Colin Thatcher

Colin Thatcher was born in Toronto when his father, Ross Thatcher, worked for Canada Packers. He moved to Saskatchewan when his father returned home to run the family business. His father subsequently entered politics and became Premier of Saskatchewan from 1964 to 1971.

Thatcher began studying agriculture at the University of Saskatchewan. After one year, he transferred to Iowa State University, where he met JoAnn Geiger. In 1962, they married. He graduated from Iowa State with B.S. and M.S. degrees in agriculture and then went to work on his father's ranch in Moose Jaw.

After his father's death in 1971, Thatcher cultivated his own interest in politics. In 1975, he won the provincial riding of Thunder Creek as a Liberal, but he defected to the Progressive Conservatives two years later after voter popularity had shifted from the Liberals to the Conservatives. The move was denounced by the Liberals and also privately by his wife.

Geiger felt disgraced by Thatcher's behaviour, and their marriage began to disintegrate. Thatcher began a number of extramarital relationships, which he made little effort to hide from public scrutiny. When Geiger confronted him with these indiscretions, Thatcher is reported to have verbally and physically abused her.[1] Thatcher's dalliances did not adversely affect his popularity as a politician, and in 1978, he was re-elected to the Legislative Assembly.

Four days after Thatcher's resignation, on 21 January 1983, JoAnn was found bludgeoned and shot to death in the garage of her Regina home. Again, rumours abounded that Thatcher had been in some way involved, but he was not formally charged until 7 May 1984, after a lengthy police investigation.

Thatcher was tried in Saskatoon for the murder of his ex-wife in the autumn of 1984. In addition to the evidence presented, he insisted on testifying so that he could try and explain the recorded conversation between Anderson and him. He was found guilty under the prosecution of Serge Kujawa and was given a sentence of life imprisonment with no eligibility for parole for 25 years.[2]

Thatcher appealed the verdict, but the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal rejected the plea in 1986. Subsequent requests to the Supreme Court of Canada and the federal Minister of Justice for a review of his case were also denied. A request for an early parole hearing was rejected in 2000, but the jury of a later hearing in 2003 decided that he was eligible to apply. He did so, and on 31 March 2004, the National Parole Board rejected his bid for early release. Throughout his trial and his appeals, Thatcher has steadfastly maintained his innocence, which he admits is probably the reason that he was not paroled until late 2006.

Thatcher has written a 440-page book about his case, Final Appeal: Anatomy of a Frame. It was released by ECW Press on September 1, 2009.[3]

• Bird, Heather. Not Above The Law: The Tragic Story of JoAnn Wilson and Colin Thatcher. Toronto: Key Porter Books Limited, 1985.
• Mankiewicz, Francis, director. Love and Hate: The Story of Colin and JoAnn Thatcher. (Television movie.) Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 1989. This film starred Kenneth Welsh and Kate Nelligan as Colin and JoAnn Thatcher.
• Siggins, Maggie. A Canadian Tragedy, JoAnn & Colin Thatcher: A Story of Love and Hate. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1985.
• Thatcher, Colin. Backrooms: A Story of Politics. Douglas & McIntyre, 1985.
• Wilson, Garrett & Lesley Wilson. Deny, Deny, Deny: The Rise and Fall of Colin Thatcher. Toronto: James Lorimer & Company, 1986.

• Crime Library article on Colin Thatcher
• CBC's Colin Thatcher Timeline
• Colin Thatcher returns to Sask. legislative building
• CBC News: Colin Thatcher writing book about his case