Ottawa Citizen Article re Power Waiving Parole
Here's what the Citizen has to say about Power waiving parole...
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Killer waives parole hearing
Sister of slain woman credits her campaign for man's decision
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The sister of a young woman battered to death by a stalker in 1981 is relieved the killer has waived his right to a parole hearing in June.
Carolyn Gardner said yesterday she believes her year-long campaign to keep Ralph Ernest Power off the street was at least partly responsible for his decision not to seek full parole at this time. His next chance for a parole hearing will be May 2008. Mr. Power, now 52, was convicted in 1981 of murdering then-20-year-old Sheryl Gardner.
Carolyn Gardner, a 39-year-old marketer from Kanata, said the campaign to keep Mr. Power in prison even after he had served 25 years of his life sentence was designed to protect the public. More than 1,500 people across Canada signed a petition urging the National Parole Board not to free Mr. Power.
Ms. Gardner included the petition and information about her sister's murder on her website, www.powernoparole.ca .
"It is a matter of public safety that he should not be released," the petition read. "He should not be free to harm others. Please remember Ralph Power had a list of 15 other victims."
Sheryl Gardner was an aspiring model working in Toronto when she attracted the attention of Mr. Power, then a 28-year-old cleaner at a nearby Burger King restaurant.
Mr. Power, impersonating a telephone repairman, arrived at Ms. Gardner's apartment one evening to fix her telephone. He had phoned the previous day to schedule the appointment and arrived with a Bell Canada uniform and work order.
Once inside the apartment, he hit the young woman with a hammer. Then, when she began convulsing, he hit her 15 more times, to make sure she couldn't identify him.
He testified he wanted only to stun Ms. Gardner and "do research on her and see what she had." But he panicked when she fell on the floor in convulsions. He delivered a second set of hammer blows so she could not identify him or end up as "a vegetable," he said. Mr. Power claimed he was being controlled by voices.
"It was such a waste of a beautiful lady," he told the jury. "I only wanted to borrow her for a while, not kill her."
A few days later, Mr. Power attacked another woman, who escaped. When he was arrested in his apartment, police found files on 15 other women he had been stalking.
At the time of the killing, Mr. Power was on parole after having served eight years of a 10-year sentence for arson. He had poured gasoline through the mail slot of a woman's house and started a fire in an attempt to kill her.
Mr. Power is eligible for day parole, but has never applied. In December 2004, Ms. Gardner began a campaign to prevent his release because she believed he could still be a threat to the public.
"I feel a huge sense of relief and a sense of victory because of the awareness that has been created about this case," Ms. Gardner said.
"Too many hearings like this happen where people get parole and nobody says it is wrong. That is why so many dangerous offenders are released into the community."
Ms. Gardner, who was 15 when her sister was murdered, said she thinks about her every day. "We can't change what happened, but I do believe we can influence the future and help prevent Ralph Power from hurting other families."
Ms. Gardner, who used her marketing skills in the campaign, said the parole of dangerous people is a "huge issue" because many people like Mr. Power are released every year.
Ms. Gardner went to Parliament Hill in March to urge all parties to vote for an expanded Canadian DNA databank so more offenders could be identified if they commit more crimes.
Mr. Power was not in Canada's DNA databank because he killed only one woman, even though he attacked another and stalked 15 more.
Parliament passed a law in May that closed a loophole allowing many serious offenders to be released from prison without providing a DNA sample.
Bill C-13 allows DNA to be collected retroactively from anyone convicted of murder before June 30, 2000, and who is still serving a sentence for murder, manslaughter or a sexual offence.
The bill allowed the collection of DNA from notorious killer Karla Homolka and 4,400 other serious offenders, including Mr. Power.
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Killer waives parole hearing
Sister of slain woman credits her campaign for man's decision
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The sister of a young woman battered to death by a stalker in 1981 is relieved the killer has waived his right to a parole hearing in June.
Carolyn Gardner said yesterday she believes her year-long campaign to keep Ralph Ernest Power off the street was at least partly responsible for his decision not to seek full parole at this time. His next chance for a parole hearing will be May 2008. Mr. Power, now 52, was convicted in 1981 of murdering then-20-year-old Sheryl Gardner.
Carolyn Gardner, a 39-year-old marketer from Kanata, said the campaign to keep Mr. Power in prison even after he had served 25 years of his life sentence was designed to protect the public. More than 1,500 people across Canada signed a petition urging the National Parole Board not to free Mr. Power.
Ms. Gardner included the petition and information about her sister's murder on her website, www.powernoparole.ca .
"It is a matter of public safety that he should not be released," the petition read. "He should not be free to harm others. Please remember Ralph Power had a list of 15 other victims."
Sheryl Gardner was an aspiring model working in Toronto when she attracted the attention of Mr. Power, then a 28-year-old cleaner at a nearby Burger King restaurant.
Mr. Power, impersonating a telephone repairman, arrived at Ms. Gardner's apartment one evening to fix her telephone. He had phoned the previous day to schedule the appointment and arrived with a Bell Canada uniform and work order.
Once inside the apartment, he hit the young woman with a hammer. Then, when she began convulsing, he hit her 15 more times, to make sure she couldn't identify him.
He testified he wanted only to stun Ms. Gardner and "do research on her and see what she had." But he panicked when she fell on the floor in convulsions. He delivered a second set of hammer blows so she could not identify him or end up as "a vegetable," he said. Mr. Power claimed he was being controlled by voices.
"It was such a waste of a beautiful lady," he told the jury. "I only wanted to borrow her for a while, not kill her."
A few days later, Mr. Power attacked another woman, who escaped. When he was arrested in his apartment, police found files on 15 other women he had been stalking.
At the time of the killing, Mr. Power was on parole after having served eight years of a 10-year sentence for arson. He had poured gasoline through the mail slot of a woman's house and started a fire in an attempt to kill her.
Mr. Power is eligible for day parole, but has never applied. In December 2004, Ms. Gardner began a campaign to prevent his release because she believed he could still be a threat to the public.
"I feel a huge sense of relief and a sense of victory because of the awareness that has been created about this case," Ms. Gardner said.
"Too many hearings like this happen where people get parole and nobody says it is wrong. That is why so many dangerous offenders are released into the community."
Ms. Gardner, who was 15 when her sister was murdered, said she thinks about her every day. "We can't change what happened, but I do believe we can influence the future and help prevent Ralph Power from hurting other families."
Ms. Gardner, who used her marketing skills in the campaign, said the parole of dangerous people is a "huge issue" because many people like Mr. Power are released every year.
Ms. Gardner went to Parliament Hill in March to urge all parties to vote for an expanded Canadian DNA databank so more offenders could be identified if they commit more crimes.
Mr. Power was not in Canada's DNA databank because he killed only one woman, even though he attacked another and stalked 15 more.
Parliament passed a law in May that closed a loophole allowing many serious offenders to be released from prison without providing a DNA sample.
Bill C-13 allows DNA to be collected retroactively from anyone convicted of murder before June 30, 2000, and who is still serving a sentence for murder, manslaughter or a sexual offence.
The bill allowed the collection of DNA from notorious killer Karla Homolka and 4,400 other serious offenders, including Mr. Power.
posted by Carolyn Gardner at 2:46 p.m. 
1 Comments:
Hi Carolyn,
It is good news, your fight to keep him locked up in jail for murder worked. It is a small victory, still a victory. In memory of your sister. Take care
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