Prosecutions office apologizes to Parsons

The provincial government's prosecutions office has apologized to Gregory Parsons, who was wrongfully convicted in 1994 of the murder of his mother, Catherine Carroll.

Lois Hoegg, who was representing the office of the director of public prosecutions, delivered the apology at the Lamer Inquiry, which resumed Wednesday after a three-month break.

"We accept the responsibility for the role we played in his prosecution, and we apologize to him for this," Hoegg said.

However, Jerome Kennedy – the lawyer representing Parsons – says the apology does not go far enough.

He said prosecutors that have already testified at the Lamer Inquiry did not take responsibility for admitting hearsay evidence.

"I don't remember Mr. [Colin] Flynn, I don't remember Mr. [Bern] Coffey, I don't remember Mr. [Wayne] Gorman, I don't remember Ms. [Cathy] Knox saying they shouldn't have let that hearsay evidence," Kennedy said.

Knox, who served as prosecutor in the trial, did apologize to Parsons last May, and said she had only four weeks to prepare.

FROM MAY 10, 2004: Prosecutor apologizes to Parsons

Outside of the inquiry, Parsons said he did not think much of the government's apology.

Parsons was cleared by DNA evidence in 1998.

Brian Doyle, a childhood friend of Parsons, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2002. He is currently serving a life sentence for the crime.

The Lamer Inquiry, headed by retired Supreme Court of Canada justice Antonio Lamer, has now entered its final stages.

It is examining how the justice system handled the cases of Randy Druken, Ronald Dalton and Gregory Parsons.

Each man was convicted of murder. Druken was released from prison while his case was being appealed, and the Crown later stayed charges.

Parsons was exonerated for the murder of his mother, while Dalton was found not guilty of his wife's murder during a second trial.