Sentence appeals granted in 3 Alberta multiple murder cases
Four convicted multiple murderers in Alberta will be offered the chance to plead their cases to a parole board much earlier after series of appeal decisions on Friday.
Derek Saretzky, Edward Downey, Joshua Frank and Jason Klaus all had their sentence appeals granted by the Alberta Court of Appeal in Calgary.
Frank and Klaus were each convicted of three counts of first-degree murder after the bodies of Klaus's father and sister were discovered in their burnt-out farmhouse near Red Deer, Alta., in 2013. His mother's body was never found.
They were ordered to serve 50 years before applying for release.
Downey killed Sara Baillie and her five-year-old daughter, Taliyah Marsman, in Calgary in 2016. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 50 years.
Saretzky was convicted on three counts of first-degree murder in the 2015 deaths of Terry Blanchette, his two-year-old daughter, Hailey Dunbar-Blanchette; and neighbour Hanne Meketech in Blairmore, Alta. He was given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 75 years.
The men all appealed their sentences based on the case involving another multiple murderer in Canada's top court.
The decision centred on Alexandre Bissonnette, the gunman who killed six worshippers at a mosque in Quebec City in 2017 and was initially sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 40 years.
In that case, the Supreme Court of Canada decided life sentences with no chance of parole were considered "cruel and unusual punishment" and therefore "unconstitutional."
As a result, Bissonette's sentence was changed to allow him to be eligible for parole in 25 years.
That means all of the Alberta men will be allowed to apply for parole in the same period of time.
LOOKING TO REHABILITATION
Jeff Rybak, an Alberta-based parole lawyer, said the "outcome is inevitable" for other convicted killers who apply for sentencing changes based on the same circumstances.
"Realistically thinking, it's a couple dozen cases in Canada where this applies," he said during an interview with CTV News.
"Everybody who is convicted of first-degree murder is on a life sentence. Period. What we're talking about here is parole ineligibility."
However, just because these men are allowed the chance to apply for parole at 25 years, it doesn't mean they will be released, Rybak said.
"I would be shocked if there were ever a mass murderer convicted of more than one count of first degree murder who ever got out on the nose at 25 years or anywhere close to it."
He adds all convicted murderers will be in the federal prison system for a very long time, which allows them to access a multitude of rehabilitative programs and be examined by a large number of experts.
"Very gradually progressing to some form of release in the future."
Rybak says it is that possibility that the justice system wanted to preserve with its decision in the Bissonnette case.
"If we create laws that refute that possibility and say, 'it is impossible for some people to be redeemed," what is that saying about ourselves as a society?"
(With files from The Canadian Press)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.