Prairie Justice

""A gripping account of the conviction and hanging of a man with multiple disabilities whose life could have been saved by a better lawyer. An important reminder of the unfairness and arbitrariness of capital punishment and the constant risk of miscarriages of justice.""--Kent Roach, C.M., author of Canadian Justice, Indigenous Injustice and Wrongfully Convicted ""Wayne Sumner's background in philosophy shines through in this account of the trial and execution of Mike Hack. Although not a story about a wrongful conviction in the usual sense, it provides an unsettling example of how, a century ago, the criminal justice system misfired when confronted with a homicide committed by a disabled and mentally challenged young man. It is a welcome addition to Canada's library of legal history, made all the more poignant by the fact that Sumner has taken up his late father's interest in this sad and frustrating case.""--Hamar Foster, K.C., Professor Emeritus, University of Victoria ""Prairie Justice offers a caring, humane portrayal of the everyday operations of the criminal law in the early twentieth century. In a clear and lively style, and drawing deeply on the archival sources, Wayne Sumner confronts readers with the complexities and hardships that - then as now - arise from the meeting of criminal law, punishment, and mental health.""--Benjamin L. Berger, Professor and York Research Chair in Pluralism and Public Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University