The mother of a Fort Good Hope murder victim left the Yellowknife Courthouse in tears Aug. 29 after learning she would have to wait to find out where her daughter's killer would be serving his life sentence.
Louisa Lafferty made the trip south to attend what is known as a placement hearing for Keenan McNeely, 21, the man convicted of first degree murder in the brutal death of Charlotte Lafferty in Fort Good Hope in 2014. It is believed to be the first ever placement hearing held in the NWT.
NNSL file photo
Supreme Court judge Louis Charbonneau is to decide whether McNeely will serve time at a territorial institution in the North or be sent south to serve time at a federal penitentiary. She does not have the authority to decide whether he begins serving the sentence at a maximum, medium or minimum security prison, only whether it's federal or territorial time. The Correctional Service of Canada has the final say on exactly what institution McNeely will serve his time. Charbonneau reserved her decision until Sept. 12.
“I don't care where he serves it, as long as it's not in the North,” said a tearful Lafferty outside court. She added she cannot afford the $1,500 round trip airfare to return to the city for Charbonneau's decision. Victim services with the territorial Department of Justice paid for Lafferty's round trip flight to Yellowknife from Fort Good Hope in April so that she could attend McNeely's sentencing hearing where he received his life sentence with no hope of parole for 10 years.
Lafferty said North-Wright Air donated her airfare for her latest trip to Yellowknife. She told News/North late in the afternoon of Sept. 1 that the government will pay her air fare to return to Yellowknife for the Sept. 12 court date.
She said she wants to be in court when Charbonneau gives her decision but she just doesn't know how she is going to do it.
The mother had hope the judge would make her decision on the 29th. Crown prosecutor Anne Piche also explained to Charbonneau that Lafferty might not be able to return for her ruling but the judge said she had to give the matter more time and attention and simply could not render a decision that day.
McNeely was one month shy of his 18th birthday when he killed 23-year-old Lafferty, a mother of three. The killer avoided a 25-year automatic sentence for first-degree murder because he was a minor when he committed the crime. McNeely, whose own mother was also in the courtroom for the hearing, is appealing both his conviction and his sentence.
His lawyer Charles Davison told the court McNeely is a good candidate to serve his sentence in the North.
“He can serve his sentence here and then be sent south for rehabilitation programming. The judge can tailor his sentence with that option,” Davison said.
“The fact that he has already been rated as a maximum security inmate does not take into account his background. It's a rigged system.”
Institution rife with gangs
Earlier in the hearing Davison said he does not want to see McNeely sent to the maximum security Edmonton Institution which he said is reportedly rife with gangs and violence.
“As an young aboriginal man, gangs will be very interested in getting a hold of Mr. McNeely,” Davison told the judge. “He doesn't want that but it's a real possibility.”
Piche, who is arguing for federal time in the south, said the decision whether to join a gang is up to McNeely.
“He has a choice. He can decide on his own whether to join a gang. This should not be a major factor in the decision,” Piche said.
She added Charbonneau must make a decision that is in the best interest of public safety. She said violence and gangs and a high suicide rate at some federal institutions can't tip the scale on Charbonneu's decision.
Piche pointed out that McNeely has been in an adult institution, believed to be the North Slave Correctional Complex, for more than a year now. She told the judge McNeely has been involved in at least one incident involving violence toward another inmate.
McNeely, wearing a black T-shirt, jeans and sock feet, was sporting a Mohawk hairdo. He did not speak during the hearing.