Families of Paul Bernardo's victims not allowed to attend parole hearing in person, lawyer says

The families of the victims of Paul Bernardo have been barred from attending the serial killer’s upcoming parole hearing in person, according to the lawyer representing the loved ones of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy.

In an open letter, lawyer Tim Danson said the parole board recently told the families that they would not be allowed to attend next week’s hearing in person, indicating that the parole board is “unable to ensure safety and security of all hearing attendees.”

“We have not been provided with any further details. Respectfully, this is not only unacceptable, but also remarkably insensitive to the Mahaffy and French families,” Danson wrote.

“Absent exceptional circumstances, the families have a statutory right to read their Victim Impact Statements in person.”

Speaking to Newstalk 1010 on Wednesday morning, Danson said the families have a strong desire to deliver their statements in person.

“They themselves want to be physically present… and make their daughter’s memory and presence there as strongly as possible,” Danson said.

“They are giving victim impact statements, they are talking about the impact that this horrific crime has had on them and their daughters. You can’t get more personal and human than that and so they want to convey how they feel in the most direct and human way possible, which is being physically present.”

Bernardo, who was moved out of Ontario to a medium-security prison about 200 kilometres northwest of Montreal in May, is currently serving a life sentence for the kidnapping, sexual assault and murder of 15-year-old Kristen French and 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy.

The teenage girls were abducted and murdered in the early 1990s near St. Catharines, Ont.

Danson said he is perplexed by the limited explanation that has been provided by the parole board.

“They can’t possibly saying that the Frenches and the Mahaffy’s represent some kind of security or safety concern. We were at Bernardo’s first parole hearing and they attended in person,” he said.

“If they referring to Paul Bernardo himself, well that would be remarkable. If that’s the case, then what is he doing in medium security? He should have been sent back to maximum.”

CP24 has reached out to the Parole Board of Canada for comment.

Danson said the families were assured that when Bernardo was moved to Quebec, they would still be able to attend his parole hearings in person.

Danson called the decision a “mystery” that is “very, very unfair.”

“I have no idea why they are doing this and it wrong,” he said.

“We are demanding that this decision be reversed, that the parole hearing scheduled for next Tuesday be delayed. Just a short delay, it can be in December. It can just be a matter of weeks so that we can make proper travel arrangements.”