HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2015-10-07, Page 44 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, October 7, 2015
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Canada
The 1959 Lynne Harper murder, one of the most
historical events in Canadian Law
0 n September 10, my
girlfriend, who's also
the mother of our two
children, turned
30 -years -old.
Before we rejoiced at the
revamped Wong's Grill in
Seaforth, the three -decade
celebration of her life would
have to wait a brief moment.
The reason was because I
had a previous arrangement
to cover a story that one of
two Tuckersmith Ward coun-
cilors, Ray Chartrand, sug-
gested. He's constantly giv-
ing me useful tips since I'm
new to the area.
This write-up was about a
charity event for the Vanastra
Recreation Centre. Before
heading to the destination, I
punched the name Vanastra
in Google because, as I men-
tioned earlier, much of Huron
County is foreign due to my
Windsor, Ont. roots. Further-
more, before I could reach the
destination from the GPS on
my trusty android cell phone,
the name Steven Truscott
caught my eye in the search.
After reading the first line or
two I must admit, this piece of
Canadian law astonished me.
Even more that kept me inter-
ested, is that this brutal 1959
murder happened a hop and
a skip away from my house in
Harpurhey.
Column
Shaun Gregory
From that instant on, I was
hooked on this riveting
chronicle. Perhaps it's my
journalist senses that rang
off? Whatever the case be,
this became a new obsession
for me. One co-worker at the
Expositor Dianne McGrath
noticed my interest in the
notorious massacre of young
Lynne Harper. Therefore, she
surprised me at work with
two books documenting the
controversial murder.
That day, I read most of one
of the two books, titled A Via-
ble Suspect, in about 6 hours.
This book written by Barry
Ruhl, a retired OPP sergeant
focused on a man by the
name of Larry Talbot, who
Ruhl thought could possibly
be Harper's killer. The
hunches were convincing,
but we as journalists can
never be sure or have an
opinion on anything. How-
ever, Talbot was employed as
plumber salesman who
would drive great lengths all
over Southwestern Ontario.
At the time of Harper's death,
Ruhl alleges he had a contract
in Clinton. Not just Harper,
but he also speculated this
man may be responsible for
other females that had been
murdered in the region. He
mapped and timed numer-
ous killings that happened
close to where Talbot had
lived. Several of the murders
were in 20 -60 -minute driving
distances. All of the girls killed
shared similarities to Harp-
er's. They were mostly hitch-
hikers, young and had all
been sexually assaulted.
Since I will not voice my
opinion, I cannot tell you if
what Ruhl is stating is cor-
rect. All I can say is I'm obli-
gated to cover this story; it's
my duty as a journalist. I
have a few people advising
me that I should back off and
just let it be. I'm honestly
wondering why? I'm not say-
ing Steven Truscott is inno-
cent or guilty, but if he did
not kill the girl that may per-
haps mean there is a killer
out there, although he or she
could have died of old age by
now, that is not the issue. The
issue is this story could shed
more light on a 56 -year-old
murder case.
What if somebody knows
information? What if they
have been holding this infor-
mation in for years and it's
eating at their conscience
and they just want to tell
somebody? It's a doubtless
hope for justice, but what if?
If the justice system were a
100 per cent certain that Ste-
ven Truscott committed that
horrendous crime, then they
would not have awarded him
$6.5 million for a wrongful
conviction. And like I said
before I cannot tell you if I
believe he's innocent or not,
that's up to the law to judge.
Some people are worried
this could tarnish the com-
munity and bring back an old
memory that it should be left
in Lawson's Bush. I have trav-
elled all over Canada and to
date have not observed an
area of space so special, the
way Huron East is shifting, I
see nothing but forward pro-
gress. The amount of growth
I've witnessed through the
Win This Project is astronom-
ical. We as municipality are
headed for greatness, bring-
ing up a contentious piece of
this community's history is
not going to change anything.
So I'm sorry if I offend cer-
tain individuals by furthering
this story, but like I said
numerous times, what if?
Seaforth Lions' 92nd year off to a Busy Start
The Seaforth Lions Club
continues to meet on
the 2nd and 4th Mon-
days of each month. Mem-
bership is open to men and
women, singles and couples.
We are looking forward to
our 92nd year of community
service to the Seaforth area
and beyond.
Zone Chair Lion Fred
DeBoer inducted new mem-
ber Brent Ribey at the
September 28th dinner
meeting. Brent's father Ross
was a very active Lion for
many years and we are
pleased that Brent is follow-
ing in his footsteps of service
to community.
September's business meet-
ing was a busy planning ses-
sion for club members. Tick-
ets
ickets for the club's 46th annual
Elimination Draw were dis-
tributed to members who will
be contacting past purchasers
for first chance at purchase.
The cost is still $60 and Dianne
and the Cavaliers will be back
by popular demand for
attendees' dancing pleasure.
The Seaforth Lions Club
will be hosting one of the
Amazing Race challenges at
the October 17 Healthcare
Heroes Radiothon.
The Santa Claus parade
will be on Friday November
27 at 7 pm. This year's theme
is "Christmas Wishes': Entry
information can be
requested by e -mailing sea-
forthlionsclub@gmail.com.
TV bingo began on
Wednesday September 30 at
7 pm. Bingo cards can be pur-
chased at Mac's Milk, UPI and
GT Mini -Mart for $3 each.
Donations totalling $930
were approved for local
organizations.
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