(Photo: Odelia Quewezance)
Support in mounting for the release of two Saskatchewan First Nations sisters convicted of murder to be released from prison.
Odelia and Narissa Quewezance were sentenced to life in prison for the second-degree murder of Anthony Joseph Dolff, 70, in 1993 at his rural farm near Kamsack.
A third person Jason Keshane, a youth at the time of the killing was sentenced to four-years for his part.
But supporters of the sister’s state there is a lack of physical evidence and that Keshane has admitted to being responsible for the murder.
“We believe that there’s been a miscarriage of justice, with respect to these two women that were convicted of second-degree murder in 1994,” explained Congress of Aboriginal Peoples National Vice Chief Kim Beaudin Tuesday.
Odelia Quewezance has spent close to 28-years in prison.
Odelia, 21, Nerissa, 19 and Keshane 14, were partying at Dolff’s farm in Feb. 1993.
According to an APTN Investigates the group had been consuming alcohol, with Odelia claiming that Dolff propositioned the women.
By the end of the night, Dolff would be stabbed 17 times, strangled with a telephone cord and had a television thrown on his head.
Odelia blamed Keshane for the killing.
“Sitting here every day knowing that I am innocent. I’m sorry, that situation happen. And I just pray to go home,” Odelia said.
APTN interviewed Keshane where he admits to full responsibility for the murder.
Advocate David Milgaard, was wrongfully convicted of murder and rape in 1969. He spent 23 years in prison, points to Keshane’s multiple confessions as to why the Quewezance sisters should be released from prison. “Let’s have her go home to her family, and be nurtured and heal.”
Innocence Canada has agreed to represent the Quewezance sisters, believing there were problems with how the RCMP handled the women, documented evidence or recorded testimony, which could have been used to alter the outcome of the trial.
The trial judge issued a Vetrovec warning to the jury, essentially warning them of accepting untrustworthy witness testimony.
The Sask. Court of Appeal upheld the Vetrovec warning and dismissed the appeal. The Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear the appeal.
Beaudin is calling on Prime Minister Trudeau to immediately intervene and release the sisters.
“The bottom line is that these women served, one served 25 years, one was still there 20 years later, are really serving a for a crime that they did not commit. And that’s our biggest problem here,” explained Beaudin. “We are formally requesting the Canadian government, Justice Minister and Justin Trudeau take steps to release both mothers to their families. It’s time for them to go home and this has gone on long enough.”