Ottawa orders post-mortem appeal for Manitoba man in killing of restaurant worker
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WINNIPEG – The federal government has ordered an appeal into the conviction of a First Nations man — 14 years after his death — in the killing of a restaurant worker in Winnipeg.
Federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser announced Monday that a review of the conviction of Russell Woodhouse found reasonable grounds to conclude there was likely a miscarriage of justice in his case.
Woodhouse died in 2011.
“My decision does not decide guilt or innocence, as that will rest with the courts, but it ensures new information can be considered and that Mr. Woodhouse’s family has another chance to appeal his conviction,” Fraser said in a release.
“Our responsibility is to make sure Canadians can trust their justice system, and that means, in rare cases, taking action to right historic wrongs.”
The order returns the case to the courts for the new information to be considered.
The government said it’s the first time a post-mortem conviction review has granted a remedy under the Criminal Code.
Woodhouse, who was from Pinaymootang First Nation in Manitoba’s Interlake region, was one of four First Nations men from the community who were found guilty of fatally beating and stabbing Ting Fong Chan in 1973. He was convicted of manslaughter.
His brother Clarence Woodhouse along with Brian Anderson and Allan Woodhouse were convicted of murder. The three were later exonerated after courts found the case involved systemic discrimination.
The convictions were based largely on statements the men made to police that were fluent in English, including what prosecutors called a signed confession by Anderson.
The men’s lawyers have argued that the statements to police were not legitimate. Clarence Woodhouse and Anderson were not fluent in English and spoke Salteaux as a first language.
The courts apologized to the three men on behalf of the justice system.
Clarence Woodhouse spent 12 years behind bars before he was released on parole. Anderson served almost 11 years and was granted full parole in 1987. Allan Woodhouse served 23 years.
Russell Woodhouse was sentenced to 10 years.
In 2023, his sister Linda Anderson applied for a conviction review with the support of the advocacy group Innocence Canada.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2025.