On July 29, 1885, the heat in the tiny courtroom in Regina was stifling. Sitting in the prisoner’s dock, Riel gazed at the crowd that packed the room. Reporters, soldiers, police, lawyers, and the curious had come to see him tried for the crime of high treason against the Queen. There was even a bevy of ladies, the starched frills of their summer dresses wilting in the heat. They fanned themselves and whispered about the “bloodthirsty rebel.”
Louis fought down his disappointment. He had wanted to be tried before the Supreme Court of Canada, not in this dingy place! But now the next witness was called. It was Charles Nolin, and Riel burned with indignation as he listened to his cousin’s testimony. Nolin accused him of planning to destroy Manitoba and the North-West. And his own defence team wasn’t asking the proper questions of this witness - or of any other witness! They only wanted to prove that he was not guilty because he was insane. If they won, he might be locked up in an asylum for life. His soul shuddered at the thought.