VANCOUVER — A British Columbia Crown lawyer says the province should be off the hook in a lawsuit over a wrongful conviction because prosecutors wouldn't necessarily have known back in 1982 that withholding contradictory evidence from the accused could have helped his case.
Ivan Henry is suing the province for compensation in B.C. Supreme Court after he spent 27 years in prison for 10 sexual-assault convictions before being acquitted in 2010.
In closing arguments, Crown lawyer John Hunter asked Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson to put himself in the shoes of a lawyer in 1982 in order to better understand the culture at the time of disclosing evidence, despite the situation being different today.
Hunter also said Henry's choice to represent himself at trial means the outcome likely wouldn't have been any different even if he'd had access to additional evidence withheld by the Crown.
The evidence defence didn't see at trial included sperm samples that failed to match Henry's blood type, contradictory victim statements and a compromising hand-written letter from a complainant sent to one of the investigating officers.
Henry's lawyers say he deserves up to $43 million in compensation for his nearly three decades behind bars.
