Hopefully with the information you’ve provided, and with a little research I can provide a more informed and well rounded opinion on the legal side of this issue.

The cynic in me is wondering what it is about his case, and other’s, that makes him eligible for day parole at 7 years. What kind of an offender do you have to be to get that? I’ll take a look through your recommendations and find out.

The legalities aside, I think my take on his actions is quite clear. The intent with my post was to touch on the morality of his case ….not necessarily the legal side. But it’s hard to separate, really.

If he’s done his time and is eligible for day parole, based on the law, then yes, let him go. In jail, or free, it will never change what he’s done and how I feel about his actions.

Once again, thanks for taking the time to educate me.

I hope this information will be helpful to you in achieving a better understanding of this tragic case.

The criteria for day parole are established in the “Corrections and Conditional Release Act”. This act can be accessed by a Google search. I would refer you to sections 100 – 104 for details.

There have, of course been many mercy killings in Canadian legal history.
On p.638, Sneiderman (Canadian Medical Law, 3rd edition, published by Thomson/Carswell legal publishers) considers every reported case involving a lay person charged with murder, manslaughter, administering a noxious substance for purposes of mercy killing. Of these reported cases, either the juries refused to convict, or the charges were reduced. None, other than Latimer, were sentenced to even a single day in prison. A similar study by Bernard Dickenson arrived at the same conclusion.

The decision by the first board was overturned on appeal for the reasons stated above. The probability of Latimer being placed in a similar situation and reoffending (when all the unique circumstances of this case were examined) was found to be so low as to require, again under the provisions of the act, that he be released. The appeal board was not doing Latimer any special favor by approving his application for day parole; they were complying with the terms of the act under which they are governed.

You are welcome to your own views on remorse, or lack of same, but both the lower court and the Supreme Court of Canada determined that rehabilitation was not a factor in Latimer’s sentencing.

When does a person convicted of second degree murder become eligible for day parole?

What ARE the criteria for granting day parole?

Could you share with me other mercy killing cases?

Finally, I’d just like to say that showing a lack of remorse, to me, ultimately means the offender would be likely to reoffend if put into a similar situation. I don’t see how you can separate the two. And by the first board denying his day parole request based on his lack of insight into his crime, then they must have ultimately felt that his lack of remorse would lead to a liklihood of him reoffending. No?

You are right about him receiving special treatment – Robert Latimer is the only person in recorded Canadian history to be sentenced to even a single day for a mercy killing.