Saint John police review up in the air a year after two men exonerated in murder case

More than a year after the police chief announced a review of his officers' conduct in the case of two men wrongfully convicted of murder, there is no sign of the promised report.

More than a year after the Saint John, N.B., police chief announced a review of his officers’ conduct in the case of two men wrongfully convicted of murder, there is no sign of the promised report.

On Jan. 12, 2024, Chief Robert Bruce said he had ordered a “comprehensive review” of the investigation that resulted in Robert Mailman and Walter Gillespie serving long prison sentences for a 1983 murder they did not commit.

The review was announced eight days after New Brunswick Court of King’s Bench Chief Justice Tracey DeWare exonerated the men and said they had been victims of a miscarriage of justice. Earlier, federal Justice Minister Arif Virani had ordered a new trial citing evidence that called into question “the overall fairness” of their prosecution.

Bruce said he had commissioned Allen Farrah, a retired senior RCMP officer, to “carry out an independent review solely focused on the investigation” by the Saint John police. Farrah is the owner and sole employee of the investigative consulting firm Clear-Path Solutions, Inc., based in Hanwell, N.B.

“Given the circumstances and out of a sense of duty and responsibility, I will conduct a comprehensive review of the involvement of the Saint John police in this matter,” Bruce said at the time.

However, a year later the police force is not saying when the review will be completed. Spokesman Staff Sgt. Matt Weir said last week he has no timeline for when the findings will be made public. Reached by email, Farrah said he would not be commenting on the Mailman-Gillespie review and directed questions back to Saint John police.

In December, newly elected Liberal Premier Susan Holt wondered what had happened to the Saint John police’s investigation.

“Where is the report? Is it complete? What were their findings?” she asked. “Because certainly (Gillespie and Mailman’s) experience having been wrongfully convicted, and for that long, really, it would be devastating. We don’t want anybody else to have to experience that. So we need to learn from the times we’ve got it wrong.”