David Milgaard

The Crime and Initial Investigation

On the morning of January 31, 1969, at approximately 6:45 a.m., certified nursing assistant Gail Miller left her house in Saskatoon to catch a bus to work. This was the last time she was seen alive. Her body was discovered two hours later, one block south of her residence, in a snowbank. She had been sexually assaulted, stabbed to death, and left at the scene. The brutal crime generated immediate and significant public pressure on the Saskatoon police department to find the perpetrator. Police quickly sought out known sex offenders in the area for questioning but could find no obvious leads in the initial hours. That same morning, sixteen-year-old David Milgaard, accompanied by his friends Ron Wilson and Nichol John, had arrived in Saskatoon en route from Regina to Calgary. The trio were on a cross-country road trip and planned to pick up a mutual friend, Albert Cadrain, before continuing their journey. They arrived at Cadrain's home, which was located only a short distance from where Miller's body was found, around 9:30 a.m. after having been lost in the city for several hours. Later that day, Cadrain joined Milgaard, Wilson, and John as they continued their road trip westward to Calgary.

The Flawed Investigation and Coerced Evidence

A month after the murder, on March 2, 1969, Albert Cadrain contacted the Saskatoon police. He reported that Milgaard had acted suspiciously during the drive to Calgary and suggested Milgaard might have been the perpetrator. Cadrain specifically stated that he had seen what appeared to be blood stains on Milgaard's clothing that morning. This tip, despite coming weeks after the fact and from a friend, decisively shifted the investigation's focus onto Milgaard and his travelling companions. Within 24 hours of Cadrain's statement, police located and questioned Milgaard in Winnipeg, where he denied any involvement. Investigators then located Nichol John and Ron Wilson. Their initial police statements provided a strong alibi for Milgaard, with both confirming they had been with him throughout the entire morning of the attack and that he had nothing to do with it. Not satisfied, police brought the teenagers back for further questioning on multiple occasions. The investigation took a decisive turn in May 1969 when police began hearing unverified reports that Milgaard had re-enacted the Miller murder for friends in a Regina hotel room. Convinced John and Wilson had lied, investigators re-interviewed them under threat of prosecution if they did not cooperate. Under this pressure, both changed their statements to implicate Milgaard. Wilson changed his story after being subjected to a polygraph test. John changed her statement before even taking a polygraph, going so far as to claim she had witnessed Milgaard stab Gail Miller.

Arrest, Trial, and Conviction

Based on the coerced statements from his friends and Cadrain's testimony, David Milgaard was arrested and charged with non-capital murder on May 30, 1969. His trial commenced before a judge and jury nine months later, in early 1970. The Crown's case relied heavily on the inconsistent and pressured testimonies. During the trial, Nichol John recanted her incriminating police statement, denying she had seen Milgaard stab Miller. Despite this recantation, the trial judge permitted the Crown to read her previous 'eyewitness' statement to the jury, a decision that would later be criticized. Milgaard's defence lawyer, after the Crown presented its case, elected to call no evidence in his defence. On January 31, 1970, exactly one year after Miller's death, the seventeen-year-old Milgaard was convicted of murder. He was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for at least ten years. His appeal was dismissed by the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal in 1971. The court ruled that the trial judge had not erred in allowing John's prior statement to be read. The Supreme Court of Canada subsequently declined to hear his appeal, exhausting his legal avenues at the time.

Life in Prison and the Relentless Campaign for Freedom

Milgaard endured immense hardship and brutality during his incarceration. He was physically abused and sexually assaulted by other inmates. The profound trauma of his wrongful imprisonment led him to attempt suicide on multiple occasions. In 1980, he escaped from custody and remained at large for over two months before being shot and recaptured by RCMP officers. Throughout his imprisonment, his mother, Joyce Milgaard, mounted a formidable, unrelenting, and publicly savvy campaign to prove his innocence. She conducted her own independent investigations, maintained constant pressure on political and legal authorities, and worked tirelessly with an extensive network of media contacts to keep her son's story in the public eye. Her efforts were described in the subsequent inquiry as creating both awareness and tension within the police and Crown's office. Joyce Milgaard's investigation uncovered the most critical new lead. She learned that Larry Earl Fisher, a serial sex offender with a history of violent rapes, had been renting the basement suite in the Cadrain family home in January 1969. This information, which had been overlooked by the original investigation, formed the bedrock of a formal application to the federal Minister of Justice for a review of the conviction under section 690 of the Criminal Code.

The Long Path to Exoneration and Release

The fight for a judicial review was protracted. A formal application for appeal was completed in 1988 but saw no action for years. In 1991, after Joyce Milgaard spoke directly to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, the federal government submitted a reference question to the Supreme Court of Canada regarding the case. The Court reviewed the new evidence concerning Larry Fisher and concluded it 'could reasonably be expected to have affected the verdict of the jury' at Milgaard's trial. Based on this, the Court recommended Milgaard's conviction be set aside. Federal Minister of Justice Kim Campbell then ordered a new trial pursuant to section 690 of the Criminal Code. However, the government of Saskatchewan announced it would not proceed with a new trial, instead entering a stay of proceedings. David Milgaard was finally released from prison on April 16, 1992, after 23 years behind bars. Final and definitive scientific exoneration came on July 18, 1997, when a forensic DNA laboratory in the United Kingdom released a report confirming that semen samples found on the victim's clothing did not originate from Milgaard. This same DNA evidence positively implicated Larry Fisher.

The Real Killer: Larry Fisher

The DNA evidence that freed Milgaard directly led police to Larry Earl Fisher, who was arrested in Calgary on July 25, 1997. Fisher was a serial sex offender who had previously served a total of 23 years in prison for numerous rapes committed in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. His criminal record included a conviction for rape and attempted murder in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Crucially, at the time of Gail Miller's murder, he was living in the basement of the Cadrain home. Fisher was convicted of Miller's first-degree murder on November 22, 1999, and sentenced to life in prison. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal unanimously denied his appeal in September 2003. Fisher was eligible for parole on multiple occasions but opted not to have his case heard by the National Parole Board. He died in custody at the Pacific Institution in Abbotsford, British Columbia, on June 10, 2015. The inquiry later revealed that Fisher's ex-wife, Linda Fisher, had visited the Saskatoon police in 1980 to tell them she believed her former husband had likely killed Miller, but police did not follow up on her statement.

Compensation and the Public Inquiry

On May 17, 1999, the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan announced a settlement had been reached with David Milgaard. He was paid $10 million in compensation for pain and suffering, lost wages, and legal fees, along with a formal apology. Seeking to understand the systemic failures, the Saskatchewan government announced a royal commission of inquiry on September 30, 2003. Justice Edward P. MacCallum of the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench was appointed commissioner. The inquiry's report, released on September 26, 2008, provided a scathing analysis of the original investigation and prosecution. It highlighted the police coercion of witnesses, the failure to investigate Larry Fisher despite a direct tip in 1980, and the problematic use of Nichol John's recanted statement at trial. Among its key recommendations was a call for the federal government to create an independent body to review allegations of wrongful conviction. The report noted that if such an independent body had existed, Milgaard might have been released from jail years earlier than he was. The inquiry also acknowledged the tension created by the Milgaard family's public campaign, even as it credited their efforts for keeping the case alive.

Life After Exoneration, Advocacy, and Death

After his release, David Milgaard married his partner Cristina and together they had two children, a son and a daughter. He lived in Cochrane, Alberta, and was employed as a community support worker. He became a dedicated public speaker, advocating passionately for the wrongfully convicted and for broader prisoners' rights and prison reform. He used his experience to help others, stating he had helped in the fight for the creation of a review board for wrongful conviction cases. In December 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ordered the creation of an Independent Review Board Working Group, and Milgaard was appointed as a member to help shape this new federal entity. In 2021, he engaged with a new generation by posting advocacy videos on his YouTube channel, Project Milgaard. David Milgaard became ill on May 14, 2022, and was taken to a hospital in Calgary. He died the following day, May 15, 2022, at the age of 69 from complications of pneumonia.

Lasting Impact, Legacy, and Cultural References

The David Milgaard case remains a seminal example of miscarriage of justice in Canada, exposing critical flaws in police investigations, witness handling, prosecutorial conduct, and the appeals process. It demonstrated the devastating human cost of wrongful conviction and the power of sustained familial advocacy. The most significant legislative legacy emerged in February 2023, when federal Justice Minister David Lametti introduced a bill formally titled the 'Miscarriage of Justice Review Commission Act' but popularly known as 'David and Joyce Milgaard's Law.' This proposed legislation aims to create the very independent commission to investigate wrongful convictions that the 2008 inquiry recommended. The case has also been etched into Canadian popular culture. It was the subject of the 1992 documentary 'The David Milgaard Story' and the 1999 docudrama 'Milgaard' starring Ian Tracey. The Tragically Hip's song 'Wheat Kings' from their 1992 album 'Fully Completely' contains references to the story. Canadian artist David Collier also depicted the Milgaard case in comics form in his 2000 book 'Surviving Saskatoon.'

Questions about David Milgaard

Who actually killed Gail Miller?

Gail Miller was murdered by Larry Earl Fisher, a serial sex offender with a long history of violent rapes in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Fisher was living in the basement of the Cadrain home at the time of the murder. DNA testing in 1997 conclusively linked Fisher to the crime scene and excluded Milgaard. Fisher was convicted of Miller's murder in 1999, sentenced to life, and died in prison in 2015.

What happened to David Milgaard after he was released?

After his release, David Milgaard lived in Alberta, married, and had two children. He worked as a community support worker and became a prominent national public speaker advocating for the wrongfully convicted and prison reform. He was appointed to a federal working group on wrongful convictions in 2019 and ran a YouTube advocacy channel. Milgaard died in a Calgary hospital on May 15, 2022, from complications of pneumonia at age 69.

What was David Milgaard convicted of?

David Milgaard was convicted of the non capital murder of 20 year old nursing student Gail Miller in Saskatoon on January 31, 1970. He was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for at least ten years. This conviction was based on false testimony coerced from his friends and a statement from another friend who claimed to have seen him in blood stained clothing. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal in 1971. This conviction was later proven to be a profound miscarriage of justice, and he was fully exonerated in 1997 after DNA evidence proved his innocence and implicated the real killer, Larry Fisher.

How long was David Milgaard in prison?

David Milgaard spent 23 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He was arrested in May 1969 and remained incarcerated until his release on April 16, 1992, after the federal justice minister ordered a new trial and the Saskatchewan government entered a stay of proceedings. During his incarceration, he faced immense hardship, including being raped and attempting suicide. He was finally released after a long campaign led by his mother and lawyers.

How much compensation did David Milgaard receive?

On May 17, 1999, David Milgaard received a settlement of $10 million from the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan. This compensation was for the immense pain and suffering, lost wages, and legal fees incurred during his 23 years of wrongful imprisonment. He had also received a formal apology from the Saskatchewan government in 1997 following his DNA exoneration. The settlement was announced after DNA evidence conclusively proved his innocence in 1997 and the real perpetrator, Larry Fisher, was convicted in 1999.

What is David and Joyce Milgaard's Law?

David and Joyce Milgaard's Law is the popular name for federal legislation introduced in February 2023 by Justice Minister David Lametti. Formally called the Miscarriage of Justice Review Commission Act, the bill seeks to create an independent commission to review potential wrongful conviction cases, a key recommendation from the 2008 inquiry into Milgaard's case. It is named in honour of David and his mother, Joyce, whose advocacy highlighted the critical need for such a reform. The 2008 inquiry report noted that if such an independent body had existed earlier, Milgaard might have been released from jail years sooner.

Sources: Wikipedia and current public reporting, checked by the Nosy Mag desk. Last updated 2026-10-22.