The appeal is a first in Canada and considers the possibility of a miscarriage of justice
Canada’s justice minister and attorney general Sean Fraser has ordered an appeal in the Russell Woodhouse manslaughter case following a comprehensive post-mortem conviction review.
Based on the review findings, Fraser determined under reasonable grounds that a miscarriage of justice likely occurred in Woodhouse’s conviction. Thus, he has ordered that the case be examined in court again in light of new information.
This is the first time a Criminal Code-based remedy has resulted from a post-mortem conviction review.
Woodhouse was convicted of manslaughter in 1974 over a Winnipeg man’s death. He was sentenced to a decade-long jail term. Allan Woodhouse, Clarence Woodhouse, and Brian Anderson, who were accused alongside Russell Woodhouse and like him were from Pinaymootang First Nation, were convicted of murder.
Russell Woodhouse died in 2011; in 2023, Innocence Canada helped Woodhouse’s sister Linda Anderson apply for a conviction review. Such reviews are conducted under section 696.1 of the Criminal Code.
The justice minister evaluated the information provided to support the application and initiated a comprehensive investigation. According to the justice department, the minister considers whether the application is backed by new matters of significance, like new information that came to light after the trial and appeal.
Subsequently, the justice department’s criminal conviction review group investigates the matter on the minister’s behalf.
“My decision does not decide guilt or innocence, as that will rest with the courts, but it ensures new information can be considered and that Mr. Woodhouse's family has another chance to appeal his conviction. Our responsibility is to make sure Canadians can trust their justice system, and that means, in rare cases, taking action to right historic wrongs,” Fraser said in a statement.
Under the Criminal Code, the justice minister has long held the authority to examine possible miscarriages of justice. Fraser will retain this responsibility until the independent Miscarriage of Justice Review Commission relieves him of it.
The commission was established last year and is based in Winnipeg. It will be tasked with making decisions on potential wrongful convictions.
