Clifford Olson's Parole Review Hits Close to Home

For me personally, it's been a major year of change. Hence part of the reason my last post was way back in January of this year when I shared the news that Ralph Power had waived his right to a full parole review. That potential review was the third he's denied since completing his 25-year sentence for the first degree murder of my sister, Sheryl Gardner. Why was that the third potential review? It's simple - the current laws make automatically scheduled parole reviews happen every two years.

Today's parole review with Clifford Olson really hit home. What a painful experience, yet again, for the victims of his crime. What a waste of time for the parole board. I don't need to elaborate because it is self-explanatory.

Unless you're living in the aftermath of a serious crime like murder, you'll never know the pain associated with these parole reviews. Like I said, we've been spared that pain...for now...because Ralph Power has waived three out of three parole reviews. We can only hope he has become so institutionalized that he is content behind bars. But unfortunately, we must wait and see what happens in March of 2012. Will he waive again or will he go for it?

For the survivors of Clifford Olson victims, I can only hope Olson is being honest with regards to future parole reviews. He said something to the effect: "This is it, I'm done."