By Reason of Doubt

by Ellen Godfrey

One day in Paris Cyril Belshaw reported that his wife Betty had disappeared without a trace. Soon afterward her mutilated corpse was discovered concealed on a mountainside--and Cyril was charged with her murder.
This is the story of a typical Canadian academic couple--happily married, well-off, well-travelled, their children grown--whose lives go terribly wrong. Soon after the discovery of Betty Belshaw's body, Swiss police began to reconstruct a chain of events--including Cyril Belshaw's marital infidelity--that ultimately led to his incarceration and trial for her killing. After a torturous court case, the verdict rendered was neither guilty nor innocent--Cyril Belshaw was acquitted "by reason of doubt." Doubts as to who killed Betty Belshaw remain, to this day.
By Reason of Doubt is a gripping true-crime saga that reads like a mystery novel.

208 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1984

Reviews

[Austin Gaghadar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was quite interesting about a case that I had never heard of even though it was touted as one of the most famous Canadian law cases. Enjoyed learning more about Canadian history and a relevant legal case. Author did a very good job of juxtaposing the different idiosyncrasies of the common law versus civil law legal systems and the ideology behind the different systems. Also enjoyed how the author tried to present the facts of the case as they appeared in the trial in an unbiased way to allow the reader to reach their own conclusion about the case. While this was a quick and easy read, I found parts of the book unnecessarily repetitive and thus difficult and boring to get through.