Habeas Corpus, Extradition and the Burden of Proof: The Case of the Man who Escaped from Devil's Island

Abstract

The decision in 1907 to grant habeas corpus in favour of Eddie Guerin, a notorious criminal widely known as the man who escaped from Devil's Island, attracted attention at the time in the popular press but has been largely ignored by lawyers. The judgment of the court was brief and the issue decided appeared to be entirely factual. Yet the case was a remarkable one from a legal perspective which merits further attention. It deals with a difficult and crucially important legal point—the burden of proof and the resolution of issues of disputed fact on habeas corpus—in a most unusual and intriguing way.