Exoneration Record

Canada ยท Saskatchewan

David Milgaard: wrongly convicted, exonerated

Convicted of Murder of a nursing aide in Saskatoon in 1969, charged when he was 16.

Convicted31 January 1970
SentenceLife imprisonment with no parole eligibility for at least 10 years
Years in prison23
Exonerated1997
How the conviction was overturnedDNA evidence, after the Supreme Court of Canada recommended in 1992 that the conviction be quashed and Saskatchewan stayed the charge, Supreme Court of Canada (1992 reference), Saskatchewan Attorney General (stay of proceedings) and DNA testing in 19971,2

What went wrong

From conviction to exoneration

  1. Convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.1
  2. The Supreme Court of Canada heard fresh evidence on a federal reference and recommended that the conviction be quashed and a new trial held. Saskatchewan's attorney general entered a stay of proceedings and he was released after 23 years.1,2
  3. DNA testing exonerated him.1,2
  4. Another man, Larry Fisher, was convicted of the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment.1
  5. Saskatchewan agreed a 10 million dollar compensation package.1,2
  6. A provincial public inquiry headed by Justice Edward P. MacCallum, appointed in 2004, released its findings and recommendations.1
  7. Died in Calgary at age 69.1,2

Compensation

10 million Canadian dollars from the Government of Saskatchewan, accepted in May 1999, with a formal apology

Today

Exonerated by DNA in 1997 and died in May 2022.

Sources

  1. The Canadian Encyclopedia, David Milgaard Case
  2. CBC News, Milgaard pushed for action on Indigenous sisters' wrongful conviction claims (17 May 2022)