139 Antonio Scopelliti

ORILLIA, ONTARIO

Three emergency phone calls, two dead teenagers, one smoking gun, and no witnesses—besides the man who was responsible.

This is a landmark case that famed criminal defence lawyer Edward L Greenspan would cite as being one of two he worked on over his career that he found to be especially satisfying. Although this particular case flew under the radar, it would have a profound impact on another very high-profile case that we covered last year in this podcast.

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Credits:

Research, writing, sound design, narration: Kristi Lee
Audio editing and production: We Talk of Dreams
Production assistance: Jesse Hawke
Disclaimer voiced by Erik Krosby

Music credits:

Theme songs (intro & outro) by We Talk of Dreams
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions 

RESOURCES AND INFORMATION SOURCES

Court document:

• Regina v. Scopelliti, 1981 CanLII 1787 (ON CA)

Other cases where a Scopelliti Application was made:

• https://www.canlii.org/en/on/onca/doc/1981/1981canlii1787/1981canlii1787.html?searchUrlHash=AAAAAQASQW50b25pbyBTY29wZWxsaXRpAAAAAAE&resultIndex=8#discussing

Book:

• Edward Greenspan and George Jonas. Greenspan: The Case for the Defence. Toronto: MacMillan, 1987. 326

News archives:

• JOHN, H. C. (1984, Mar 31). The best DEFENCE is not always a good offence. The Globe and Mail (1936-) Retrieved from proquest. 

• SEAN FINE, J. W. (2014, Dec 26). He fell in love with the romance of the law: Representing big-name clients and everyday people, lawyer was devoted to his craft--even reading criminal code on his honeymoon. The Globe and Mail (1936-) Retrieved from proquest

• Two teen-agers slam, man is fined $750 on weapon charge. (1983, Feb 17). The Globe and Mail (1936-) Retrieved from proquest

• Edward Greenspan’s biggest cases and clients | The Star 

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/732988442/?terms=%22antonio%20scopelliti%22&match=1

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/738027951/?terms=%22antonio%20scopelliti%22&match=1 

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/737584012/?terms=%22antonio%20scopelliti%22&match=1 

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/730563945/?terms=%22antonio%20scopelliti%22&match=1

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/732841204/?terms=%22Scopelliti%22&match=1 

• https://www.newspapers.com/image/730564707/?terms=%22Scopelliti%22&match=1 

Legal Critique:

• When Prosecution Met Defence: The Michael Bryant Case by J. Mark Smith, LawNow Magazine, May/June 2015 CanLIIDocs 335

Other online sources:

• Orillia - Wikipedia

• Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) – MADD Canada

• Edward L. Greenspan Q.C. | Criminal Defence Law Firm | Toronto, ON, Canada

• Eddie Greenspan’s ‘contagious sense of mischief’ recalled at funeral

Burns and Rafay: 

• United States v Burns [2001] 1 S.C.R. 283, 2001 SCC 7 (Supreme Court of Canada)

• State v. Rafay, 168 Wash. App. 734, 747 (Wash. Ct. App. 2012) (US trial)

• United States v Burns - Wikipedia

• Whatever Happened To...U.S. v. Burns: Extradition and the Death Penalty - LawNow Magazine 

• State v. Rafay, 168 Wash. App. 734 | Casetext Search + Citator

• Rafay and Burns: 3 innocence projects now believe men innocent | CBC News