Innocence Canada calls for review of decades-old Manitoba murder convictions following acquittals
Lawyers say all murder cases involving Indigenous offenders in last 50 years should be reviewed
Lawyers with Innocence Canada are calling for a review of several decades' worth of murder cases involving Indigenous offenders after two First Nations men were acquitted of a murder that happened half a century ago.
On Tuesday, Justice Glenn Joyal announced acquittals for Brian Anderson and Allan Woodhouse for the murder of Ting Fong Chan in 1973.
Their lawyers, James Lockyer and Jerome Kennedy of Innocence Canada, believe their wrongful convictions are just the tip of the iceberg, and want the province to review all previous murder convictions of Indigenous offenders going back 50 years.
"We think they are part of systemic problems that arose in the justice system really for the last 50 years, so that means there are bound to be other Indigenous men and women in prison for crimes they didn't commit," Lockyer said in an interview Wednesday.
"It's a horrible scenario, but if it was visited on them, there's no question that it was visited on others as well."
Anderson was released on parole in 1987 and Woodhouse in 1990. Both men appealed to higher courts shortly after their convictions but were denied.
Two brothers, Clarence and Russell Woodhouse, were also put behind bars for the same killing.
Lockyer said they're looking into having their convictions overturned as well, though Russell passed away several years ago.
The group is now consulting with Indigenous groups and leaders on the best path forward.
A spokesperson for Manitoba Justice said the department has made significant legal changes in the last 50 years "that address many of the issues raised in the case of Mr. Anderson and Mr. Woodhouse."
Appeals and reviews have been conducted over the years and training on wrongful convictions and systemic bias "are additional safeguards that have been put in place to prevent miscarriages of justice," the spokesperson said.
Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Cindy Woodhouse said she hopes this week's acquittals gives others hope.
For Chief Woodhouse, the acquittals hit a personal chord. She's from the same First Nation as all four men originally convicted in the killing — Pinaymootang First Nation — and knew Russell Woodhouse well. At one point, Russell actually lived with her family, she said.
"He always worked really hard. He took care of everybody around him. He was a good person, he just wanted to work and mind his own business," she said.
She said this week has been bittersweet for her. Though the outcome was a happy one, she said it's sad to think of how the mens' lives could have turned out if they weren't thrown in prison for something they didn't do.
"The justice system pulled that from them," she said.
The case against Anderson and Woodhouse was prosecuted by George Dangerfield, who was the Crown attorney in four other high-profile Manitoba murder cases, including those against Frank Ostrowski and Thomas Sophonow, who were in court Tuesday to hear Joyal's decision.
Federal Justice Minister David Lametti said in an email that "the cases of Brian Anderson and Allan Woodhouse remind us that it is not perfect and when miscarriages of justice occur, the consequences are enormous."
Bill C-40, which Lametti introduced earlier this year, aims to make it easier for people who may have been wrongfully convicted to have their applications reviewed, the federal minister said.
"I look forward to seeing C-40 passed into law so that the issues raised by Mr. Lockyer can be addressed by the new Miscarriages of Justice Review Commission," Lametti added.
With files from Brittany Greenslade