A bill proposing changes to Canada’s parole rules was defeated in the House of Commons Wednesday afternoon.
Bill C-243, also known as Brian’s Bill, sought to amend the federal Corrections and Conditional Release Act, so people convicted of first or second-degree murder cannot apply for a parole review and must wait for their next mandatory review.
The parents of Brian Ilesic, an Edmonton armoured car guard who was killed nearly 14 years ago, were in Ottawa calling on MPs to vote in favour of the bill.
“Our justice system is fragmented,” said Brian’s mother Dianne. “We can’t bring back our loved ones but we can try to make subtle changes to our system, and that’s why we’re here.”
Travis Baumgartner shot three of his colleagues dead, including Brian, in June 2012 while they were servicing a bank machine at the University of Alberta’s Hub Mall.
Baumgartner was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 40 years, one of the longest sentences in Canadian history.
Currently, once a convicted murderer can apply for parole and gets denied the first time, the offender can apply for another hearing one year later and continue to do so year after year.
Brian’s Bill would have parole board hearings spaced out to five years.
“We know that parole hearings traumatize victims,” said Dianne. “We do not want victims to be subjected to parole hearing every 12 to 16, 18 months.”
Brantford—Brant MP Larry Brock said the bill was an opportunity for the government to take a stand.
“They are living a life sentence as a result of this brutal, senseless murder,” said Brock. “This is an opportunity for parliament to finally take that particular position that we need to have appropriate balance in our criminal justice system.”
The bill was defeated in parliament 192 to 136 votes.
