Indigenous Services Minister says healing lodge Tori Stafford’s killer is at ‘provides restorative justice’

As a debate ensues throughout the country over the transfer of a woman convicted in the death of Victoria “Tori” Stafford from a prison to a healing lodge, Indigenous Services Minister Jane Philpott defended the correctional facility by saying it “provides restorative justice and security.”

Terri-Lynne McClintic, 28, had been serving a life sentence at Grand Valley Institution for women in Kitchener since she pleaded guilty in 2010 to first-degree murder for her part in the eight-year-old girl’s death.

Victoria Stafford was lured from her school in Woodstock, Ont. in 2009 and then driven to a field where she was sexually assaulted and murdered.

McClintic’s former boyfriend, Michael Rafferty, was convicted of kidnapping, sexual assault causing bodily harm and first-degree murder in the case back in 2012. He is also serving a life sentence.

Speaking with CP24 on Thursday afternoon, Victoria Stafford’s father, Rodney Stafford, said he learned about a month-and-a-half ago that McClintic had been transferred to Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in Saskatchewan in December of last year.

“Everybody had been notified back in December of last year of the move when the transfer had happened but because of miscommunication and a change of phone number I had lost contact with Corrections Canada but then I was notified by my mom that Corrections Canada had been trying to get a hold of me regarding another thing to do with Terri-Lynne and when I contacted them a month-and-a-half ago that is when I found out that the transfer had been made,” he said.

The rural facility focuses on healing incarcerated Aboriginal women, according to the Correctional Service of Canada.

Philpott told reporters on Wednesday that it is her understanding that McClintic is Indigenous.

“First of all it was obviously a heinous crime that was committed and my heart goes out to the family,” Philpott said. “In terms of what has happened with the person who was convicted I encourage you to talk to Minister Goodale on that.”

“I don’t know the details of how the decision was made but these are places that have proven to provide restorative justice, and at the same time, provide security.”

Goodale said, on Wednesday, that he has asked the commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada to review the transfer and “ensure that the law and proper procedure have been followed.”

While speaking on the matter, Goodale noted that the healing lodge is considered a minimum to medium security correctional facility and McClintic was classified as medium security back in 2014.

In 2012, McClintic pleaded guilty to an assault causing bodily harm charge after another inmate was injured in an attack the Crown deemed “unprovoked.”

“If Terri-Lynne were to sit in her prison cell and gone through the courses that she is supposed to go through and taken the classes she’s supposed to, to better herself, to rehabilitate herself as she is supposed to then maybe down the road the healing lodge could have been a possibility for her to come back on the streets but when she is inside the system and she’s still continuing to have engagements with other inmates because of dislikes and things like that, it just goes to show she’s not willing to rehabilitate and change,” Rodney Stafford said.

“This is an injustice to everybody. She is a convicted killer. She should be doing her time behind cell walls, not open out on a free range with access to other families,” he added.

Rodney Stafford said learning of “oppourtunities” for McClintic “stirs up old memories of everything and it just brings back everything to day one.”

“Her (McClintic’s) rights began as soon as she went into the system and mine ended the day Tori was taken,” he said. “It’s just unfair.”

On Wednesday in the House of Commons, Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer called on Prime Minsiter Justin Trudeau to have the decision reversed saying McClintic was responsible for “horrific crimes.”

Trudeau responded by noting that McClintic’s security status has not changes since 2014 while reiterating that a request for a review has been made.

A protest has been planned in Ottawa on Nov. 2. Protest organizer Cara Voisin spoke to CP24, alongside Rodney Stafford.

“We are hoping to have buses leaving from all different areas of Ontario at about 4 a.m. to make sure they can get there on time and basically they (the federal government) say they can’t do it but I was watching on Parliament Hill, I was watching yesterday and they were talking about other decisions that have been overturned in the past by prime ministers, by the government and they can do this too,” Voisin said.

CP24.com has reached out to the Correcitonal Service of Canada for comment on the transfer, but a spokesperson said specific cases could not be discussed noting privacy concerns.