Michael Goodyear has very kindly extracted quotes from the judge in the court case in Canada that struck down sex work laws. It strikes me as an illustration of the fact that the place to examine evidence is a court of law with a skilled judge drawing on a body of law about what is, and is not, admissible evidence. Evidence to be judged by whom? Civil servants at the UN? Gender specialists in international NGOs? The parties did not challenge the admissibility o evidence tendered but asked the court to afford little weight to the evidence of the other party.
Melissa Farley to be problematic. Although Dr. Farley has conducted a great deal of research on prostitution, her advocacy appears to have permeated her opinions. For example, Dr. Furthermore, in her affidavit, she failed to qualify her opinion regarding the causal relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder and prostitution, namely that it could be caused by events unrelated to prostitution.
Raymond and Poulin were more like advocates than experts offering independent opinions to the court. At times, they made bold, sweeping statements that were not reflected in their research. For example, some of Dr. As well, during cross-examination, it was revealed that some of Dr. In his affidavit, Dr. Poulin suggested that there have been instances of serial killers targeting prostitutes who worked at indoor locations; however, his sources do not appear to support his assertion. I found it troubling that Dr.
Poulin stated during cross-examination that it is not important for scholars to present information that contradicts their own findings or findings which they support. The judge suspended the effect of the decision for 30 days. It does not affect provisions dealing with people under Terri-Jean Bedford and Valerie Scott and Amy Lebovitch had argued that prohibitions on keeping a common bawdy house, communicating for the purposes of prostitution and living on the avails of the trade force them from the safety of their homes to face violence on the streets.
The women asked the court to declare legal restrictions on their activities a violation of charter rights of security of the person and freedom of expression. The women and their lawyer, Alan Young, held a news conference Tuesday afternoon and expressed elation.
