Ex-NHL goaltender Don Edwards is writing a book detailing the injustice surrounding his parents’ murder. Edwards believes full parole is inevitable for the man who killed them in 1991
Don Edwards, a former National Hockey League star, is writing an unusual memoir for a retired athlete.. The book will talk about George Harding Lovie, who killed Mr. Edwards’ mother and father in Hamilton, Ont., early one blood-drenched morning on the first day of spring in 1991.
“At one time I was a very proud Canadian,” he added. “I wore the sweater of Canada in the 1981 Canada Cup. I’m not a proud Canadian any more. How can I be? I thought the justice system is there for people who abide by the laws, and their job is to protect victims.” Early in Don Edwards’s hockey career, his parents arranged for Lefty Wilson, trainer of the Detroit Red Wings, to make this goalie mask for their son. He made the plaster cast at the Edwards kitchen table.
At four in the morning on March 21, 1991, Mr. Lovie hid under Ms. Edwards’ front porch. He brought a blanket to stay warm. He was armed with a newly purchased lever-action repeating rifle, and he had a knife in his belt. He was obsessed with reconciling with Ms. Edwards. But first he had to persuade her to drop the sexual assault charges.
The Supreme Court, in its May ruling, stressed that parole eligibility does not mean a right to parole; it is simply a right to a hearing. The court said Canadian values require that a door be left open to rehabilitation. And it expressed its faith in the board. “It, perhaps, provides a measure of solace to know that compelling evidence of rehabilitation will be demanded before the perpetrators of such crimes will be released on parole,” Chief Justice Richard Wagner wrote.
At least one condition didn’t work out. Mr. Lovie was supposed to see a mental-health counsellor, but when he told the counsellor after just three sessions that he was there only because of the board’s order, the counsellor refused to see him again. The board dropped the condition. Even so, it acknowledged some violence was possible: A measurement of his recidivism risk by the Correctional Service of Canada determined that one in three offenders with the score he received would likely commit an indictable offence within three years of release.
Federal law says that to be released on parole a person must not pose an “undue” risk of reoffending. In practice, according to Mary Campbell, a former director-general at Public Safety Canada, which oversees the parole board, this means the board decides if an offender’s risk can be managed in the community.
But Isabel Grant, a legal specialist in policies related to violence against women who is also a law professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law, sees Mr. Lovie’s release differently. The parole board’s reasons “suggest that he deflects responsibility, that he has a need to convince others he has changed, and that he has deficits in controlling his emotions, impulsivity and anger,” she said.
The Edwards family has been writing victim-impact statements for the parole board since 2011, when Mr. Lovie began applying for day passes.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Lawsuit accuses B.C. government of coercing Indigenous women into sterilization - Terrace StandardCase filed in B.C. Supreme Court says B.C. had a law sanctioning sterilizations for 40 years
Read more »
NHL trade deadline: Jets acquire Nino Niederreiter from PredatorsThe Winnipeg Jets are gearing up for a deep playoff run with the addition of scoring winger Nino Niederreiter on Saturday.
Read more »
NHL trade deadline: Canucks acquire Vitali Kravtsov from Rangers for prospect, draft pickThe New York Rangers traded 2018 lottery pick Vitali Kravtsov to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
Read more »