April 16, 1992 - David Milgaard - a podcast by Stephen Hammond

David Milgaard, wrongfully convicted for murder, released after 22 years in prison.When 20-year-old Gail Miller was raped and stabbed to death in January 1969 in Saskatoon, a 16-year-old who’d been passing through town at the time, David Milgaard, became a suspect despite his protests of innocence. A year later, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Neither the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal nor the Supreme Court of Canada were willing to reverse the decision, but Joyce Milgaard’s relentless efforts to get her son freed continued. In 1991, under mounting pressure, Justice Minister Kim Campbell directed the Supreme Court of Canada to review Milgaard’s case. The court ordered a new trial that ended up ordering his release. After more than 22 years in prison, Milgaard finally walked away from the Stony Mountain federal penitentiary on April 16, 1992. The Saskatchewan government chose not to re-try Milgaard. Five years later, DNA evidence proved he was not Miller’s killer. Finally, in 1999, Larry Fisher – who lived a block from the scene of Miller’s death – was convicted of the rape and murder. The Saskatchewan government apologized to Milgaard on July 18, 1997 which was the same day sophisticated DNA tests proved he did not commit the murder. The federal government paid him and his family $10 million in May of 1999 and established an inquiry in 2005.

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