Just Another Dead Indian Book Report

1610 Words7 Pages
In the book entitled Just Another Dead Indian A Serial Killer and Canada’s Indifference, Goulding reveals the deep seated inequality that exists in the Canadian Criminal Justice System, the media, and the public (Goulding, 2001). To support his claims Goulding uses one of Canada’s most horrific crimes the serial killings of John Martin Crawford. Those who are aware of John Crawford’s terrible deeds would agree that his case belongs in the league of Clifford Olsen, Paul Bernardo, Marcello Palma, and other infamous serial killers. However, the amount of publicity and media attention John Martin Crawford’s trial received paralleled that of a small town fair (Goulding, 2001). His aggressive sexual behaviour which resulted in the deaths of Eva Taysup, Shelley Napope, and Calinda Waterhen were shunned by the public and regarded as mildly newsworthy by the media (Goulding, pg 211). Why was such an appalling crime so widely ignored? Goulding argues the murders of John Martin Crawford were ignored because of the ethnic background, social position, and economic status of his victims (Goulding, 2001). All which were Aboriginal, economically impoverished, and socially excluded. It is hard to disagree with Goulding’s steadfast argument that the characteristics of the murder victims dictated the poor publicity of John Martin Crawford’s crime. He aptly defended his position with relevant quotations and cross analysis comparisons of similar serial killings in Canada that acquired more media attention (Goulding, pg 217). Goulding’s argument is further solidified, though not mentioned in his book, by the work of victimologists. Most victimologists would agree that a prime determinant of the public’s reaction to a crime would be the characteristics of the victim(s) (Karmen, pg 37). As Terry Hinz (the prosecuting lawyer of the John Martin Crawford case) suggested, the public
Open Document