David Milgaard
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The Details Of The Crime
The Victim: Gail Miller
Gail Miller was raped, stabbed to death and left in a snow bank at approximately 6:45 a.m. on 31 January 1969. Two hours later, her body was discovered. Police quickly searched out for known sex offenders in the area to question them but they could find no obvious leads. They were desperate for witnesses and leads from people such as the "friends" of David Milgaard who threw him under the bus.
Gail Miller was 20 year old Canadian Nursing Assistant. She was found in a snowbank two hours after her viscious death.
David Milgaard, 1970
David Milgaard, 2014
Details About The Trial
His trial commenced before a judge and jury nine months later. After the Opposition had presented its case, Milgaard’s lawyer elected to call no evidence. Milgaard was convicted on 31 January 1970, and sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for at least 10 years. No one believed that he was innocent expect for his mother.
The Joyce Milgaard Campaign
Milgaards mother, Joyce, was the only one who believed that he was innocent from day one. She was the one who kept his case alive for twenty years, eventually leading to the police and investigators ealizing that Joyce was right, her son was really innocent in the Gail Miller raping and murder.
Joyce had a large rolex full of media contacts which she used to her advatage when she supplied journalists with a stream of angles in order to keep the story alive and exert pressure on authorities. At one stage in her mission to free her son, she even confronted federal Justice Minister Kim Campbell as television cameras rolled. Joyce Milgaard also threatened to camp on the lawn of the Saskatchewan legislature. Joyce's hard efforts resulted in giving her son the opputunity to apply for federal review of his case on December 1988.
Conclusion
The Suspect: David Milgaard
The Murderer Of Gail Miller: Larry Fisher
Larry Fisher the serial rapist behind Gail Miller's death eventually died while serving a life sentence at the Pacific Institution in Abbotsford, B.C. He was 65 at the time of his death which was June 11th 2015 after spending 16 years in jail for the crime that David Milgaard took the blame for.
David was a 16 year old when he was convicted of the murder of Saskatoon nurse, Gail Miller. The case was destined to make headlines across the country as it unraveled over the ensuring 23 years, becoming one of Canada's most notorious wrongful conviction cases, and eventually yielding several books and a made-for-television movie.
Evidence was found that proved David Milgaard was not guilty. The fresh evidence assembled on Milgaard’s behalf included a statement by witness Ron Wilson. He said that he had been coming down from a drug high at the time of his second police interview, and speculated that police would release him to the street where he could obtain more drugs if he were to give them what they wanted. So he lied to get out of the station. Another key piece of fresh evidence involved a 1970 confession by a local sex offender, Larry Fisher. Fisher had admitted to committing six sexual assaults, including four in the same area of Saskatoon where Gail Miller was killed, raising a very real possibility that she was another of his victims. Finally, Milgaard was subsequently cleared by DNA evidence five years later. Semen samples had been found on Miller’s clothing and retained by the Crown. AIDWYC pressed for them to be tested for DNA in hopes of definitively clearing Milgaard’s name. After years of legal wranlging to obtain the samples and get them tested. The results excluded David from being the killer instead the results pointed directly to Larry Fisher as the murderer of Gail Miller.
Evidence That Finds Milgaard Guilty
- The morning of the murder Milgaard arrived in Saskatoon with his 2 friends
David Milgaard Mug shot 1969
- The friends picked up another friend, Cadrain.
- A month after the murder, Cadrain contacted police saying that David acted suspicious while they were together.
- Cadrain also said that Milgaard had blood stains on his clothes.
- Investigators began hearing reports that Milgaard had re-enacted the Miller murder to entertain friends in their hotel room.
- His original 2 friends lied to investigators, John even said that he saw Milgaard stab Gail Miller.