Episode 258: On the morning of February 20, 1989, stay-at-home mother of two Janice Faye Johnson was found unconscious, gravely injured and barely clinging to life at the foot of a flight of basement stairs in the Shelburne, Nova Scotia home she shared with her family, Clayton Norman Johnson and daughters Darla and Dawn. Even though she was still alive when she was found by a neighbour, who called for an ambulance immediately, Janice died in the hospital just after noon that day.
More than three years after her death, police arrested Janice’s husband, Clayton, a high school industrial arts teacher, and charged him with first-degree murder. Consistently maintaining his innocence throughout subsequent proceedings, on May 4, 1993, Clayton was found guilty of the first-degree murder of his wife. He was later sentenced to life in prison — his appeals, citing spurious forensic evidence, were rejected. He spent the next five years in prison.
Sources:
Clayton Johnson - Innocence Canada
Crown Halts Clayton Johnson Murder Prosecution - Government of Nova Scotia, Canada
Clayton Johnson Settlement - Government of Nova Scotia, Canada
Clayton Johnson: Innocent man convicted by so-called experts
Clayton Johnson walks as Crown balks at new trial | CBC News
Shelburne man, wrongly convicted of wife’s murder, dies | CBC News
1998 NSCA 14 (CanLII) | R. v. Johnson | CanLII
1994 NSCA 79 (CanLII) | R. v. Johnson | CanLII
Clayton Johnson - Wrongful Conviction - Pyzer Criminal Lawyers
Clayton Johnson: obituary and death notice on InMemoriam
Clayton Johnson wrongful murder conviction: Tide of Suspicion (1998) - The Fifth Estate — YouTube
Wrongly convicted man cleared in wife’s death - The Globe and Mail
Accident or Murder? | Forensic Files Wiki | Fandom
“Forensic Files” Accident or Murder? (TV Episode 1999) - Reference View - IMDb
Obituary | Clayton Norman Johnson of Barrington, Nova Scotia | H.M. Huskilson’s Funeral Home
Scribd | Justice Miscarried: Inside Wrongful Convictions in Canada
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The Tragic Tale of Janice and Clayton Johnson | Dark Poutine - True Crime and Dark History podcast - Listen or read transcript on Metacast
