Man who killed Dal student in 1995 granted day parole

A man convicted of second-degree murder for kicking and stomping another man to death more than two decades ago in Dartmouth, N.S., has been granted day parole.

Trevor Marcel Brooks, formerly of East Preston, was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of release for 12 years for killing Dalhousie University student Shannon Bright in December 1995.

Brooks and another man, Wade Beals, attacked Bright on a pathway in Dartmouth. The pair left Bright for dead, but returned to find him still alive. Both men then stood on Bright until they were certain he was dead.

Brooks confessed to the murder while in prison serving a four-year sentence for a robbery he committed in April 1996.

According to a recent decision by the Parole Board of Canada granting him day parole, Brooks and his accomplice were drunk and high on drugs at the time of the murder.

Diagnosed with schizophrenia

While in prison, Brooks was diagnosed with schizophrenia and has been getting treatment.

"You were described in this report as having made an honest effort to change your attitude and behaviour," the parole board noted.

"The report indicated that you must continue to take your medication as prescribed, continue your followups with psychiatry and psychology, abstain from intoxicant use and exposure to criminal elements."

Brooks is being released to a halfway house. He faces conditions, including abstaining from drugs and alcohol and staying away from the family of his victim. He must also continue taking the prescribed treatment for his mental condition.