The sensational trial last week of former Canadian Forces colonel Russell Williams captivated Canadians far more than the humiliation of the Harper Tories at the United Nations, the mayoral race in Toronto or Justin Bieber’s alleged assault incident, according to a new online poll.
In addition, respondents to the Angus Reid Public Opinion survey said they felt the media covered the trial appropriately.
Fifty-five per cent of the respondents said they followed the Williams trial compared to 36 per cent who were focused on Canada’s loss of a Security Council seat, 20 per cent who were following the tight race for Toronto mayor and 9 per cent who were tuned into the plight of teen sensation Justin Bieber.
“We did not expect to have more than half of respondents closely following this story,” Angus Reid’s Mario Canseco told The Globe. “People did not tune out.”
He believes interest was sustained because of the high profile of the defendant. “We have pictures of Williams standing close to the Queen and shaking hands with the Defence Minister. This is not your typical court case, and the details were at times too shocking.”
Mr. Williams served as a pilot, flying around the Queen and the Prime Minister. At the time of his arrest he was wing commander at CFB Trenton.
The Angus Reid poll, which surveyed 1,017 Canadians online between Oct. 21 and Oct. 22, also shows that 51 per cent of respondents thought the media coverage struck “the right balance.” But 25 per cent of respondents believe the coverage was “too comprehensive” and the “public has been exposed to too many details about this particular case.”
What struck Mr. Canseco about these findings was that in Alberta, where Conservatives have a stranglehold and where law-and-order issues have huge support, respondents were the most uncomfortable with the coverage. Thirty-four per cent of Albertans felt it was too much compared to 33 per cent for those in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, 28 per cent in Quebec and Atlantic Canada and 21 per cent in Ontario.
“There was a lot of talk about how people think the coverage of the Russell Williams case was too comprehensive,” Mr. Canseco said. “There was a lot of talk about how the details of the Russell Williams case had to be fully disclosed to inform the public and to make sure that something like this never happens again. However, not all Albertans were pleased with this idea.”
Mr. Williams was sentenced on Oct. 21 to two concurrent life sentences for the first-degree murders of Corporal Marie-France Comeau and Jessica Lloyd. In addition, he was sentenced to two 10-year terms for two sexual assaults and to a year for each of 82 fetish burglaries he admitted to carrying out.
On Friday, with the approval of Governor-General David Johnston, Mr. Williams was stripped of his rank as the military began to cut all ties as a result of his conviction. In an email to soldiers, the Chief of Defence Staff called the move “an extraordinary and severe decision that may constitute a first of its kind in Canadian history.”
