A New Brunswick man who spent decades fighting a wrongful murder conviction that landed him and a friend behind bars had only a few months to relish his victory, the organization that helped in his legal battle said Saturday as it announced his death.
Innocence Canada, which led the legal fight to exonerate Walter Gillespie and his friend Robert Mailman of their 1984 murder convictions, said Gillespie died Friday in his home in Saint John, N.B., at the age of 80.
Founding director James Lockyer lamented the fact that Gillespie had such a brief time to enjoy the fruits of his decades-long fight.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very sad,鈥� Lockyer said. 鈥淚鈥檓 just glad that he managed to have his name cleared before he died. That was so important to him.鈥�
Details about Gillespie鈥檚 cause of death were not immediately known.
In January, New Brunswick Court of King鈥檚 Bench Chief Justice Tracey DeWare acquitted Gillespie and Mailman, 76, of the 1983 murder of Saint John resident George Leeman and apologized for the 鈥渕iscarriage of justice.鈥�
Her ruling came after federal Justice Minister Arif Virani ordered a new trial on Dec. 22, saying evidence had surfaced that called into question 鈥渢he overall fairness of the process.鈥�
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Ron Dalton, now co-president of Innocence Canada, took up the men鈥檚 case when he was fighting for freedom from his own wrongful conviction.
He called Gillespie a 鈥渟tudy in strength of character and friendship.鈥�
鈥淔or 40 years (Gillespie) refused to falsely implicate his friend, Robert Mailman, and paid dearly with his freedom,鈥� Dalton said. 鈥淎 sad end to a difficult but honourable life.鈥�
In an interview in January, about a week after he was formally exonerated, Gillespie recounted the offer of freedom dangled before him a year after Leeman鈥檚 murder.
He said he was told by Saint John police that if he signed a statement against Mailman, he would be charged with aiding and abetting and only face three years in prison.
鈥淚 said I was not going to do that,鈥� he said. 鈥�(The officer) said, 鈥榠f you鈥檙e going to protect (Mailman), you鈥檙e going down with him.鈥欌��
He spent 21 years in prison.
Gillespie was born on Aug. 31, 1943, in Saint John and had a Grade 6 education. Most of his immediate family died in a house fire when he was about 20.
His friendship with Mailman predated their shared legal ordeal. The men previously told The Canadian Press they met in 1961, with Gillespie joking Mailman was checking out his then-girlfriend during one of their first encounters.
They became inseparable after their wrongful convictions, speaking to each other every day for decades.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been joined at the hip for over 40 years through this. And he鈥檚 like a brother,鈥� Mailman said of his friend.
Mailman was not available for comment on Gillespie鈥檚 death on Saturday, but said through Dalton that he hadn鈥檛 been able to sleep well after learning the news.
In an earlier interview, Mailman described the friend he called Wally as a man of few words.
鈥淵ou never bother a sleeping junkyard dog,鈥� he said with a laugh.
Gillespie is survived by a daughter with whom he only recently began to reconnect.
鈥淲e haven鈥檛 connected for almost the last 40 years,鈥� he said shortly after having his name cleared. 鈥溾�� I鈥檓 hoping I can help her out if we can get any money or anything like that. I talked quite a bit with her over the last couple days or so. Oh, it feels great.鈥�
The New Brunswick government reached a settlement with the two men on March 1 for an undisclosed sum.
While on parole, Gillespie lived at a halfway house where he also worked as a cleaner for 15 hours a week.
After being declared innocent, he moved to an apartment in Saint John for which he paid $800 a month. The former hotel room he described as a jail cell was cramped even with his minimal belongings, brightened only by his own colourful paintings and the set of white towels and a white tea kettle Mailman gave him as housewarming gifts.
鈥淲ally shouldn鈥檛 have to come out of the prison 鈥� and to a halfway house all them years, only to go into a place that鈥檚 even worse than he left behind,鈥� Mailman said of his friend鈥檚 spartan quarters.
When Mailman was diagnosed with terminal cancer last November, Gillespie was the first person he called.
Gillespie signed out of the halfway house for a day and spent it with his friend as he learned of the life-changing diagnosis.
Apart from his quiet conviction and strength of character, Dalton recalled Gillespie鈥檚 love of American author Zane Grey鈥檚 westerns and his voracious reading habits. He also remembered Gillespie鈥檚 flashy fashion sense, noting his penchant for bright colours and the black patent shoes he saved for a special occasion and finally wore to court on the day his name was cleared.
But he said Gillespie鈥檚 most enduring impact stems from his efforts to uphold justice in Canada鈥檚 correctional system.
鈥淢r. Gillespie helped raise awareness of wrongful convictions in this country and that will be a part of his legacy.鈥�
Hina Alam, The Canadian Press
