spring 2008 • volume 9 ERIN WALSH He wins justice after 33 years, against overwhelming odds see page 3 photo: canadian press (andrew vaughn) photo: canadian 14 POLICE CAN BE SUED FOR 26 BILL MULLINS- negligence JOHNSON: Louis Sokolov Timothy the day he’ll never reports Fonseca: forget: Oct. 15, 2007 25 wrongly identified contents ◆ executive director’s report the aidwyc journal spring 2008 • volume 9 • issue 38 Development through Columns & News the strength of our people Evolution takes people 2 Erin Walsh exonerated 3 s you’ll read in the following pages, aidwyc is crucial, cases show 5 the length of time, commitment Student involvement in aidwyc 6 A and patience it takes to shepherd a Congrats to Jerome Kennedy 7 wrongful conviction case through the criminal AIDWYC agm 07: celebration! 8 justice system is enormous. Organizational Four condolences 10 change and development, albeit with much, Can you help AIDWYC? 12 much less heartache, also takes time, com- mitment and patience – especially on a shoe- Can AIDWYC help you? 13 string budget. photo: kristen watts Canadian Case Updates Organizational development provides ex- Tanya Gerber citing opportunity for new ideas to take flight Robert Baltovich 14 and tried-and-true methods to be installed. AIDWYC is committed to be- Bill Mullins-Johnson 14 coming a stronger, more efficient organization with one main goal in Romeo Phillion 15 mind: to help more people whose lives have been decimated by a wrong- Sherry Sherett 16 ful conviction. Steven Truscott 18 We’re evolving with the strength of our people, hiring new staff, ex- panding our Toronto office and establishing new protocols. We have ac- International Case Updates tive volunteers helping us raise funds to celebrate our successes at our Cy Greene 18 Sounds Like Justice 4 event on May 8th. Please join us if you can. Kevin Cooper 19 We are also committed to promoting prevention of further wrongful Johnnie Savory 19 convictions. This work is achieved by engaging in partnerships, creating synergies, assisting to educate students in various faculties, doing mean- Scott Watson 19 ingful outreach and thorough recommendations and input at Inquiries Commentary and Commissions. We don’t do this work alone. In addition to its 150 dedicated volun- The Goudge Inquiry 22 teers, AIDWYC is supported by thoughtful and progressive funders, do- Steven Truscott is innocent 23 nors and members. The Law Foundation of Ontario, Ontario Trillium Compensation commentary 24 Foundation and Criminal Lawyers Association all contribute meaning- Suing police for negligence 25 fully to our existence...but our need is still great. Join us, if you haven’t already, in the pursuit of justice. ◆ Feature Articles Tanya Gerber, aidwyc Executive Director The Timothy Fonseca Case 26 Book Reviews Injustice anywhere Ten Years 31 is a threat to justice Final Remarks everywhere. Hold experts to account 33 – Martin Luther King Jr. 2 the aidwyc journal – spring 2008 2 the aidwyc journal – spring 2008 ◆ cover story Erin Walsh exonerated after 33 years By Sean MacDonald rin Walsh’s dying wish was granted photo: ?? on March 14, 2008 when the New Brunswick Court of Appeal acquitted him of the second- Edegree murder of Melvin Peters more than three decades after his conviction. Erin, who is in the final stages of ter- minal cancer, tearfully hugged his emotion- ally overwrought wife, Angela, and then struggled to rise from his wheelchair and address the court. “On behalf of my fam- ily and myself, it is just a tremendous relief for me and I just want to thank you for your fairness, your astuteness, in coming to this decision.” Erin Walsh’s AIDWYC defence team (L–R rear): Gus Camelino, Erin Walsh, The Crown agreed with his lawyers that Sean MacDonald, James Lockyer (foreground), absent: Phil Campbell. a miscarriage of justice had occurred, but argued that a judicial stay should be declared instead of an and his appeal was denied. He was a convicted murderer, outright acquittal; the Court disagreed. one voice in a sea of inmates screaming for attention. His “I’m a free man,” an ecstatic and emotional Erin said credibility was non-existent and the courts had spoken. He outside the courtroom. “I mean, freedom now means had no money, no lawyer and no real access to the outside something to me. It is not just a word. It is something that world. He was alone. I’m going to wear every day of my life like I wore my cap- Despite the overwhelming odds, Erin continued to tivity.” pursue justice with the few resources he had at his disposal. That captivity began on Friday, October 17, 1975, when He wrote continuously to whoever would listen, seeking a jury convicted Walsh of second-degree murder. It took information wherever he could find it. He continued even jurors an hour to reach the verdict, during which time they when it was to his detriment – even when the parole board also stopped to eat lunch. It was an open and shut case. It would hold it against him. wasn’t quite so simple for Erin. He spent the next 20 years At trial, the Crown alleged that Erin bought a sawed-off in jail for that crime and a total of more than 32 years try- shotgun from an associate of Donald McMillan and that ing to undo that 60-minute decision. he used it the next day to murder Peters in his Cadillac. The motive, the Crown successfully claimed, was racial OVERWHELMING ODDS animosity. Peters was African-Canadian. They didn’t take Erin found himself confronted with the enormous into consideration, however, that Erin had grown up in task of trying to overcome what we now know was one of the Mulgrave Park housing project in Halifax’s north end the longest-term miscarriages of justice in Canadian his- – one of the most racially diverse areas of Canada. Nor did tory. The criminal process had finished: his trial was over • Continued next page the aidwyc journal – spring 2008 3 ◆ cover story WALSH VICTORY said they were, when Erin was in Ontario, hundreds of miles away from Saint John. • Continued from previous page He also discovered seven signed statements by wit- they consider that for most of Erin’s life, the only culture nesses that supported Erin’s claim that he ran away from he related to was that of African-Canadians. McMillan, Walton and Peters after they attempted to rob Erin claimed that McMillan, his associate David Walton him and that he asked for the police to be called just 10 and Peters attempted to rob him of his money and drugs minutes before the shot that killed Peters was fired. twice. He testified that after their first attempt, he man- Finally, Erin’s testimony had independent support and aged to escape, and ran to some nearby CNR workers and people suddenly started paying attention to his protesta- begged them to call the police, which they did. When he tions of innocence. then tried to make his way to his car to escape, the would- On February 22, 2008, Federal Justice Minister R. be robbers found him again. This time they forced him Nicholson issued a Ministerial Remedy acknowledging that into the front, middle seat of his own car at gunpoint. a miscarriage of justice likely occurred. Within hours of the Erin testified that he then began a life and death struggle Minister’s decision, the New Brunswick Attorney General for possession of the gun. He claimed the gun ultimately took the honourable position before the New Brunswick ended up in the hands of McMillan, where it discharged Court of Appeal that not only was a miscarriage “likely”, and killed Peters. but that it in fact occurred. The Attorney General agreed But at the time, there wasn’t any independent evidence that the conviction should be quashed, which the Court of to support Erin’s story. The Crown presented McMillan Appeals ultimately did on March 14, 2008. and Walton to testify against him, which eventually led to Walsh’s dedicated legal team, comprised of myself, Erin’s conviction. Sean MacDonald, Gus Camelino, Phil Campbell and James Lockyer, was pleased and relieved with the decision. NEW EVIDENCE UNCOVERED It is the first time in the New Brunswick justice system’s In 2003, after 28 years of proclaiming his innocence, 200-year history that a wrongful conviction has been rec- Erin wrote to the New Brunswick Provincial Archives and ognized. I am hopeful that the spirit of cooperation and received the complete Crown file of his case. In it, Erin openness will continue. found a treasure trove of exculpatory evidence never be- Walsh, however, did not have much time to enjoy his fore disclosed and evidence never presented in court. Most victory. Correctional Services Canada immediately cut off significantly he discovered that: the homeopathic cancer treatments it had been funding for • less than an hour after the shooting, a Saint John po- the last several months on compassionate grounds. I am lice officer overheard Walton – the Crown’s star wit- currently pursuing emergency funding for his treatments. ness and the only eye witness to the shooting – ask Now, Walsh will seek justice in the civil courts. Last McMillan why he shot Peters; year he filed a civil suit against former prosecutor William • a police report never disclosed to him nor his lawyers McCarroll, the City of Saint John, all Saint John police supported his version of events; and chiefs in power since 1975, the province of New Brunswick, • Saint John police recorded a statement from a local and the RCMP for their deliberate attempts to suppress evi- hardware store proprietor who said the gun shells used dence.