William Brydges
Canadian acquitted of murder
William Brydges was a Canadian man whose arrest for murder resulted in the leading Supreme Court of Canada case R v Brydges on the right of a detainee to access duty counsel. His case was a Canadian precedent, and created significant controversy after the Supreme Court of Canada upheld his acquittal. He was found to have been denied access to an attorney because he was not informed of legal services available to him when he told police he could not afford a lawyer. This case had nationwide ramifications, requiring all police officers to advise a person under arrest of the availability of legal services even if they couldn't afford them.
Arrest
William Brydges was arrested on December 16, 1985 in connection with the murder of Mrs. MacLeod, which took place on March 29, 1979. Brydges was 16 at the time of the murder and 22 when he was arrested. Although he was a resident of Alberta, he was arrested in Strathclair, Manitoba while visiting his stepfather.
On December 16, 1985, Detective Harris of the Edmonton City Police and Corporal Munro, a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer arrested William Brydges. Brydges was brought to the nearest police station (in Manitoba) for questioning.
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