Boyfriend-killer dad deserves more prison: Crown
The Saskatchewan man who shot his daughter's boyfriend to death eight years ago should spend 11 years in prison for the crime, a prosecutor argued Friday at the sentencing hearing for Kim Walker of Yorkton.
"Mr. Walker killed his daughter's boyfriend in front of her," Crown attorney Robin Ritter told the Court of Queen's Bench. "Vigilante justice has no place in a civilized society like Canada."
The defence said Walker is remorseful, has already spent years in custody and should serve no more time behind bars.
Judge Ellen Gunn adjourned sentencing to July 13.
A jury found Walker, 54, guilty of manslaughter on Thursday night in the slaying of 24-year-old James Hayward in March 2003. The jurors spent three days deliberating over whether to convict the career welder of second-degree murder or manslaughter, or to acquit him.
Hayward was the boyfriend of Walker's daughter, Jadah, and the man he blamed for getting her hooked on drugs.
In the end, the seven men and five women opted for the less-serious manslaughter verdict, which avoids a mandatory life sentence and could see Walker spend little additional time behind bars.
After confronting each other on the courthouse steps following Thursday's verdict, the Walker and Hayward families were separated by police officers during Friday's hearing. A total of seven officers staffed the packed courtroom, and more were posted outside.
At one point, Walker turned to speak to the family of the man he killed.
"I would like to apologize to the Hayward family for the hardship I have caused you. I'm deeply remorseful and I would give anything to have James back with you."
In a victim impact statement, Dan Hayward told the court his older brother James "was not a monster, not a saint," just a 24-year-old with problems.
"James made some bad decisions, but he was still one of the best people I've ever known.... funny, motivational and kind," Hayward wrote in his full statement, only portions of which he read in court.
"I guess it was easier to shoot my brother than help him. Kim Walker says the system failed him. I guess that would be easier to swallow if he'd actually given the system a chance."
Defence lawyer Balfour Der suggested a sentence of time already served, since Walker spent 3½ years in prison after he was convicted of second-degree murder in his first trial in the case. That prison time should be considered pre-sentencing custody and credited as double, Der said. The conviction was overturned last year on appeal.
Prosecutor Ritter said Walker's "very brutal, violent killing" deserves another 7½ years in prison, for a total sentence of 11 years.
During the trial, which began May 9, Walker's lawyers argued he acted in self-defence when he shot Hayward.
The court heard that Jadah Walker, who was 16 years old at the time, had moved in with Hayward and become addicted to morphine and other substances.
Her father went to Hayward's house in Yorkton, a city of about 15,000 people in southeast Saskatchewan, on March 17, 2003. He was armed with a pistol, and several eyewitnesses, including his daughter, identified him as the shooter.
Walker testified he experienced memory loss and can't remember the actual shooting, but said he recalled seeing Hayward coming at him with his fist raised just before it happened.
Ten bullets were fired, five of them striking Hayward, killing him almost instantly, court heard.
Jadah Walker, now 24, attended the trial in support of her father, who she hoped would be acquitted.
It was Walker's second murder trial in Hayward's death. In his first trial, in 2007, he was convicted of second-degree, but the verdict was thrown out last June and a new trial ordered. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal said a "fatal error" had been made when certain discussions were held between lawyers and the judge without Walker being present.
