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ARTICLE · 13 JULY 2015

Have Mercy! Supreme Court Clarifies Mercy Power Under Criminal Code

McCarthy Tétrault
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In "Burning Love", Elvis pleaded with the Lord to have mercy.

CanadaCriminal Law
Byron Shaw
Byron Shaw
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In "Burning Love", Elvis pleaded with the Lord to have mercy. It was coming closer. The flames were lickin' his body. He felt like he was slipping away. It was hard to breathe. His chest was a heavy. He was burning a hole where he lay. Burning a hole with burning love. In short, Elvis was just a hunk. A hunk of burning love.[1]

To this author's knowledge, the results of Elvis' mercy application were never made public, though it is widely believed that the Lord did in fact have mercy on his soul.

In Hinse v. Canada (Attorney General),[2] the Supreme Court of Canada clarified the law regarding a different type of mercy application – with due respect for Elvis' plight in Burning Love, one that has far more serious consequences for the applicant.

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