NCJ Number
177717
Date Published
1999
Length
283 pages
Annotation
This is the true story of a Canadian mother's successful efforts to achieve a reversal of her son's conviction for murder and have him freed from prison.
Abstract
For nearly three decades Joyce Milgaard tried every conceivable means to free her son David from a life sentence for the rape and murder of Gail Miller. Based on false testimony and police incompetence, David was brought to trial and convicted without any physical evidence to connect him to a crime scene or the victim's body. From the time David was imprisoned in 1970, his mother pleaded with prime ministers, justice ministers, lawyers, scientists, church groups, police, and the media to help win her son's freedom. At first she was mistrusted, ignored, and sometimes even ridiculed. Her home life suffered, and she was reduced to near poverty, but she persisted in her quest. Over the years, she evolved into a respected, media-savvy crusader. In 1992 Joyce Milgaard's determination was rewarded and David was released from prison. Five years after that, DNA testing proved conclusively that David's conviction was a gross injustice. His name was cleared on July 18, 1997, and now the Milgaard family awaits the outcome of compensation negotiations with the Saskatchewan government. In the meantime, police have charged convicted serial rapist Larry Fisher with Gail Miller's murder. A subject index