True Crime Stories

Two of the hardest types of cases for me to research are those from other countries with different "justice" rules and even phrases, and cases that are multiple decades old.  This case has both.  It began in Canada in 1959. Cases in that era were generally open and shut with quick justice.  This happened in a time in which I believe there were likely many people who were innocent of their crime were executed.  We have people today who have been on death row in their state for decades, and yet with the advancement of DNA testing some are spending that much time and being found to be innocent.  So, I have no doubts that in a time in which the time between a crime, an arrest, a trial, a conviction and an execution are carried out within months that there were not innocent people executed.  The only thing that I believe that saved Steven Truscott was his age.  On June 9, 1959 twelve year old Cheryl "Lynne" Harper went out to the local playground after ...

This blog will be a bit different than most because it takes place in Canada. Only on a few occasions have I discussed cases outside the United States because just as I try to respect our justice system I feel we should respect other systems, and yet I do not always agree with them, nor do I know the laws as well. Instead of using the word "prosecutor" they use the word "Crown" there but to avoid confusion for the most part I will use more traditional and American phrases. This case is a fairly cut and dry case no matter where it took place. On October 20, 2003 in British Columbia, Canada Ruby Ann Ruffolo reported her husband, John, missing.  He worked third shift for the armored car company, Brinks, and had failed to go to work the previous night, nor had he returned home in the morning. She stated that she had left while he was still sleeping the morning before and had been gone all day at rental properties that they owned. She said when she returned home John w...