David Milgaard, a Winnipeg man who spent 23 years behind bars for a rape and murder he did not commit, died in Calgary this weekend, his family confirmed.
The cause of death of the 69-year-old man has not yet been released.
In 1969, David Milgaard was 16 and traveling to Saskatchewan with friends when the body of Gail Miller, a nurse in Saskatoon, was found on a snow bank.
Convicted of murder at age 17, he spent 23 years in prison trying to prove his innocence.
Over the years, his lawyers have accused the police the worst possible tunnel vision during their investigation.
In 1992, he was finally dismissed by the Supreme Court of Canada after DNA testing revealed a link between this crime and criminal Larry Fisher.
The latter was sentenced to life imprisonment after 8 years for rape and murder. He died in 2015.
After his release from prison, David Milgaard became an ardent defender of the rights of victims of injustice. He received multi-million dollar financial compensation in 1999.
With information from Meghan Grant
Source: Radio-Canada
