The story of Ele Anthonysz’s family and friends is one of unbearable agony. It is a story of indescribable shock and pain and debilitating depression and anxiety that cloaks you every day.
The rally we held in Mission on Sept. 22 gave Ele’s family and friends an opportunity to tell of our outrage in losing Ele in a premeditated act of cold-blooded murder.
We were able to express our outrage towards the blatant disregard Correctional Service Canada (CSC) has shown Ele’s mom and children over the transfer of Ele’s murderer to Mission Institution (medium security), a short distance from where her children go to school.
(He is now incarcerated at Matsqui Institution, also medium security, after being granted a voluntary transfer.)
It gave us the forum to express our outrage at the lack of sincere empathy and compassion Ele’s mom received from Mission MP Jati Sidhu’s constituency office manager. It allowed us to bring awareness to how the criminal justice system and CSC supports the families of murder victims through their recovery as opposed to how they support first-degree murderers through theirs.
A person who commits first-degree murder, while incarcerated in maximum-security prison, must attend programs and perform well in their environment in order to be transferred to a medium-security institution two years after incarceration. This right to transfer occurs automatically once the programs have been completed.
The environment in medium is more relaxed than in maximum, where they spend 23 hours a day locked in a cell. In medium, they are able to wander and socialize with other inmates. While they are incarcerated, they are warm, fed, and supported so they can rejoin society as a functioning citizen.
A person recovering from the murder of someone they loved attends counselling sessions through mental health and victim services, sometimes at their own expense.
They can go to support groups. Three years later they are still attending counselling sessions and going to support groups trying to cope with their loss. They go to work, make their housing payments, feed and clothe their children, get them to school, and they try to cope with their terrible loss every single moment of every single day so that they can rejoin society as a functioning citizen.
CSC and the criminal justice system as a whole must consider the impact of their decision on the families of murder victims. They must stop impeding the healing of their great agony by their thoughtless decision-making and lack of real empathy for the families of murder victims.
We have generated a petition that will be sent to Minister Ralph Goodale and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould. We would appreciate your support.
You can view or sign the petition at https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/Ralph_Goodale_Minister_of_Public_Safety_MAXIMUM_PRISON_FOR_FIRST_DEGREE_MURDERERS/
Lori Maginnis
Mission
