Homolka author released on bail - Canada

[dArKeR]

Toronto — The author of two controversial books about sex killers Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka was back in court Thursday to face 94 more counts of disobeying a court order and violating a publication ban.

Stephen Williams, 54, was released on his own recognizance by Ontario Court Justice Salvatore Merenda.

The bulk of the new charges relate to Crown brief materials from the Bernardo case that Mr. Williams was ordered to hand over to police in May 2002 after banned information allegedly appeared on his Web site.

Specifically, 58 of them relate directly to the Web site, while 28 are the result of material that appears in Mr. Williams's first book, Invisible Darkness. Eight more relate to Karla: A Pact with the Devil.

http://theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20031023.wstep1023/BNStory/National/

[iverglas]

1. if anybody wants to know more

... or discuss the issues involved, I'll be here tomorrow.

Apart from the actual facts of the murders and police investigation and so on, the case actually involved some fascinating intersections and conflicts between fundamental values common to liberal democracies -- specifically, the accused's right to a fair trial (and the community's interest in ensuring that guilty persons are brought to justice) and the public's and press's freedom of speech (and the community's interest in the benefits of that freedom ... including fair trials ...).

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