TORONTO -- Graphic content warning: This story contains details some readers may find disturbing.
Rainbow Hill, the Fort Erie, Ont. woman who killed two-year-old Marissa Whalen in 2011, has been granted day parole, CTV News Toronto has learned.
As a result of Hill’s “positive progress” the Parole Board of Canada decided on Sept. 17 that she “will not present an undue risk to society if released.”
“Your release will contribute to the protection of society by facilitating your reintegration into society as a law-abiding citizen,” the board said.
In October of 2011, police found the remains of a young child in Ohsweken, Ont. following an extensive search for Marissa.
Marissa was first reported missing in October, though police said at the time that they believed she was killed in late July.
According to the province, Hill was in a relationship with the victim’s mother, Roseanne Whalen, at the time of the murder.
In its written decision, the parole board said that the toddler was the target of “animosity, maltreatment and physical abuse” from Hill and Roseanne Whalen before she was killed.
“The acts of violence against the victim included: hitting, slapping, smashing her face into the wall and force feeding her food.”
The board said that on July 29, 2011, the victim awoke with a full diaper. Hill proceeded to kick the victim in the stomach, knocking her to the floor.
She then took the little girl into the bathroom, where Marissa suffered a fatal injury after being dropped in the bathtub.
“You took the lifeless body to your step-father's apartment. He was in the middle of contacting 911 when you were overheard urging your father to cancel the call. You were also heard on the 911 call telling the victim's mother that you could report the victim missing.”
The board said Hill coached her children and step-father to lie to emergency crews when they arrived on scene, telling the ambulance attendee that her son was choking on cereal, but that the emergency had passed.
Hill then enlisted the assistance of her sister, Amanda Dipota, of Niagara Falls, Ont., to locate a place to bury the child in a “secluded spot in the woods hours away.”
The victim’s body was wrapped in a blanket and placed in a garbage bag.
“Your sister contacted two friends to assist, who were told they would be burying a dead dog,” the board said.
Days later, Hill, Dipota and Roseanne Whalen would return to the grave and exhume the body as they were worried that an animal might dig up the child’s remains.
On October 8, 2011, Roseanne Whalen reported her daughter missing to the police and eventually acknowledged her involvement in the death. Hill was arrested on October 13, 2011.
In 2013, Hill pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder charge and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 12 years.
The charge of indignity to a dead body was withdrawn.
Whalen was convicted of second-degree murder in 2014 and sentenced to life in prison without eligibility of parole for at least 15 years.
Dipota was sentenced to three years behind bars on a charge of accessory after the fact to murder.
It’s unclear when Hill’s six-month day parole will begin, but the Parole Board of Canada says that she will live at an unidentified community residential facility in Hamilton, Ont.
The 37-year-old must abide by a number of special conditions laid out in her parole decision, which include not drinking alcohol or consuming drugs.
The victim’s family, which the board says has experienced “lasting psychological harm” at the hands of Hill, has also requested a “geographic restriction to prevent any further victimization.” As a result, Hill is not permitted to have any direct or indirect contact with the “victim(s) or any member of the victim's family.”
As well, Hill is not permitted to “seek or maintain any employment or volunteer activity that involves being in a position of trust or authority for anyone under the age of 18 unless supervised by an adult approved by her parole supervisor.”
