The story of Claude Paquin is recognized as one of the worst miscarriages of justice in Quebec’s history. In 1983, Paquin was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder in the 1978 deaths of a couple, spending 41 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He was finally acquitted in November and is now suing the Quebec Crown prosecutor’s office, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), and the Montreal police (SPVM) for $64 million. According to the more than 100-page lawsuit, the 82-year-old is the oldest person ever acquitted in Canada after being wrongfully convicted. Paquin maintained his innocence from the beginning and fought for years to prove it. He lost his appeal in 1987, and the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear his case the following year. He was acquitted with the help of Projet Innocence Quebec, a group that helps the wrongly convicted. They built the case over 10 years and presented new evidence to the federal justice minister in 2020. The lawsuit says his trajectory illustrates a “judicial spiral” of serious gross and malicious state misconduct. Paquin’s lawyers say he now seeks the quiet stability of a peaceful life lived with dignity — and full, uncompromising reparation for what was done to him. Quebec’s Justice Ministry told CTV News it will not be commenting on the case out of respect for the judicial process. The SPVM also declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal proceedings.
