing the slander barrier that existed.

On a personal note, I commenced investigating and writing the story of Wilbert Coffin in April of 2006. Within one week of research, Mr. Cabot's name was brought to my attention through many rumours. I did a fair amount of researching Mr. Cabot. Information came from many sources. It had to be sifted very carefully, as obviously much of it was based strictly on what someone had heard, and that person had heard it from someone else, and so on down the line. In other words, lots of stories, but not a lot that I could nail down as concrete. I did learn though, as many others did, Mr. Cabot Sr. was not a nice person. Obviously, I never had the opportunity to interview Mr. Cabot, so again, even the stuff that is accepted as fact, I know of no sworn document to support these allegations.

I know that it takes courage and stamina for a family member to come forward in cases such as this. I commend the family for that, but again, the information brought forward in this latest report seems to stem from Gabriel Cabot who has passed on, with no sworn statement that I am aware of. In the absence of sworn testimony, just how much creedence will be placed on all this by the government review board, I am not sure, and indeed, I do not speculate.

In the event there are some of you who will suggest that I did not know previously of the Cabot allegations, well, let me suggest that I can back up my claim. As I have stated many times in my writings, I publish nothing as fact that I cannot back up with a personal interview, or a document to nail it down. In this case, I have such a document, signed in the hand writing of the author. As a matter of fact, I have at least two of them. Because of this fact, I will suggest to you, that the basis for much of the current stories that you are reading in the newspapers was garnered from this same individual, and not from sudden new research carried out by the publications. I know that because the same information appears in some of the newspaper accounts that is in the signed documents that I am in possession of, and I have possessed these since early spring. Let me be clear, I am not saying this as a means to question the validity of the content in the documents that I possess, I am merely suggesting that I know the roots of the story.

I am not the only person to view and read these documents. I have shared the content and allowed some members of the Coffin family to view them as well. I will tell you that one of these documents was written to Jean Gabriel Cabot and is dated July 31, 2004. The other document, hand written is to a gentleman in the Gaspe region. That document is dated October, 1999. The document to Mr. Cabot was written in an attempt to coerce him to talk and swear information. In my view, at best it would serve to scare off someone allegedly having gone through what Mr. cabot is purported to have experienced. I believe the tone of this document is atrocious, and I believe that the author was not qualified to do such an interrogation. In contrast to this document, the other addressed to an individual in the Gaspe' region, asks among other things, did the recipient recall if Philippe Cabot's vehicle had bald tires or not? Under normal everyday conditions that may be a good question, however, in this case, the vehicle in question was owned in 1953, and this was now 1999.

I was going to post these documents, and I do not rule out the possibility that I may still do so. I chose not to at the present time in order to avoid embarassment to the author, particularly in the document to Mr. Cabot, because as I stated I do not like the tone of the wording, and quite frankly, I find it disturbing and chilling. I sought and obtained a legal opinion yesterday with respect to publishing these papers. I was assured that I was well within the confines of the law to publish them, as their origins are authenticated, and given to me by the person who prepared and signed them.

In one weekend publication one statement jumps out at me. Gabriel Cabot is reportedly saying that he witnessed his father beating Eugene Lindsey, and then finish him off by running over him with the truck and crushing him. Obviously, the reporter did not see, or did not have available the autopsy report on Mr. Lindsey. I do have those reports on all three individuals. There is absolutely nothing in the autopsy report of Mr. Lindsey to suggest he was crushed by a moving truck. There is no mention of broken bones reported. It does mention though that the head and a large part of the thorax was missing. The autopsy reports on the boys do not state they were shot. It states there were circular perforations in the clothing, but not identifying them as a result of gunshots. The gunshot theory was factored in later.

There are many questions to answer, and again I repeat, in my view until such time as a sworn affadavit surfaces from Gabriel Cabot, it is going to be a tough sell. It is wrong to anticipate the decision that may come from the government inquiry just yet.

With respect to my own personal involvement in this case, my plans and goals have not changed. From day one, my objective has been, still is, and always will be to end this story with the exoneration of Wilbert Coffin. In my view, the main focus right now should be to prove that Wilbert Coffin was executed by a flawed process, and the reasons why it happened. In other words, I am in it for the long haul. I stand by what I have reported on this case.

I have not faltered with respect to my theory that these men were not shot, but stabbed. I am not saying that Mr. Cabot did not play a role, but when you read my accounting, you will see an altogether different picture than that being presented in the media. I received a telephone call yesterday from a major print media outlet in Toronto. I was asked by the reporter if I might make a statement for him about my views on the outcome of the case. I told him, sure I would be happy to. I told him to keep reading the web page, and he would get the statement at exactly the same time as the rest of Canada gets it. My first responsibility is to my readers, and to the families of Wilbert Coffin and others touched by this horrendous saga.

Now to get back to the business of solving this affair. On Friday, I shall be posting the commencement of the trial, how it was set up, the players involved, and the presentation of the crown's case leading to Wilbert Coffin's conviction. At the conclusion of the trial, this is where you will all learn the exact reason that Wilbert Coffin was allowed to finally hang and the documented sequence of events that provided the mechanism for the execution.

Lew Stoddard
Posted to site November 21, 2006

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mr. Stoddard,

What you have to say here proves nothing. I do not believe that you have any such documentation that you are talking about. If you really did, and if you published it, then I would look at it much differently. Until as such time as that happens, my opinion is that you are doing what you can to destroy valuable new evidence.

Some people do a good job of creating their own story, and I think that you would qualify for an award in that department. As I told you a few days ago, your appearance at centre stage is over.

T Myles
Toronto, Ontario

Anonymous said...

Mr. Stoddard,
I want to accept what you are saying, you are always so sincere and appear dedicated.

I am not saying that I support Mr. Myles, but I guess there is reason there to think about things.

Joan Watters
Nova scotia

Anonymous said...

Lew Old Buddy,

Hang in there Pal. Still with you all the way. You are doing a great job, have told you that before, don't give an inch to these so and so's who have no real place or ambition in life other than to criticize.

B Owens
Winnipeg

Anonymous said...

Lew Stoddard,

Great posting today. I couldn;t agree with you more, long way to go, that stuff in it's present form proves nothing. Newspaper reporters need to get out more often.

Lew, good to see you are still swinging. Kepp at it.

The Taggert Family
Kamloops, BC

Anonymous said...

I just have to say...people who are swayed by the media so easily clearly have not had a lot of contact with publicity/media in their lives. Over the years, through my work, I have been a part of many stories in the main media arena, and there are always facts that were missed or not clearly represented. Not necessarily intentionally by the reporters, but I really think that medium can be limited in scope and swayed by the need for public attention. Slow and steady, with facts and attention to detail, are what "wins the race" in the end.

Thanks Lew!

Anonymous said...

To T Myles

You say Lew no longer has center stage. Well obviously he does as you keep reading and posting - are you trying to steal the stage ?

I personally know of the documentation and have seen it. It does exist, although if I werwe Lew I wouldn't be using it either due to the nature by which the information was obtained.

Anonymous said...

Certainly I am not one to jump up either and say this is over. Even if this is all true from the media, there are still a mountain of questions that would not be answered and of course the big question still remains the same.

The question is, Why was Wilbert Coffin hanged, and why did a corrupt and illegal regime control this man's destiny?

I believe that question would be the important one that Lew Stoddard is trying to answer. Give the man a chance here.

Some of you are starting to display your ignorance coupled with your stupidity in a big way.

Barry H
Prince George, B C

Anonymous said...

Message for Lew Stoddard

As I suggested in a comment many weeks ago, you cannot prove the things you are not saying. I suggested that you leave it where it was and move on. I bet you are wishing now that you had listened to my advice and that of others and done just that.

You are the one here caught with egg smeared all over your face. You are full of allegations about this story, but that is where it ends. I think the Montreal gazettes story proves that.

I also notice that the family of Mr. Coffin seemed to have dropped you from sight as i don't see them much anymore making comments. Again Sir, give it up before you choke on it.

B Newell
Saskatoon, Sask

Anonymous said...

To b newell - I am one of the Coffin family and have been talking to most of the cousins that you refer to and the family has nothing but the utmost respect and trust for Mr. Stoddard. It is through his postings that this case has been brought to the front of our nation and beyond. As can been seen by the critics crawling out of the woodwork, there is much work to be done and we still need as much information as possible. Keep digging people so that justice may be served to find what is very rarely seen in written law. That is the word TRUTH. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

replying to B Newell we have been leaving comments on Lews site frequently so not sure where you have been reading, and as cousin Rick says ( by the way Ricky Hi again good comment thanks once again for almost getting me in trouble with mom you know what I am talking about) We are a very close family and stand behind Lew 100 percent. Lew you keep up the great work and hope to talk to you soon. You too Ricky hope to see you soon.

Anonymous said...

A message to B Newell of Saskatoon, Sask

Let me ask you a question. Let us say that the Montreal Gazette or any other paper were to publish a story claiming that they had received a letter telling them that someone had told them that a meteorite the size of 10 football fields was going to land right on top of your home tomorrow at 6:00 AM Eastern Time.

What would you do.
1. Stay put and take your chances that it will miss you?
2. Run to the hills and hide out?
3. Or would you do the sensible thing, do more research and try and find out the truth?

By the way you are speaking here, I would suggest that you invite Mr. T Myles from Toronto, Ontario to come and watch it falling from the heavens.

Wendall M Stanley
Gaspe, Quebec

P.S. By the way, as my cousins Rick and Anne have already mentioned, the Coffin family fully support Lew and are very thankful for all his hard work and for his integrity in what he writes.

Anonymous said...

Hello to all the readers of this web site.

I grew up on the Gaspe coast of Quebec, lived for some time among other places on the coast, in the Matapedia area.

I am now in my late sixties so I remember very well many of the events of the Wilbert coffin affair.

I will say one thing here and please pay attention. Over the years I have probably heard some 30 different versions of what the -true- story was surrounding this case. There seems to be a new one each year.

This so called -new stuff- in the past few days is not new. I have heard that for years, just told with a different turn to it.

I have read this site for the past few months and I am prepared to say that at least the writer is determined to get to the real issues of it. For those of you out there who moan and groan on here use your heads.

Don't try and crucify this man for trying to portray a truthful presentation. He makes much more sense than most of the stories over the years. Use his piece on the study of the autopsy reports as an example. I believe too as a result of what he says, these people did not die of gunshot wounds. The autopsies bear that out.

Mr. Stoddard is not finished yet. I took the time to send him an e-mail of encouragement yesterday, and he briefly shared a couple of things. I say you should all pay attention to his report in the next few days. I was startled.

As a former high school teacher, I wish all this information had been available during capital punishment debates.

Henri D
Yarmouth, Nova Scotia

Anonymous said...

I agree also with the comment from Henri with respect to those autopsy reports from the government pathologist.

I further agree with Mr. Stoddards last posting whereby he suggests there is nothing in thos reports to suggest that Mr. Lindsey was run over by a moving truck as was suggested in the newspaper story.

Who are we left to believe? The paper says these people were shot to death, although the autopsy reports do not suggest bullet wounds. Now the paper says there is eye witness evidence stating this Mr. Lindsey was run over by a moving truck to finish him off. Again, there was nothing in those autopsy reports that point to that.

Try lying on the ground and have a moving truck run over you with the wheels bent on destruction, and see if you come out of it all with no broken bones?

I will finish this up in this way. . . carry on Mr. stoddard, you are making a lot of sense and are thorough.

Janine Mercier
Trois Rivieres

Anonymous said...

Just to back up what Lew says about the documents he has, I can tell you that I have read and discussed each one with him, as well as translating for him one which is in French.Wise readers would ' stay the course' here!Skeptics and fools should move on to some other site laced with rumour.It would seem to fit your mentality better!

Anonymous said...

Truly amazing, you would think that Lew Stoddard is the criminal here by the way that some people carry on. He is entitled like everyone else to sort this thing out.

At least with his writings he has been different than the rest over the years where someone surfaces with a theory and then disappears. Does that not say something to you?

From what I can gather, his is pretty much a one person independent search of this whole thing. Judging by what he has managed to do on his own, imagine what he could have done with the resources of a publication such as the Montreal Gazette, La Press, or The Globe and Mail behind him.

In spite of their vast storehouse of money, people, and time, here we sit 50 years later and they haven't solved it yet. Get off his back, shut your faces, and I personally challenge any of you to show you are capable of doing a better job.

D McKenzie
Perth Andover, N B

Anonymous said...

I'm Marie, Wilbert Coffin's sister.
To all you people out there with nasty comments I have this to say.

How would you feel if you had sat in a courtroom and heard the verdict that your brother was to die by hanging? I can't begin to tell the horror, rage, and helplessness. And it has never ended.

How can the Supreme Court of Canada, the government and the police justify this? This was not justice. It was a case of hurry up and find someone so the tourist trade won't suffer and to appease the Americans. How little they valued a life. And this was a man who went to war to fight for his country. What a horrible way to say thank you.

In fifty years this is the first time people are coming forward to help my family. So, please don't knock Lew Stoddard and his efforts to help us. The support here has been so wonderful. I feel now that I'm not alone in this battle.

Please keep on signing petitions and helping me in my fundraisers. AIDWYC has a long way to go yet and I need to do more fundraisers for them. It is unbelievable the donations that I have received from strangers.

So please, if anyone has negative comments, we don't need to hear them. We are real people who are trying desperately to clear my brother's name. Please help us.

To Micheline Cabot, I have this to say. It took great courage to go public with this information about your father. Thank you. I hope this will help in our fight to clear my brother's name.

God Bless everyone for their support.

Marie Coffin
Gaspé, Quebec

Anonymous said...

Lew Stoddard I just want you to know that we are behind you all the way and looking forward to some more of the Wilbert Coffin story.

Hope your health situation is improving, not an easy struggle I know, but there are many of us out here pulling big time for you.

Bob and Marie T
Thunder Bay, Ontario

A Neice from Gaspes' Homeland said...

Good evening All,

Well, to say I am disappointed is not even close to how I feel about some of the comments since the articles in The Gazette came out.

What was & Is the original reason why this Blog started? Have so many people forgotten? What happened to the people that were reading this, trying to work as a team to support and give comments for one main Goal.

TO PROVE THAT WILBERT COFFIN IS AN INNOCENT MAN AS HE ALWAYS MAINTAINED. NOT JUST WORDS ON PAPER, BUT PROOF THAT THE JUSTICE SYSTEM BACK WHEN ALL THIS HAPPENED, WAS NOT PLAYING AN HONEST HAND, NOR BOTHERED TO LOOK UNDER EVERY POSSIBLE STONE TO FIND THE ACTUAL TRUTH.

What Has changed since November 18th to change the goal that was started here?

Has the Government Admitted anything different yet? Has the case been overturned and Mr. Coffin been released from the guilty charge that was laid upon him and as well his family?
Did We discover anything That has been proven fact??

THE ANSWER IS NO.

And yet, Intelligent people who have made positive comments in the blog, who want to help in this cause, all of a sudden read an article or 2 and have thrown their hands up in the air, shoulders no longer tense with the drive to bare their beliefs and stand up for what justice should bring, GIVE UP!

IS THAT WHAT HAPPENED 50 YEARS AGO?

They accused Wilbert Coffin, Arrested him, Did hands go up, Did shoulders drop and did the attitude that some people displayed here in this blog happen to the people in Gaspe? Why Not, IT JUST HAPPENED HERE! Yes Here in the year 2006, Where, We are supposed to have advanced in so many ways.

So, it sounds like it might be feasible, That we are repeating history. Here we are 50 years later, More advanced, more open minded. We have more rights, and we do not listen to rumours like the old days. We make up our own minds about how we feel and decide if what we feel is right & wrong, and we are not afraid to voice them. We stick to our guns, and are not led so easily by sensationalism. The Government no longer can imtimidate us, as in years gone by.

And Yet......


Please let the facts guide you, real facts, not reports that we can not prove, and let us not get side tracked from the original reasons that we are here.

Comment to T. Myles:

I do not believe there is anyone hanging over your shoulder forcing you to continue your interest in this blog. As you do not believe that the Government at that time could be powerful enough to allow such an ordeal to take place, and that they did not use intimidation as a control measure to ensure that things were run their way, we must believe that you are reading and keeping track of this blog on your accord. Thus giving me some idea that part of you, really wants to know facts, and that is why you keep coming back.

Comments regarding article in Gazette:

We must concentrate on facts, autopsy reports, actual witness documentation of the condition of the victims. Read the article from the Gazette well, read it again if you must. Some parts just do not figure right. Make sure you read the whole story and keep in mind the actual facts, not what you want to see in the story. And Remember the facts that have been brought up here, proven facts, backed up by documentation.

Mr. Stoddard:

I am waiting anxiously for the court case and for the documentation that you have uncovered. Slow but sure you will reach your goal and we as a team will be here to give full support. Thankyou for being so strong in a sometime weak world.

A Neice from Gaspe's Homeland
Gwen

Anonymous said...

Message to Gwen. . .

I could not agree with you more. Mr. Stoddard's sole ambition here right from day one has been to get to the bottom of this whole mess. Let's work with him, rather than against him.

As Mrs. Coffin (Stewart) put it a few days ago, we do not need your negative remarks. Keep them to yourself, and don't knock someone if you have nothing better to offer.

If some of you are blabbing only to see yourself in print, then I suggest that you also take a look in the mirror and ask yourself, what have been your accomplishments in the shallow life that you have obviously lived.

Bob M
Salisbury, New Brunswick

Anonymous said...

Just don't pay any attention to the T Myles and B Newell of the world. They are just trolling for a reaction. Every bulletin board has them. They just want to see their name in print.

Anonymous said...

DITTO!!!!

Anonymous said...

agrees with the rest of the family in their posts about support for Lew. We are all and have always been standing behind Lew in support of his tireless efforts and his work in trying to clear the name of Uncle Wilbert. There have been a lot of very negative comments on here lately and while everyone is entitled to their opinion it changes nothing about how this family will always stand by one another and how we are all grateful for Lew's continuing efforts and are 100% in support of him