The Alberta Court of Appeal has upheld Travis Vader’s life sentence for manslaughter.
On Thursday morning, the court decided the life sentence was a fit and proper one and that Vader was determined to be a dangerous man with an out-of-control methamphetamine addiction by the sentencing judge.
“He was viewed by some of his peers as an angry man and dangerous man that exhibited little concern for other,” the decision read.
The decision agreed with the sentencing judge in that Vader was dangerous and a threat to anyone who might cross his path.
“Until his offence pattern is broke, the public is not safe. This conclusion, when combined with the egregious circumstances of the offences perpetrated on the two victims, supports the imposition of a life sentence. The sentence imposed is not clearly unreasonable and is not demonstrably unfit,” the decision read.
Vader was sentenced to life in prison for killing Lyle, 78, and Marie, 77, with no chance of parole until spring 2020. He continuously denies killing the couple, whose bodies have never been found.
Bret McCann, son of Lyle and Marie, said the decision being rendered so soon – just two days after the court of appeal heard the matter – was unexpected.
“It just feels great, especially just before Christmas,” McCann said.
McCann said they weren’t expecting a decision for months and were surprised to hear the decision would be coming out in a matter of days. He added Vader is running out of appeals and has only one option left: to appeal his sentence to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The Gazette did not hear back from Vader’s defence team by press time to determine if they plan to appeal to the higher court. They have 60 days to file their appeal. The Supreme Court dismissed another appeal by Vader earlier this month.
Parole
With Vader’s options winding down, McCann hopes Vader will start to show remorse and tell the family where the bodies of Lyle and Marie are.
McCann said his understanding is that Vader will not be pursuing parole in the spring through the regular parole review that happens every five years. Vader would be able to seek parole outside this system at a different time, however.
McCann said Vader would have to admit his guilt if he is to have any chance of parole.
Between the crime itself and the subsequent court case, this has spanned most of the decade, with the senior McCann couple last seen on July 3, 2010. Bret McCann said through it all, the process has made him proud of Canada’s institutions.
“Everything is working the way it should. It’s easy to get cynical about the world but this really makes me feel happy and good and respect our society and county. It really feels good from that point of view,” McCann said.
The son said he is optimistic that if Vader does appeal to the Supreme Court, any decision will be in the McCann family’s favour.
Alberta Court of Appeal
On Tuesday morning, Vader’s defence lawyer Nathan Whitling argued while it was determined that Vader did kill the McCanns, it could not be determined that he did so with a firearm.
Whitling said during his appeal that while it was proven that Vader robbed the McCanns and that there was a weapon discharged at some point, it is possible the McCanns died in a different way, such as a fight. If they did die from something other than a firearm, then Vader would have forseen the deaths of the McCanns less than if he discharged the firearm at them, and therefore has a lower level of moral culpability in the deaths of the couple.
“It was not known that they were killed by a firearm, and whether or not the McCanns were killed by a firearm is a very, very important consideration when sentencing in manslaughter cases,” Whitling said.
The appellate court decision said the sentencing judge made his decision based on the findings that it was not known who discharged the firearm or how the deaths of the McCanns occurred but he still had high moral culpability for his crimes and they found no reason to interfere with the decision.
Whitling also appealed on the grounds that the sentence is not a fit and proper one.
The appellate court disagreed with Whitling and said Vader is a dangerous man.
The court said there were no mitigating factors in the case, but listed 10 aggravating factors, including that the killings occurred during the course of a planned robbery where a confrontation was anticipated, two victims were killed, the victims were vulnerable and unarmed senior citizens who posed little risk to the appellant, the killings were violent resulting in significant blood splatter from both victims, the appellant brought a loaded firearm to the robbery to control and dominate the victims and was willing to use physical violence to achieve his objectives, Vader disposed of the victims' bodies, burned the motorhome to destroy the evidence, and he had a significant criminal record.
The court also said Vader poses a significant and ongoing risk to public safety and noted he showed no remorse for his crimes.
The court said the maximum sentence is not reserved for the most serious circumstances imaginable but for very serious circumstances.
“Imposing the maximum sentence is justified where the offender is dangerous, and is likely to offend again in a serious way,” the decision read.
Vader’s defence team was seeking a sentence of eight to 12 years rather than the life sentence.
The McCann couple was last seen filling their motorhome with gas in St. Albert on July 3, 2010, before setting off on a planned trip to visit with family and camp on the West Coast. Their burned motorhome was found near the Minnow Lake campground, southeast of Edson, two days later. Vader, who was 38 at the time, was arrested two weeks later near Niton Junction on warrants unrelated to the McCann case.
