REGINA - A Saskatchewan court has ruled that convicted wife killer Colin Thatcher can't make any money from a book he wrote proclaiming his innocence.
Thatcher had taken the Saskatchewan government to court to challenge a law enacted last spring that says criminals can't profit from recounting their crimes.
Thatcher argued the law didn't apply to Final Appeal: Anatomy of a Frame, because his book is about his dealings with the justice system, not about the 1983 murder of JoAnn Wilson. He also argued that the law was unconstitutional because it violated his freedom of expression.
But Court of Queen's Bench Justice Ted Zarzeczny disagreed.
Zarzeczny ruled Monday that the book is about the murder. The judge said quoted passages from the book lead him "unhesitatingly to conclude that the book recounts circumstances relating to the murder of JoAnn Wilson.
"The book is replete with the recollections and retelling of those circumstances by Mr. Thatcher himself or through his accounts of the people and witnesses whose evidence or conversations he recounts throughout. The book includes innumerable expressions of his thoughts or feelings about the crime and, as illustrated, proffers a scenario as a 're-enactment' of the crime," Zarzeczny wrote in his 45-page decision.
Zarzeczny also said the law doesn't violate Thatcher's rights to freedom of expression, noting that Thatcher "is as free, as is anyone else, to write and publish a book respecting this crime."
Wilson was beaten and shot in the garage of her Regina home, just steps from the provincial legislature.
Thatcher, a former Saskatchewan cabinet minister and the son of former premier Ross Thatcher, has always denied killing Wilson. He spent 22 years behind bars before being released on parole in 2006 and now lives on the family ranch near Moose Jaw, Sask. Thatcher was not available to comment Monday.
However, in court arguments last December, Thatcher said he wrote a book that was "completely within the law and completely within (his) rights."
The book's publisher, Jack David of ECW Press, said Monday that he was still reviewing the decision and needed time to talk to Thatcher before making a comment.
Saskatchewan Justice Minister Don Morgan called it a "well-reasoned and careful judgement."
The Saskatchewan government is trying to collect the $5,000 advance that Thatcher was paid by ECW Press and to seize any profits from book sales. Under the law, the proceeds would go to victims, their family members or a victims' fund.
That could benefit the three children Thatcher had with Wilson who have stood by their father as he proclaimed his innocence. Morgan said there's potential for that to happen, but it has not been decided who might get the profits.
"I wouldn't want to see the money in Mr. Thatcher's hands either directly or indirectly so we'll have to look at it and see what's appropriate," said Morgan.
"We have no past history of dealing with this so we're in new territory. I think we'll want to spend some time and carefully consider what's the best use of the money."
Four other provinces -- Ontario, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Alberta -- have similar legislation, but it's never been challenged in the courts.
Morgan said Thatcher has 30 days to appeal.
