Off Cam.

LEFT, Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka, on their wedding day. Bernardo was the "Scarborough serial rapist."

After two days of seeing the faces of the freed men behind the Vizconde massacre, and that of the victim's father/husband, Laura Vizconde on television, I could not help but recall a similarly brutal and sensational murder/rape which took place in Canada, also in 1991. The Paul Bernardo case.

Paul Bernardo was a young, matinee-handsome type, recently married accountant when arrested by the OPP (Ontario Police) as a suspect in the grisly rape/murder of two teens, Leslie Mahaffy, 14 and Kristine French, 15 which took place on June 15, 1991 and April 16, 1992, respectively.

Later on, it was established that he was responsible for many other rapes which were committed in the Scarborough area in Metro Toronto. Paul Bernardo's new and equally young bride, Karla Homolka became the state's star witness against her husband and spent ten years in prison for being an accessory to the crimes. Others said she should have been tried and sentenced as an equal partner in at least four of the assaults and murders, one including her own sister.

When Karla Homolka was eventually released from prison, she decided to live in Quebec and not to return to her native province of Ontario. But the media continually tracked her whereabouts, so in the long run, she could not hold on to any permanent job.

She eventually married and kept on moving from place to place to avoid media detection. Inside prison, she studied, and at one time, it was revealed that she continued to fancy men with "distorted sexual" appetites like her killer husband Bernardo.

The final straw that led to the downfall and establishment of Bernardo's guilt was a video recording of the last two murders. Bernardo recorded the brutal sexual assaults that he and his wife made on Mahaffy and French. The presence and whereabouts of this tape was revealed by Homolka to the authorities, and finally pinned down Paul Bernardo.

Now that the DOJ (Department of Justice) plans to reopen the Vizconde murder/rape case) it would need fresh evidence to proceed and lay charges. Seeking new witnesses would be near to impossible.

If CTV cameras were as standard before (1991) as now (2010), the probability of digging new clues to this case would be easier. If there had been a camera at the entrance of the housing village which could have captured Hubert Webb's group entry, or a another CTV near the premises of the Vizconde house, then it could be a different story.

If some Vizconde neighbours were listening intently to happenings and noises outside their houses, if body exhumation and gathering of DNA on the corpses were possible, if a cohesive investigative team could be put in place - then there could be new windows of opportunities for a new trial.

New technology allows ordinary mortals to crime-proof their places of abode, or help identify perpetrators in case they gain entry afterall.

Small cameras are reasonably priced now which can be hidden and capture entry points. Similary, cameras can be placed inside the house,inside or near bedrooms, safes, and anywhere where there are valuables and residents.

Motion detection lights can be installed; alarms, too.

In place of guns, knives and baseball bats can be placed near beds, in case there's a forced entry. Dogs are a must.
Self-defense can be learned easily from experts. Prescence of mind must be practised and implemented at all times, inside the house, and outside. Assertiveness must be made a part of one's personality.

If Hubert Webb and his group were the real culprits in the Vizconde murders (the SC ruling does not mean they're not guilty, it just says the court is not convinced 100% that they're guilty), maybe the reason they were allowed by the young Carmela inside the house could have been the group's clout - they were kids from rich, influential families, and the murdered girl may not have had the courage not to let them in- even if it was already late at night.

We pray that real justice will come Vizconde family's way..soon.