The particular problem of investigators who want to
"hang a dog" , is the lack of credible evidence which
suggests that Morin is in fact guilty of murder. The
particular problem of a suspect who is aware of his
innocence, is the possibility of being framed, a
prospect which is rarely, if ever contemplated. And
so, Morin naively assumed that he had nothing to worry
about. Interrogated for six hours without a lawyer, he
confidently faced his accusers and volunteered
disclosures he expected would clear him of erroneous
charges. Guy Paul Morin offered the Durham Regional
police samples of his hair, saliva and blood and
expected to be treated fairly in return. According to
Morin;
I trusted you guys from the start. And I trust
you with those samples I gave you. Because
really, what the hell! If they match up with the
girl, put me in. I mean it. Put me in forever!26
When investigators conned Morin into thinking that one
of his own hairs was found on Christine's body, (The
only provable conclusion is that the hair in question
was not unlike Morin's. The assertion that it was
actually Morin's is inconclusive.) Morin did not break
down and confess or panic, but characteristically
thought out aloud;
That I can't explain. I mean, really, I cannot
tell you that -because I told you I've never
touched the kid. She has never been in my
car. ...I'd have to be really mental to do
something like that -pull a hair out and throw
it on her body.27
The integrity of this spontaneously logical
assessment, provides a stark contrast to the evident
mishandling of the evidence by Durham Regional Police
Officer, Sergeant Michalowsky. The logical extension
of Morin's think-out-loud disclosures is quite
apparent. -Morin did not kill Christine, Morin did not
plant his hair on her necklace, if a hair was planted,
someone who was responsible for handling physical
exhibits, must know about it.
Indeed, in the final analysis, only someone who had
knowledge about planted evidence, could conclusively
say that Morin's hair was recovered from the body of
the victim. Evidence of matching hair does not provide
a conclusive identification. Indeed, even two of
Christine's own classmates had hairs that matched the
so-called "mute" wi tness that allegedly proved Morin's
guilt.28 Ironically, from a purely rational point of
view, the most comprehensive assertion that one can
make about hair evidence is that it was planted, to
make it appear as though conclusive evidence against
Morin, in fact existed.
And while a zealous Crown finally convinced a jury,
after failing the first time around, that a single
hair was a "mute wi tness " which tied Morin to the
Jessop murder, an objective analysis suggests that Guy
Paul Morinwas successfully framed. Excuse-mongers, or
people who practice the ability to "explain away"
evidence, will no doubt insist that a bungled
investigation simply reflects the human propensity to
err, but when the propensity to err defines a
consistent pattern, in terms of the propensity to
mishandle and misrepresent the evidence, it becomes
the propensity to commit fraud.
27Globe and Mail, 4/27/92, p. A 8.
28Globe and Mail, 6/2/86, p. A 20.
