Their Duty Twice Over: Canadians in the Great Escape

The Great Escape of March 1944 was the culmination of over a year’s planning and preparation by Allied airmen detained in Stalag Luft 3, a large prison camp in eastern Germany. The brainchild of a South African pilot, the plan called for the construction of three escape tunnels, code named Tom, Dick and Harry, which would be fully equipped with electricity, a vented air system, and trollies for travel to and from the face. Even if only one tunnel was used, the organizers believed that as many as 200 POWs, each outfitted with civilian clothes, travel documents, maps and foodstuffs, could get away from the camp. Most of these men would undoubtedly be recaptured in short order, but the disruption they would cause in occupied Europe was deemed sufficient to justify the attempt. When tunnel Harry finally broke through on the night of 24–25 March 1944, a series of misfortunes so delayed the operation that only 76 airmen were able to get away from the camp to temporary freedom. Three reached neutral territory and, as the escape planners had anticipated, the breakout sent shock waves through Nazi Germany. The ultimate outcome, though, was something none of the airmen could have foreseen: the summary execution of fifty of the recaptured escapers, including six Canadians

Comment: DNA as Property: Implications on the Constitutionality of DNA Dragnets

Joe Smith is a maintenance worker at County Hospital. One morning he reported to work to find an array of law enforcement vehicles and personnel scattered about the premises. He proceeded to his locker to prepare for work and was confronted by a policeman. Apparently an elderly female patient was sexually assaulted late one night during the previous week. The police officer informed Joe that all male employees were required to give a blood sample to rule out their implication in the assault. Joe was apprehensive and stated that because he worked first shift, he could not possibly have been involved. The police officer told Joe that a warrant would be obtained if he resisted. Reluctantly, Joe agreed, though he did not understand how a sample of his blood could help this investigation. Was Joe required to give this blood sample, and further, should he have been afforded any constitutional protections?\u