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Trial of Louis Riel
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Trial of Louis Riel
The trial of Louis Riel took place in Regina, Canada, in 1885. Louis Riel had been a leader of a resistance movement by the Métis and First Nations people of western Canada against the Government of Canada in what is now the province of Saskatchewan. Known as the North-West Rebellion, this resistance was suppressed by the Canadian military, which led to Riel's surrender and trial for treason. The trial, which took place in July 1885 and lasted five days, resulted in a guilty verdict. He was also given a choice to plead guilty or insanity. Riel was subsequently executed by hanging, an outcome which has had a lasting negative impact on relations between Anglophone Canadians and the Riel supporters among French Canadians.
The North-West Rebellion occurred in the winter and spring of 1885. Louis Riel, a Métis from Red River in what is now Manitoba, had been one of the primary leaders of the Red River Rebellion in 1870. One of the divisive events of the Red River Rebellion had been the execution of Thomas Scott, who had opposed the provisional government which Riel had been instrumental in creating.
The Red River Rebellion had resulted in the creation of Manitoba, but the Métis of Manitoba had found themselves marginalised as Canadian settlers moved into the new province. Many of the Métis had moved to the North-West Territories, settling along the South Saskatchewan River.
As for Riel, he had been living in exile in Montana since 1875. In the spring of 1884, a delegation of four Métis, led by Gabriel Dumont, visited Riel in Montana and urged him to come to the North-West, to help the Métis, First Nations, and other settlers to express their grievances to the Canadian government. The grievances included the need for security of land titles, and the lack of democratic institutions in the Territories. Riel returned to Canada and became one of the acknowledged leaders of the Métis in the North-West Territories, as well as other groups in the North-West.
After the breakdown of initial parleys with representatives of the territorial and federal governments, the Métis and some First Nations took up arms, in March, 1885. The Canadian government sent troops west, which culminated in a battle at Batoche, where the Métis forces were defeated in mid-May. Following the defeat at Batoche, Riel surrendered himself to the government forces on May 15, 1885. He was taken to Regina, the capital of the North-West Territories, where he was imprisoned awaiting trial. He was manacled with a ball and chain.
Riel was charged with six counts of high treason, by a sworn information laid before the stipendiary magistrate on July 6, 1885. The charges were laid under the English Treason Act 1351 which was in force in Canada prior to the enactment of the first Criminal Code in 1892. The Treason Act carried a mandatory penalty of death upon conviction. Riel was the only person involved in the Rebellion who was charged with high treason. Seventy-one individuals were charged with the lesser offence of treason-felony, while twelve were charged with murder.
The team of Crown prosecutors had three accomplished senior lawyers from eastern Canada: George Burbidge, the Deputy Attorney General of Canada; Christopher Robinson, QC, who had represented the Government of Canada on a number of matters; and Britton Bath Osler, QC, who had already made a name for himself as a prosecutor. There were also two younger lawyers, who went on to distinguished careers: David Lynch Scott, the local Crown prosecutor for the district of Western Assiniboia, later appointed to the Supreme Court of the North-West Territories and eventually Chief Justice of Alberta; and Thomas Chase-Casgrain, who eventually became the Attorney General of Quebec. Chase-Casgrain was the lone French-Canadian in the prosecution.
Riel could not afford to hire defence lawyers. His defence was funded by supporters in Quebec, who established the Association Nationale pour la Défense des Prisonniers Métis. The defence was led by Charles Fitzpatrick, a notable lawyer from Quebec who subsequently became Chief Justice of Canada. He was joined in the defence by François-Xavier Lemieux, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and future chief justice of the Superior Court of Quebec; Thomas Cooke Johnstone, who acquired a reputation as a leading expert on criminal law and was eventually appointed to the Supreme Court of Saskatchewan; and James Naismith Greenshields, a lawyer from Quebec. Fitzpatrick, Lemieux and Greenshields went on to act as defence counsel for Honoré Mercier, the former premier of Quebec, and gained acquittals on corruption charges.
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Trial of Louis Riel
The trial of Louis Riel took place in Regina, Canada, in 1885. Louis Riel had been a leader of a resistance movement by the Métis and First Nations people of western Canada against the Government of Canada in what is now the province of Saskatchewan. Known as the North-West Rebellion, this resistance was suppressed by the Canadian military, which led to Riel's surrender and trial for treason. The trial, which took place in July 1885 and lasted five days, resulted in a guilty verdict. He was also given a choice to plead guilty or insanity. Riel was subsequently executed by hanging, an outcome which has had a lasting negative impact on relations between Anglophone Canadians and the Riel supporters among French Canadians.
The North-West Rebellion occurred in the winter and spring of 1885. Louis Riel, a Métis from Red River in what is now Manitoba, had been one of the primary leaders of the Red River Rebellion in 1870. One of the divisive events of the Red River Rebellion had been the execution of Thomas Scott, who had opposed the provisional government which Riel had been instrumental in creating.
The Red River Rebellion had resulted in the creation of Manitoba, but the Métis of Manitoba had found themselves marginalised as Canadian settlers moved into the new province. Many of the Métis had moved to the North-West Territories, settling along the South Saskatchewan River.
As for Riel, he had been living in exile in Montana since 1875. In the spring of 1884, a delegation of four Métis, led by Gabriel Dumont, visited Riel in Montana and urged him to come to the North-West, to help the Métis, First Nations, and other settlers to express their grievances to the Canadian government. The grievances included the need for security of land titles, and the lack of democratic institutions in the Territories. Riel returned to Canada and became one of the acknowledged leaders of the Métis in the North-West Territories, as well as other groups in the North-West.
After the breakdown of initial parleys with representatives of the territorial and federal governments, the Métis and some First Nations took up arms, in March, 1885. The Canadian government sent troops west, which culminated in a battle at Batoche, where the Métis forces were defeated in mid-May. Following the defeat at Batoche, Riel surrendered himself to the government forces on May 15, 1885. He was taken to Regina, the capital of the North-West Territories, where he was imprisoned awaiting trial. He was manacled with a ball and chain.
Riel was charged with six counts of high treason, by a sworn information laid before the stipendiary magistrate on July 6, 1885. The charges were laid under the English Treason Act 1351 which was in force in Canada prior to the enactment of the first Criminal Code in 1892. The Treason Act carried a mandatory penalty of death upon conviction. Riel was the only person involved in the Rebellion who was charged with high treason. Seventy-one individuals were charged with the lesser offence of treason-felony, while twelve were charged with murder.
The team of Crown prosecutors had three accomplished senior lawyers from eastern Canada: George Burbidge, the Deputy Attorney General of Canada; Christopher Robinson, QC, who had represented the Government of Canada on a number of matters; and Britton Bath Osler, QC, who had already made a name for himself as a prosecutor. There were also two younger lawyers, who went on to distinguished careers: David Lynch Scott, the local Crown prosecutor for the district of Western Assiniboia, later appointed to the Supreme Court of the North-West Territories and eventually Chief Justice of Alberta; and Thomas Chase-Casgrain, who eventually became the Attorney General of Quebec. Chase-Casgrain was the lone French-Canadian in the prosecution.
Riel could not afford to hire defence lawyers. His defence was funded by supporters in Quebec, who established the Association Nationale pour la Défense des Prisonniers Métis. The defence was led by Charles Fitzpatrick, a notable lawyer from Quebec who subsequently became Chief Justice of Canada. He was joined in the defence by François-Xavier Lemieux, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and future chief justice of the Superior Court of Quebec; Thomas Cooke Johnstone, who acquired a reputation as a leading expert on criminal law and was eventually appointed to the Supreme Court of Saskatchewan; and James Naismith Greenshields, a lawyer from Quebec. Fitzpatrick, Lemieux and Greenshields went on to act as defence counsel for Honoré Mercier, the former premier of Quebec, and gained acquittals on corruption charges.
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