Calvin Tallis

The Inquiry heard from Calvin Tallis earlier this week. He was Milgaard's defense lawyer back in 1970. Tallis was grilled and asked several pertinent questions, such as why he did not put David on the stand during the trial. He replied that he did not think that David would be a good witness because he was an avowed drug user and a hippie; that would've made him unpopular with the jury and it was one of the factors in Tallis's decision not to request a change of venue for the trial.

Moreover, apparently, David had confessed to Tallis that he had considered stealing a woman's purses that morning in Saskatoon when he and his friends stopped the car and asked for directions. Tallis did not want this information to get out because he was afraid that the prospect of robbery might lead the jurors to consider theft as a motive for murder.

And apparently, Milgaard had said to Tallis that he "didn't know" if he'd had blood on his clothes that morning and that he'd been driving well over the speed limit-- two things that would have surely gone against him under cross examination.

Lastly, Tallis was asked if he viewed Milgaard any differently because David was a legal aid case. Naturally, Tallis replied, "No."

Sigrid Mac, still reporting from Florida