Metro Vancouver mayors want Ottawa to deny serial killer parole

A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for serial killer Robert Pickton and reassess the parole and sentencing system for "prolific offenders and mass murderers."

Delta Mayor George Harvie and 11 other municipal leaders said in a letter sent Wednesday to Virani that allowing Pickton to apply for parole would undermine the integrity of our justice system.

In 2007, Pickton was convicted of six counts of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of full parole for 25 years. 

The remains or DNA of 33 women were found on his pig farm in Port Coquitlam, B.C., around 25 kilometres east of downtown Vancouver.

Pickton became eligible to apply for day parole on Feb. 22, according to the Parole Board of Canada. If granted, he would have to return to prison or a halfway home at night.

The mayors' letter says Pickton's lack of remorse and the depravity of his crimes make him "irredeemable," and granting him parole would be a chilling message for victims of crime.

They added that Pickton's parole eligibility would retraumatize victims' families, especially Indigenous families and communities who are still undergoing a "collective healing process."

The letter says Virani should do everything in his power to make sure Pickton stays behind bars if he applies for parole, and the federal government should urgently reassess the parole and sentencing system.

It adds that the Supreme Court of Canada struck down a law in 2022 allowing consecutive sentences with stacked parole ineligibility periods as unconstitutional, effectively ending "life imprisonment" in Canada.

In February, the families of Robert Pickton's victims held a vigil at the site of his former farm.

Michele Pineault, the mother of Stephanie Lane, whose partial remains were found at Pickton's farm, told CBC News she was aghast at the idea that the serial killer could apply for day parole.

"Pickton should not walk on this Earth. He doesn't deserve to take one step out of where he is," she said. "He needs to stay where he is until he dies."

Eligibility doesn't equal parole: minister

Chantalle Aubertin, a spokesperson for Virani, confirmed his office had received the letter from the mayors.

In a statement, Aubertin said the Parole Board of Canada is ultimately responsible to determine whether any offender should be granted parole.

"Murder is the most serious offence in the Criminal Code and attracts its most serious punishment — a mandatory life sentence," she said.

"It is important to remember that eligibility for parole does not mean that an offender will receive parole."

While the Minister of Justice is responsible for sentencing laws, Aubertin said the Minister of Public Safety actually oversees the corrections system and the Parole Board of Canada.

She said the letter has been shared with Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc.