Advertisement

Canada faces court issue with child killer

TORONTO, May 14 (UPI) -- A Chinese national, convicted in Canada of killing a 9-year-old girl, may be released after a 15 years in prison instead of deported to China, a report says.

Canadian prosecutors defended the second-degree murder plea bargain reached with Min Chen, who was sentenced Friday, by saying after he served time in a Canadian prison, he would be deported to China and most likely face charges.

Advertisement

Min was sentenced to life in prison, without parole for 15 years.

A Chinese law allows for double jeopardy if a citizen commits a crime abroad. But Canadian law bans double jeopardy.

Canada's courts are going to have to rule on a controversial issue over the fate of the killer, The Toronto Star reports.

A question has been raised over whether Canada should support double jeopardy by deporting Min to China when it has its own laws against double jeopardy.

And although Canadian law doesn't necessarily consider double jeopardy a punishment too cruel to allow Min to be sent to China, his sentence there may include torture or execution, which Canada might consider cruel enough to block the deportation.

Advertisement

Latest Headlines