Canadian sentenced to death is 'maker of own misfortune'

A Canadian criminal defense lawyer has said that the death sentence his countryman received in a Chinese court is justified, given the defendant's history of drug smuggling.

John Lee, an Ontario defense attorney, said that Robert Lloyd Schellenberg, 36, ignored the warning a judge in British Columbia gave him in a drug case seven years ago.

"Justice (Neil) Brown already gave Schellenberg the last chance to change his course of life and clearly set out the serious consequences if he failed to heed his warning. ... It is fair to say that he is the maker of his own misfortune," Lee said.