Home »
It is interesting to see how a judge’s mind works
Book Review
By Derryll White
McLachlen, Beverley (2024). Proof.
Beverley McLachlan has entered the mystery/legal thriller market with a new wrinkle. Her main character, Ms. Jilly Truit, is a defence lawyer, a new mother and a character carrying trauma with her from the events of a previous novel. What gives the author immense credibility, and is reflected in many legal references throughout the story, is that Beverley McLachlan was the first female and longest serving Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. She knows her stuff!
The author is disciplined. She keeps the story tight and focused on Kate Sinclair-Jones, charged with the kidnapping and murder of her own daughter. Beverley McLachlan at many points reveals the sharp mind and keen reasoning that made her Canada’s highest Justice. It is interesting to see how a judge’s mind works, differently that the other great legal B.C. talent William Deverell. There is no hippy-dippy in Jilly Truit, she is always taking care of business.
As a bonus for western readers, the author sets the story in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, a readily accessible geography for B.C. readers. This is a novel that will set the reader looking for more from Beverley McLachlan.
********
Excerpts from the novel:
THE INTERNET – “If we applied the precautionary principle to the internet, free speech would be over, Ms. Truitt. We live in a mean world, but we also live in a free country. We can’t shut this stuff down. The police can’t even monitor most of it. Privacy protection.”
DIGITAL IMPACT – I start to hang up, but Cy’s voice brings the phone back to my ear. “You of all people should know, Jilly, that I have no control over what Ms. Beam or anyone else says. The justice system, like other systems, is reeling under the impact pf the digital revolution. We can’t control what people say online, like we can’t manage what they say to the media. The old days when you could get a jury that hadn’t heard biased views about a case are gone. Maybe the jury trial, too. You can rail about Ms. Beam’s interview, but it’s the new norm.”
“The demise of the jury trial,” I say. “Is anyone mourning it but defence lawyers?”
– Derryll White once wrote books but now chooses to read and write about them. When not reading he writes history for the web at www.basininstitute.org.
