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Unger's murder conviction overturned

By: Gabrielle Giroday

11/03/2009 4:54 PM | Comments: 17

Kyle Unger and his mother, Treva Unger, speak to reporters outside the Law Courts in Winnipeg Wednesday, the day his conviction for first-degree murder in the 1990 death of Brigitte Grenier was quashed.

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Kyle Unger and his mother, Treva Unger, speak to reporters outside the Law Courts in Winnipeg Wednesday, the day his conviction for first-degree murder in the 1990 death of Brigitte Grenier was quashed. (WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)

Brigitte Grenier

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Brigitte Grenier

The first-degree murder conviction of Kyle Unger for the brutal 1990 murder of Brigitte Grenier at an outdoor rock concert has been quashed by the federal justice minister.

Justice Minister Robert Nicholson announced this morning that the conviction had been overturned and a new trial ordered.

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"I am satisfied there is a reasonable basis to conclude that a miscarriage of justice likely occurred in Mr. Unger’s 1992 conviction," Nicholson said.

It is up to Manitoba Justice, however, to determine whether to proceed with a new trial.

Unger said this afternoon he is not angry about what's transpired.  He said he now works in construction in British Columbia, and said he has a "new life" that's built in the years he's been out on bail.

"I'm pretty relieved," he said. "An opportunity to prove my innoncence has finally come my way and I'm looking greatly forward to it."

He said he hasn't thought about potential compensation.

Unger said the situation has "dragged on" and he wants closure.
 
His mother, Treva Unger, who moved with her husband to British Columbia to be close to her son, was by his side this afternoon and said she was "ecstatic" about the developments.

RCMP officials said this morning they would not comment on the matter.
 
Unger and co-accused Timothy Houlahan were both convicted for the 1990 murder of Brigitte Grenier. The popular teenager was found face-down in a creek bed, sexually assaulted and mutilated.
 
Police and prosecutors theorized that Unger, then 19, and Houlahan, 17 -- who did not know each other before the crime -- conspired to kill Grenier.
 
The prosecutor who handled the Unger case was George Dangerfield, a storied Crown attorney who, in recent years, has seen several of his cases overturned as wrongful convictions, including Thomas Sophonow and James Driskell.
 
Houlahan was released on bail after his conviction was overturned by the Manitoba Court of Appeal in 1994. While out on appeal, he committed suicide.
 
Unger’s appeal to the Manitoba Court of Appeal was rejected and leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada was denied.
 
Unger has been out on bail since September 2004, after an advisory committee established by the Manitoba government, the Forensic Evidence Review Committee, called into question the hair comparison evidence used at trial.  He has maintained his innocence.

Nicholson made his decision to quash the conviction after reviewing the investigation report and advice of the Department’s Criminal Conviction Review Group; the submissions of Unger’s counsel and of the Attorney General of Manitoba; and the recommendations of Bernard Grenier, Nicholson’s special advisor on the criminal conviction review process.

gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca

— With files from The Canadian Press

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17 Commentscomment icon

1) With all due respect to the family and friends of the victim, it's a great day for justice when someone is vindicated of a crime they did not commit. Even if that means you've been hating the wrong guy for 14 years. 2) You can't just convict someone on the basis that someone NEEDS to be convicted. 3) DNA testing ruled out that the piece of hair used to assert him as guilty wasn't even his. That's enough right there to convince anyone. He should be compensated for the 14 years of his life the justice system has robbed him of. 4) You can't possibly believe someone is guilty because he seemed creepy when looking at the jury. That's irrational and ridiculous.

I say bring on a new trial. Something happened that night and no one remembers. I think Houlahan new more then anyone. He is the one who took his own life after being out on appeal. If Mr Unger is guilty it will come out. This young lady lost her life, you must have some respect for the family here. They have lived all these years with out really knowing who actually killed their daughter. EDITED You must remember these were teenagers at the time. People change and grow up. And no it was not right what happened to the young lady, yet we must look for the answers to what really happened. Do we have justice in Canada. No, criminals walk everyday with out paying the price. A prime example would be Mr Li. One day these people will pay the price, it may not be here on earth but they will pay for the wrong doings. We as Canadians need to fight how are justice system works and if everyone got together and signed petitions and brought this forward to Mr Harper maybe just maybe we the people can change what happens in the courts.

To anyone that actually believes Unger was guilty: how would you like to be convicted of life in jail based on a piece of hair? Do some research on hair analysis and you'll soon find out its wildly unreliable at best.

Gee Nevermind, thats quite the logical arguement you are advancing. Keep our mouths shut, and you're right because you say so. How could anyone argue with that? Do you hear yourself? Whether or not she was a nice person has no bearing on the guilt of the accused. You cannot convict a man of a crime because someone needs to be convicted. And then you say there could be little doubt the man is guilty, and if you simply know him, you will know this. Wow, you should be on the supreme court. You are the only person I know who can decide automatic guilt without facts. Thats quite a talent you have there.

I really wish the "higher gods" at the FP would stop censoring what everyone has to say.i would like to know what NEVERMIND has to say.

Not really aware of this case. Wish there was more background on it.

avatar

You get hauled in on a murder charge, well, now righteous men will take it from here. They've all sworn oaths to the bar, or as a cop, so there can be no doubt they will act accordingly, there's no need for oversight, as these men of honour would never sully the good name of The Crown. -- When a single hair is your best piece of evidence, wouldn't you run it by every expert you could find, so that there is no doubt? What do these idiots do? Hold it up to a light and say "Yup, this is probably the defendant's." ??? Doesn't sound like there's any standards that must be met, that it's up to the individual prosecutor to decide how far the testing of evidence goes. Heads gotta roll from these things, it's cheaper to give a guy an honest trial than stir up ghosts of the past and pay for the subsequent re-trials and compensation.

In this day and age with DNA evidence there is all the MORE reason to bring back the death penalty. There are plenty of killers in prison who are guilty of murder. There would be no mistakes if your DNA is found inside/around a rape/murder victim and it shouldn't be....then you will die. ouch!

So who was the murderer(s) after all? I remember this case clearly; and wonder why there were no other names of possible guilty mentioned at the time.

For those of you who know nothing of this situation, keep your comments to yourselves. For those who knew the victim, she was the most beautiful individual who would've left a long legacy in her life. For those who know the accused, there is little doubt. [Edited]

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