Stoddard Online

BACK ON TRACK.

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THE WILBERT COFFIN CASE.

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Prior to getting back to a regular posting routine of the Wilbert Coffin case, there are a few things that folks have requested of me by e-mail for clarification. As I have been battling health issues, I have been unable to post with the frequency that has been possible in the past. Hopefully, those issues are behind me now for awhile, and I will now address a couple of things.

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Firstly, there have been a few folks asking about the Brossard Inquiry and its significance to the murder conviction of Wilbert Coffin. Apparently, there is a web site with the mandate to pursue the Brossard Inquiry transcripts, and tie them in with the finding of guilt of Wilbert Coffin.

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As readers of this site, you will have learned that Wilbert Coffin was found guilty in Perce', Quebec in 1954 for the murder of Richard Lindsey. I have also alluded to the fact many times that the Brossard Inquiry took place nearly ten years after the trial, and approximately eight years after Wilbert Coffin's execution.

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Based on this knowledge, you may be asking why the Brossard Inquiry was necessary, and if so, what was gained on conclusion? In simple terms, in my opinion, the inquiry was not necessary and nothing was gained on conclusion.

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You must understand the Brossard Inquiry was not an appeal of Wilbert Coffin's conviction, nor was it an appeal of his sentence. In my view the inquiry was nothing more than a selfish move by the government and the judiciary of Quebec in a vain attempt to absolve themselves of the appearance of any wrong doing, when it could be demonstrated that a man was hanged based on a trial that was unfair and in many instances illegal. It is also important to note that many of those charged with the responsibility of a fair and impartial inquiry were the same ones who had headed the steering committee on the original police investigation. I speak specificially of John Vanhoutte and others. In effect, John Vanhoutte was investigating himself.

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The journalist, later to become Senator, the late Jacques Hebert brought much heat on the judiciary of Quebec during those days. The inquiry was portrayed as a means of bringing Mr. Hebert to task for his actions, however there are apparently some who now preach the findings of the Brossard Inquiry as part of the finding of guilt of Mr. Coffin.

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I have had the opportunity to look over the Brossard transcripts in detail, and one does not have to be a genious to quickly discover that questions asked of witnesses at the inquiry were well placed to focus information in a different direction than that made available for scrutiny by the jury at the perce' trial. One must also ponder the very real possibility that after a time lapse of almost ten years, it is reasonable to assume that answers to some questions may vary. Think for a moment, do you remember in the finest of detail the conversation that you may have had with someone nearly ten years ago?

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Another aspect of this inquiry that renders it useless is the fact that information could be taken out of context from the original trial. Questions could be asked of the same witness, but I do notice that the questions could be worded in a slightly different manner, and thus the answer given at trial differs from that of the inquiry.

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I do stress that before you base your thoughts on guilt or innocence from what you are being presented from the Brossard Inquiry you should consider all the variables and draw conclusions only after you see the full story presented from the trial. Afterall, it was the trial at Perce' that convicted Wilbert Coffin, not some travelling dog and pony act.

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It is blatently obvious that the trial of Wilbert Coffin was a very flawed process. It was the result of this flawed process that I believe robbed a man of his life.

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In the next few days we shall be hitting this trial in a heavy handed way. The forensic report will prove that. This is stuff that you will never read about in the Brossard Inquiry transcripts. In addition, I shall expose a couple of letters written by John Vanhoutte and Captain Matte. These I guarantee you will not see in the Brossard Inquiry, because if the information contained in these files had been brought up at trial, there would have been no Brossard Inquiry because the trial could have ended.

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Thanks once again in a big way folks for being patient. I shall be back in a few days. As you know, I am a man of few words but we do our best out here on the west coast of Canada. God Bless You, one and all.

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Lew Stoddard