Can a verdict of guilty be safely founded on the evidence of a single witness?
Ontario, Canada
The following excerpt is from R. v. Mekonnen, 2009 ONCJ 643 (CanLII):
[61] In R. v. Mete[7] Mr. Justice Hill cited, Vetrovec v. The Queen[8] for the proposition that: “A verdict of guilty may, in appropriate cases, be safely founded on the evidence of a single witness, regardless of the offence or offences charged:”
[62] And further, “that the area of sexual offences is not different in this regard is evident from the reform of the corroboration rules in the realm of sexual abuse prosecution. To hold otherwise, would be to fall prey to the false myths regarding sexual offence complainants as inherently suspect or untrustworthy:” The Queen v. Seaboyer[9]
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