Mullins-Johnson granted bail after 12 years in prison
Last Updated: Wednesday, September 21, 2005 | 11:29 AM ET
CBC News
Bill Mullins-Johnson has been granted bail after 12 years in prison while the federal justice minister determines if he was wrongfully convicted.
The 35-year-old man was convicted in 1994 of sodomizing and strangling his four-year-old niece. No forensic evidence linked him to the crime, yet he was convicted based on testimony from two pathologists.
Two experts now say that the girl was not sexually abused, and in fact died of natural causes.
Bill Mullins-Johnson answers questions after walking out of court in Toronto (CP Photo/Frank Gunn)
Wednesday, a freed and emotional Mullins-Johnson said the past 12-years have been nothing but hell for him and his family. He said the '94 trial wasn't justice, it was an injustice and his family has been torn apart by it. He added he's looking forward to exonerating himself.
Family members put up $125,000 in bail money.
The 35-year-old Sault Ste. Marie man said he loved his niece and that his heart went out to her parents. "I appreciate what the parents of my niece have gone thorough -- they lost a little girl in all this," he said.
Justice Minister Irwin Cotler must now decide whether to order a new trial or send the case back to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
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