Legere's criminal history preserved online

The University of New Brunswick's law department is opening a special digital archive devoted to New Brunswick's worst serial killer.

It's been 17 years since escaped convict Allan Legere went on a killing spree in the Miramichi area. His name still sends chills up people's spines in New Brunswick.

During a seven-month period in 1989, Legere escaped from prison and four brutal murders were committed. RCMP launched the largest manhunt in the province's history and New Brunswickers were scared. Many were sleeping with loaded rifles and putting floodlights in their yards.

Law librarian Ann Crocker says it was a scary time for many, but also an important time in New Brunswick's legal history.

She has collected 60,000 pages of transcripts, including original court sketches, and will preserve the case for posterity in a special section of the university archives.

"This was really a socio-legal watershed in New Brunswick history," Crocker said. "His conviction for murder, even though there were no witnesses to his killings, was based largely on the use of DNA evidence, and that was the very first occasion in Canadian legal history."

The Legere collection goes online Friday afternoon during an event with invited guests that include Judge David Dickson. He's the man who sent Legere away for life back 1991, and he's submitted his reflections on the case to be part of the library.

Legere is now in a Quebec prison serving multiple life sentences for murder.

• FROM JAN. 5, 2006: Legere murder accomplice granted day parole