The family of slain schoolgirl Lynne Harper has until Tuesday to convince a court not to award financial compensation to Steven Truscott, the man wrongly convicted of the murder.
Lynne's father and oldest brother Barry will make a submission Tuesday to retired appeal court judge Sydney Robbins, detailing how their lives have been affected since the 12-year-old girl's untimely death half a century ago.
Barry Harper told the Globe and Mail the family will argue in court Truscott should not receive financial compensation because he was never declared "factually innocent."
"They haven't declared him innocent," he said in the interview. "How can they possibly compensate him?"
He also told the Globe their father Leslie had become ill since Truscott was acquitted last August. He said he fears his father's health would take a turn for the worse if Truscott came into money because of the case.
However, in recent history, the courts have awarded significant compensation to people who have been wrongly accused of murder. Current guidelines state that compensation should be awarded when it is proven that the person did not commit the crime for which they were convicted.
Guy Paul Morin and David Milgaard were both exonerated of murder, thanks to DNA evidence, after serving years in prison. They received $1.2 million and $10 million respectively.
However, there is no DNA evidence available in Truscott's case which makes it almost impossible to clear his name completely.
While the Ontario Court of Appeal declared Truscott a victim of a miscarriage of justice and acquitted him of raping and murdering Harper in 1959, they also said the evidence prevented them from declaring him innocent.
Truscott was 14 years old when he was convicted of the murder and sentenced to death. However, that was later commuted to life in prison. After 10 years, Truscott was paroled. He has maintained his innocence since the beginning.
