Analysis of Mohammed Shamji Criminal Case

Introduction

In this case of public law, a Toronto neurosurgeon was accused of killing his wife. This specific case of public law is a representation of the Criminal law. This branch of public law is the one that identifies crimes and prescribes punishment.

Background

In this case, Toronto neurosurgeon, Dr. Mohammed Shamji was charged with murder and committing an indignity to the human remains of his physician wife and the mother of his three children, Dr. Elana Fric-Shamji. Shamji worked at Toronto Western Hospital, held a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Duke University, and was a faculty member at the University of Toronto. His wife of 12 years was a family doctor at Scarborough and Rouge Hospital, with a master’s degree in public policy from Duke University. Police found her body in a suitcase by the side of a road north of Toronto, the day after she was last seen on November 30, 2016.

Investigation and Legal Proceedings

After the initial investigation, it was discovered that she died of strangulation and blunt force trauma. Shamji was arrested the day after his wife's body was found. Judge McMahon stated that “the man’s trial would begin April 1, 2019, and be heard by a jury” (Toronto Star, 2019). If Shamji were to be found guilty, he would spend, if not all, most of his life in prison. His three children would no longer have a mother or a father to take care of them and teach them about the world. If he were not to be found guilty, there would be a sense of fear or worry that a murderer is loose in regular, everyday society. If this did happen, some members of the community might speculate that the Rule of Law is being violated. Just because he is a very well-known man in the world does not mean he is above the law.

Impact on Family and Society

By killing his wife, he mentally affected his children, her family, and people who cared about her. Her parents would be devastated; every parent’s fear is that they will outlive their children. Fric-Shamji’s parents had to face that nightmare the day she was found on the side of the road. Many people who knew the couple would most likely feel very confused about why this would happen. If Shamji is found guilty, a murderer will be off the street, and closure will be given to the family of Fric-Shamji. This scenario would be positive for her family and those close to her.

But if you look at it from a different perspective, Shamji was one of the top neurosurgeons in Canada. He had a long waiting list, and many people would travel long distances to have their brain surgery performed by him. If he was found guilty and convicted, all those people on his waiting list won’t get their surgery; in some cases, that would mean that these people won’t survive. Some would say he took advantage of the power he had, possibly unintentionally costing many more people’s lives just because he decided to intentionally kill his wife.

Conclusion and Personal View

If I had the power to decide the outcome of this situation, I would find Shamji guilty of first-degree murder and indignity to the body. I would sentence him to life with no chance of parole. I have chosen this punishment because he did not notify anyone when his wife was killed. He did not try to turn himself in; instead, he decided to cover the crime up. He deliberately decided to manipulate his deceased wife’s body into a suitcase and proceeded to drive north of Toronto to drop the suitcase off a bridge. If he had any remorse, he should’ve called emergency services and explained what happened.

References

Toronto Star. (2019). 'Neurosurgeon Mohammed Shamji pleads guilty to second-degree murder in death of wife'. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/04/08/neurosurgeon-mohammed-shamji-pleads-guilty-to-second-degree-murder-in-death-of-wife.html