Mailman and Gillespie victims of police 'tunnel vision,' Saint John chief says
Saint John Police Force releases summary of report following year-long review
Saint John police had "tunnel vision" during their investigation of the 1983 murder of George Leeman, according to a year-long review of the case.
Once investigators focused on Robert Mailman and Walter Gillespie, they "looked for evidence that would support their case," Chief Robert Bruce said at a news conference on Friday.
Mailman and Gillespie were convicted of second-degree murder in 1984 and given life sentences. Both were eventually paroled. Gillespie died last April and Mailman, who will turn 77 next Friday, has terminal cancer and was taken to hospital on Thursday.
Ron Dalton, co-president of Innocence Canada, spoke with Mailman on Friday morning before the news conference.
He said Mailman told him if the Saint John Police Force "would stand up, take responsibility and admit that they made mistakes, and release the full unredacted report, he would be satisfied."
Dalton noted that "it wasn't a fulsome apology. It was some acknowledgement at least. And I'm hoping that'll be enough to give Mr. Mailman some peace of mind."
He said Mailman is very ill. Doctors told him they wanted him to spend a couple days in hospital.
"He said no, if he's dying, he's going to go home and die in his own comfort, on his own terms."
Dalton said he doesn't believe there's any reason not to release Farrah's entire report.
"Until we shine some daylight in some of these dark corners, you don't acknowledge the mistakes and you don't have a chance of fixing them."
From his own perspective, Dalton said he was surprised by the summary of the report.
"I hate to admit it, but I was pleasantly surprised. My expectation bar was set pretty low. I was expecting more of a whitewash than what I see there now."
In January 2024, after a court ruled the two men had been victims of a miscarriage of justice, Bruce announced a review of the original police investigation.
On Friday, as he released a summary of that review, Bruce said officers made mistakes and for that he expressed "profound regret" to those involved "that these events unfolded as they did."
Investigator Allen Farrah, a retired RCMP officer, said in the summary, "The failure of this investigation is largely attributed to police tunnel vision."
Detectives "relied heavily on a witness whose cooperation and statements were inconsistent and lacked corroboration," Farrah said.
"Today, such outcomes are less likely due to significant changes in Law, rigorous policies governing law enforcement practices, increased checks and balances, and the arm's-length relationship between police and the Crown."
Bruce said many of the shortcomings of the original police investigation can be blamed on "historical factors no longer present in modern-day policing practices," and there was no "malicious intent to railroad people" on the part of the officers.
"They followed a line that they were following. Was it the best? No. Did they make mistakes? Yes. But there was no ill intent. So there would be no criminality to that," Bruce said.
Applying today's policing standards, however, is a different story. He said there would "absolutely" be consequences for a police officer who conducted an investigation like the one into Leeman's death.
One of the standards that has changed since the early '90s governs disclosure of evidence to the defence.
In the Leeman case, an eyewitness was paid by police, and that information was never given to the defence teams.
Court documents noted that Saint John police had given a total of $1,800 — in addition to hotel and relocation costs — to a 16-year-old who testified in 1984 that he had witnessed Leeman's murder.
The witness, John Loeman Jr., later recanted his story to his own lawyer, to a journalist, in two letters and to a federal Justice Department lawyer looking into Mailman and Gillespie's case in 1998.
Case closed
As far as the original murder investigation goes, Bruce said that case is closed. They're not still looking for a killer.
He said one person pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 1984.
"We're not opening that case up," said Bruce. "We feel it's complete.
Janet Shatford pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter in exchange for her testimony against Mailman and Gillespie.
Bruce said the eyewitness "provided information that brought those three people to our attention. Miss Shatford, Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Mailman. Before that, they weren't even considered suspects."
Bruce said the whole case was based on "an independent witness whose story was inconsistent and we couldn't get the collaborating evidence."
With modern-day policing standards, Bruce said that would never happen.
"It's very rare that one single eyewitness would carry the weight that it did back in those days."
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With files from Thomas Daigle
