The largest serial killer investigation in Canadian history is not over yet but the trial of a convicted serial killer might be. The judges of the Supreme Court in Canada rejected a bid for another trial of Robert William Pickton, the serial killer and a pig farmer. The Supreme Court ruled Friday that there has been "overwhelming evidence" and "no miscarriage of justice' in the ex-pig farmer's trial". Pickton's lawyers appealed the ruling, arguing the judge had erred in his instructions to the jury.

To put a serial killer on the loose would be foolish and thanks to Canada's top court the murderer will not get a new trial for the slaying of six women in British Columbia. This ruling also guarantees that the former B.C. pig farmer will not face further legal action in a string of deaths. However, B.C.'s Solicitor General Mike de Jong says he has yet to decide whether he will call an inquiry into the police investigation of Robert Pickton after police admitted they made mistakes.

The biggest and the most horrifying serial killing case has been disturbing Canadians for almost 30 years. British Columbia women, mostly prostitutes and women from the streets, were constantly going missing. The first indication that there was a significant number of prostitutes missing from the Vancouver streets dates back as far as 1978 and this came to public attention only in 1999. The number of disappearances of women from the neighbourhood was abnormally high between 1995 and 1998.  

Besides being convicted for six murders, the pig farmer was also charged in the deaths of 20 other women, mostly troubled residents of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Another trial is not probable due to the expense. B.C. Crown spokesman Neil MacKenzie said to address the ruling: "In reaching this position, the branch has taken into account the fact that any additional convictions could not result in any increase to the sentence that Mr. Pickton has already received." But what about the 20 outstanding charges? Many of the families of the missing women say that the only chance for justice is through a public inquiry.

In December 2007, Pickton was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for at least 25 years and found guilty of six counts of second-degree murder, which is the maximum sentence under Canadian Law for murder.

The Vancouver police and the RCMP have been doing a tremendous job over the past years but they have made a few mistakes when investigating the brutal killings. Former detective and geographic profiler Kim Rossmo warned the police that a serial killer was at work in the Vancouver area, but was not taken seriously.  Later after evidence came to light linking Pickton to the missing women, Pickton's pig farm was excavated and searched, resulting in human remains being found on his property and in his slaughterhouse. Doug Lepard of the Vancouver police apologised for the errors while investigating and said on Friday: "I wish that all the mistakes that were made we could undo and I wish more lives would have been saved. So on my behalf and on behalf of the Vancouver police department I would say to the families how sorry we all are for your losses and because we did not catch the monster sooner."

53-year-old Pickton himself admitted in January 2007 that he had killed 49 women and wanted the number to reach 50. Even if Pickton will likely not be convicted in the other 20 cases, the police will keep on investigating as there are still 39 missing women from the Vancouver area that could be connected to this case. It is still not certain whether Pickton was the only person involved in the brutal killings.

The families want answers and the police should be accountable for not acting as quickly as they could have when they heard about the farm. One positive note is that the sick serial killer Pickton will see the world only from behind bars and his scary story will haunt women only from criminal shows.

Jana Paskova

Photo: ISIFA