Once settled in William Head, Mr. Latimer studied to become an electrician and stayed mostly out of trouble, said his parole officer. William Head is well known for its community-based rehabilitation and work programs. Latimer has been staying in a five-bedroom bungalow where inmates are allowed to cook for themselves and live in relative independence.
December 17, Robert Latimer, a farmer working a spread in Saskatchewan northwest of Saskatoon, killed his year-old daughter Tracy on October 24, There has never been any doubt about this. Latimer told police he did it. He said he loved his daughter and could not bear to watch her suffer from a severe form of cerebral palsy. So he placed her in the cab of his Chevy pickup, ran a hose from the exhaust to the cab, climbed into the box of the truck, sat on a tire and watched her die.
Tracy was a pound quadriplegic, a year-old who functioned at the level of a three-month-old. She had been repeatedly operated on and at the time of her murder was due for more surgery, this time to remove a thigh bone. She could not walk, talk or feed herself, though she responded to affection and occasionally smiled. Tracy was in constant, excruciating pain yet, for reasons not entirely clear, could not be treated with a pain-killer stronger than Tylenol.
On November 4, , Latimer was charged with first-degree murder. A year later, he was convicted of second-degree murder. End of story? Over seven years later, January 18th , the Supreme Court of Canada eventually upheld his conviction and life sentence.
The issues arising from the Latimer case are momentous. Should courts abide by the letter or the spirit of the law? Would a decision favourable to Latimer legalize euthanasia, mercy killing?
Would it put the disabled in danger? Would it mean the end of mandatory minimum sentences for convicted persons. The killing of Tracy Latimer has been called an act of "compassionate homicide.
Following his first conviction, the Latimer case became horrendously complex. The Supreme Court ordered a new trial when it was learned that the RCMP, acting on orders from the Crown, had possibly tainted the case by questioning potential jurors on their views on religion, abortion and mercy killing. Latimer stood trial again in October, A month later he was convicted, again, of second-degree murder.
The jury recommended he be eligible for parole after a year, even though the minimum sentence for second-degree murder is 25 years with no chance of parole for 10 years. Automatic minimum sentences for first- and second-degree murder have been mandatory since , as a trade-off for the abolition of capital punishment. New legal ground was broken in December, , when Justice Ted Noble — trying to distinguish between mercy killing and cold-blooded murder — granted Latimer a constitutional exemption from the minimum sentence for second-degree murder.
He explained that, for Latimer, the minimum sentence would constitute "cruel and unusual punishment. Noble carefully detailed the reasons for his decision, anticipating the controversy it would provoke — and the likelihood it would be appealed. He said the law "recognizes that the moral culpability or the moral blameworthiness of murder can vary from one convicted offender to another. That is why for want of a better term this is called compassionate homicide. Noble also described Latimer's relationship with Tracy as "that of a loving and protective parent" who wanted to end his daughter's suffering.
Noble said Latimer "is not a threat to society, nor does he require any rehabilitation. The Crown argued that Tracy was a relatively cheerful child, and her rights were violated by being killed by her father.
According to the Crown brief presented at Latimer's second trial:. She also responded to visits by her family, smiling and looking happy to see them. Nearly a year later, in November, , the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal overturned Noble's ruling, imposing the mandatory minimum sentence: 25 years, with no parole before 10 years. Critics of leniency for Latimer worried that a Supreme Court decision soft on Latimer would send a signal to many convicted murderers that they, too, may be victims of "cruel and unusual punishment" and are eligible for constitutional exceptions to reduce their mandatory minimum sentences.
After the Supreme Court ruling, Latimer's only remaining option is a plea to Ottawa for a rare federal pardon.
Unusual as the Latimer case is, there are related cases, such as battered women who have killed their batterers — often their husbands — and received leniency from the courts. Special legislation is being considered for victims who kill their oppressors, based on self-defence. An old legal maxim is — "Hard cases make bad law. Timeline Oct. July 18, Saskatchewan Court of Appeal decides to uphold Latimer conviction.
May 6, Supreme Court announced it will hear an appeal of Latimer's sentence for killing of his seriously disabled daughter. The three board members, who took almost an hour to make a decision, said they were struck by Latimer's lack of insight into the crime he committed, the CBC's Heather Robinson reported.
He is to serve day parole in Ottawa. Murderpedia Juan Ignacio Blanco. Farm and family Before his imprisonment, Bob Latimer lived near Wilkie, Saskatchewan, on a 1, acres ha wheat and canola farm with his wife, Laura, and their four children.
Tracy Latimer Tracy Latimer was born November 23 , Murder trials and appeals On November 16 , , a jury convicted Latimer of second degree murder. Prison Robert Latimer began serving his sentence on January 18 , and was incarcerated at William Head Institution, a minimum-security facility located 30 kilometers west of Victoria, BC, on Vancouver Island.
Support for Latimer's conviction and sentence Numerous disability rights groups obtained intervenor status in the Latimer's appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, arguing that killing a severely disabled child like Tracy is no different than killing a non-disabled child and should carry the same penalty.
He remained unapologetic and angry at the legal system. Would it mean the end of mandatory minimum sentences for convicted persons The killing of Tracy Latimer has been called an act of "compassionate homicide. According to the Crown brief presented at Latimer's second trial: "Tracy enjoyed outings, one of which was to the circus, where she smiled when the horses went by.
June 14, Supreme Court hears appeal. March 13, Latimer is released from the Victoria jail. He is granted a four-day unescorted leave to visit his ailing mother in Saskatchewan before reporting for day parole in Ottawa on March Juan Ignacio Blanco. He said he enjoys the ability to travel overseas. He spoke fondly of Machu Picchu. She has reported in several Canadian cities, including Saskatoon and Ottawa.
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Comments on this story are moderated according to our Submission Guidelines. Comments are welcome while open. We reserve the right to close comments at any time. Join the conversation Create account. Already have an account? Saskatoon 25 years after conviction, Robert Latimer still believes he was right to kill his daughter Robert Latimer was convicted 25 years ago of killing his year-old daughter, Tracy, who had severe disabilities.
Latimer still wants that conviction overturned. Social Sharing. Robert Latimer is adamant that he made the right decision.
Latimer killed Tracy in by pumping exhaust fumes into the cab of his truck. It was pointless to torture our daughter any further. Latimer maintains he never got a fair trial. When it was found out, they did nothing about it. Robert Latimer, convicted of killing his disabled daughter, applies for pardon Latimer reacts to doctor-assisted suicide ruling. Omayra Issa Journalist.
Another surgery was carried out, this time major surgery lasting 7 to 8 hours, inserting long steel rods into her back to try to straighten her out.
They got her spine got back to 15 degrees out of alignment. Her breathing and eating improved, but as with all of her treatments every attempt to improve her condition created new problems.
And then there was the increasingly serious hip pain. Dr Dzus had delayed, for a year, any attempt to deal with the hip until Tracy until she had fully recovered from the back operation. Laura expected that an operation would be scheduled to reconstruct the hip, but she was stunned to hear that it was too damaged for reconstructive surgery. This would result in additional pain for up to a year, at which time it would probably subside, but then the other hip would probably have to be done.
Laura came home and prepared dinner for the other three children and for Bob, who had been out in the fields during the day bringing in the fall crops. But she could not stop crying. She waited until she and Robert had gone to bed to give him the distressing news. He too was shocked; they both felt that the planned operation would be mutilation and torture of their daughter.
Maybe, Laura told her husband, it was time to call Dr Kevorkian. This was something he, not Kevorkian nor anyone else, had to do. There was much other evidence as well, including the testimony of those who knew Latimer, and of the psychiatrist who examined him for 9 hours. For his act of human kindness Robert Latimer, after enduring 12 years of devotedly trying to help his desperately ill daughter, went through seven years of trials and appeals, endured seven years in prison, and spent three years on day parole, having to spend most nights in a halfway house and being closely supervised by a parole officer.
He was given full parole in December of , and because he had been given a life sentence will be on parole for the rest of his life. For the rest of his life he will be subject to serious travel restrictions and will have to regularly report to a parole officer, always with the possibility of being sent back to prison. And, during this long journey, here are some of the things that happened to him:. This has been a disturbing story for most Canadians — Tracy was not the only casualty here, justice was too.
This is not a story Canadians can be proud of. Beautifully written into the bargain. Despite some differences over the points that Gary Bauslaugh has chosen to emphasize, I believe that we all stand to be enriched by his pithy book. It exposes pivotal defects in Canadian law, and does so with a compelling account of the human suffering involved.
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