'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul

The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.

The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.

Walter Gillespie died last week at the age of 80.

“His only wish was that people would know for a fact that he did not commit that heinous crime,” says his daughter, who only wants to be identified by her first name Patricia, in a statement. “He finally got that wish.”

In 1984, Gillespie and his friend Robert Mailman were wrongfully convicted for the 1983 homicide of George Leeman in Saint John. Gillespie spent 21 years in prison, and Mailman spent 18 years in prison. Both men received full parole in 2000.

A full exoneration of Gillespie and Mailman occurred in January, with a judge apologizing for a “miscarriage of justice.”

An undisclosed financial settlement was reached between both men and the provincial government in February.

Mailman has terminal lung cancer, and has been told he only has a few months to live.