'Vindictive and callous': Ex-Mountie wife killer costs family $45K fighting estate
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Dave Anderson
Lawyers are parasites, its why criminals love them.
David Raymond Amos
@Ron Vollans I believe when
that joke first surfaced a slide rule was in everybody who counts
briefcase Methinks the new computers can refine that percentage to
99.999999999999999999999999999 Give or take one or two
John Lofthouse
What a piece of work!!!
David Raymond Amos
@John Lofthouse Yes I am enjoying this news article too
Mark Mealing
Typical RCMP Ethics: as we’ve
seen for years. The only difference between gangsters & some cops
is that some gang boys have realized that if they join a Police force,
they can go on doing what they did before.
David Raymond Amos
@Mark Mealing "Typical RCMP Ethics" I wholeheartedly agree Sir
D. Alex Ross
How did someone with such personality traits ever get admitted to the police force ?
More scrutiny needs to be exercised in the hiring of police officers.
They are the ones that legally carry weapons among an unarmed public.
I reflect upon other abusive police officers behaviour that has surfaced over the past years.
More scrutiny needs to be exercised in the hiring of police officers.
They are the ones that legally carry weapons among an unarmed public.
I reflect upon other abusive police officers behaviour that has surfaced over the past years.
David Raymond Amos
@D. Alex Ross The last thing the RCMP are is ethical Perhaps you should read my lawsuit against the Crown sometime
People of all sorts of jobs commit horrible crimes. But, it's seldom you see 'retired doctor' or 'retired teacher' as the headlines. Why? Aren't teachers important influences? To take the spin further, couldn't 1000's of young minds have been corrupted by a teacher that later in life killed someone?
Take a good look at how the media choses which suspects to highlight... which traits they pick. Look at how many cop-shooting stories are ONLY told when the cops is white, and the suspect is black. Look at how many cops are shot by black suspects and their race isn't mentioned anywhere... no mug shots... you have to google them to find their photos on 2nd tier news sites.
There are about 70,000 police officers in Canada... around 200 per 100,000. About .002 percent of the population. The homicide rate in Canada is 1.56 per 100,000. I can't find any evidence that the murder rate BY police is out of line with the national average... which neither a 'good' thing, or a 'bad' thing - but if you're trying to connect something to murder rates, start looking at significant issues... like race/culture.
But, can't talk about that here... fake news bans truth.
Friday Jones
@D. Alex Ross
People of all sorts of jobs commit horrible crimes. But, it's seldom you see 'retired doctor' or 'retired teacher' as the headlines. Why? Aren't teachers important influences? To take the spin further, couldn't 1000's of young minds have been corrupted by a teacher that later in life killed someone?
Take a good look at how the media choses which suspects to highlight... which traits they pick. Look at how many cop-shooting stories are ONLY told when the cops is white, and the suspect is black. Look at how many cops are shot by black suspects and their race isn't mentioned anywhere... no mug shots... you have to google them to find their photos on 2nd tier news sites.
There are about 70,000 police officers in Canada... around 200 per 100,000. About .002 percent of the population. The homicide rate in Canada is 1.56 per 100,000. I can't find any evidence that the murder rate BY police is out of line with the national average... which neither a 'good' thing, or a 'bad' thing - but if you're trying to connect something to murder rates, start looking at significant issues... like race/culture.
But, can't talk about that here... fake news bans truth.
David Raymond Amos
@Friday Jones Methinks you should start reading the results of my investigations into the actions of cops
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David Raymond Amos
David Raymond Amos
@David Raymond Amos CBC
moderators can block me all they wish Their bosses and the RCMP already
know that I already blogged and tweeted about every single word of this
article for legal reasons
http://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.ca/2017/08/oh-my-cbc-publishes-report-of.html
http://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.ca/2017/08/oh-my-cbc-publishes-report-of.html
Daniel Griffiths
@David Raymond Amos
While I could not agree more, this guy was not a cop.
While I could not agree more, this guy was not a cop.
Mackenna Wilson
I'm stunned this psychopath
is serving only 13 years. The man is a menace and shouldn't be on the
street ever. Her murder sounds like an execution and then he stages the
scene to benefit himself. How coldly manipulative is that? And clearly
he has no remorse.
Marcel Pellerin
@Mackenna Wilson
Justice is the result of two lawyers in front of a judge argue as to who will get the less sentence as possible
Justice is the result of two lawyers in front of a judge argue as to who will get the less sentence as possible
David Raymond Amos
@Marcel Pellerin Sad but true
John Gerrits
Cop who shot,9 times,8 times
after he was dead,a near defenceless Sammy Yatim........read all about
Canadian justice....straight from Mad magazine or The Twilight
Zone.According to the defense,the first fatal shot did the deed,the
other 8 shots were meaningless since Yatim was already dead.
Canadian justice system....amusing and sad.
Canadian justice system....amusing and sad.
David Raymond Amos
@John Gerrits You may find it
amusing because of lack of empathy However until your suffer from the
Crown's abuse you have no right to be sad.
John Gerrits
@David Raymond Amos It\s like dark comedy....soo sad it's amusing...it shouldn't be happening
Steve Penney
@John Gerrits
Hero:
"a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character"
In this case there were no heroes, obviously.
I define hero as one that performs a selfless act, with bravery. Maybe the guy who stood there recording the video of the shooting is the hero to most of us. Otherwise we would only have the police side to the story. And look how unjust and dishonest that would be.
Hero:
"a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of character"
In this case there were no heroes, obviously.
I define hero as one that performs a selfless act, with bravery. Maybe the guy who stood there recording the video of the shooting is the hero to most of us. Otherwise we would only have the police side to the story. And look how unjust and dishonest that would be.
David Raymond Amos
@John Gerrits I understand your reasoning so I hope you excuse my being a little testy with you.
FYI I have been living with this crazy circus overseen by the Crown since 1982 That was when the RCMP used to ask me to investigate things for them then turned on me when I testified honestly at a Coroner's Inquest. No joking.
FYI I have been living with this crazy circus overseen by the Crown since 1982 That was when the RCMP used to ask me to investigate things for them then turned on me when I testified honestly at a Coroner's Inquest. No joking.
David Raymond Amos
@Steve Penney I am prod to be the namesake of two heroes of my family and yours. One was honoured with the Victoria Cross
Robert Paul
@John Gerrits
The police officer was told to go there to protect the public. He shot a man lunging at him with a knife, and now the public turns on him. This is why I don't want to be a police officer. You are caught between a rock and a hard place.
The police officer was told to go there to protect the public. He shot a man lunging at him with a knife, and now the public turns on him. This is why I don't want to be a police officer. You are caught between a rock and a hard place.
David Raymond Amos
@Robert Paul Methinks you jest
Jay Bearman
Wiens sounds like a
psychopath with him "throwing garbage bags of the victims clothing on
the family lawn on the day of the funeral" and abusing the justice
system with regards to his former wife's estate.
I have always thought that the best way to determine a person's sociopathic tendencies is to place him or her in a place of power.
I wonder what he was like as a cop.
I have always thought that the best way to determine a person's sociopathic tendencies is to place him or her in a place of power.
I wonder what he was like as a cop.
David Raymond Amos
@Jay Bearman I am constantly
amazed at how many sociopaths are successfully employed by the Crown as
cops, lawyers, judges, bureaucrats and politicians etc
Fred Whalen
Well how do they determine first degree from second degree murder?
A man trained in the safe and proper handling and use of a firearm — sworn to protect and serve — manages to put a bullet in the head of his fiancĂ©e and does so without malice prepense? I suppose he could have just been cleaning his gun behind her ear.
A man trained in the safe and proper handling and use of a firearm — sworn to protect and serve — manages to put a bullet in the head of his fiancĂ©e and does so without malice prepense? I suppose he could have just been cleaning his gun behind her ear.
Troy Mann
@Richard Nichols
Why would you say that?
It's not a factor in determining first degree murder . Did he know that shooting her in the eye would cause death? Yes but that does not mean first degree murder is justified... Any attempt by him to cover up the crime or excuse it does not justify first degree murder...
Why would you say that?
It's not a factor in determining first degree murder . Did he know that shooting her in the eye would cause death? Yes but that does not mean first degree murder is justified... Any attempt by him to cover up the crime or excuse it does not justify first degree murder...
David Raymond Amos
@Troy Mann You must be joking
Troy Mann
@David Raymond Amos
No
He was convicted by a judge for 2nd degree murder, if first was justifiable it would have been the verdict....
No
He was convicted by a judge for 2nd degree murder, if first was justifiable it would have been the verdict....
David Raymond Amos
@Troy Mann You obviously have far more faith in politically appointed lawyers than I do
Troy Mann
@David Raymond Amos
Ok, you are one of those
Ok, you are one of those
Karin Bougie
I'm of the thinking that if
you shoot someone in the face and they die, you should rot in jail, with
no privileges of any kind. No lawyers, no way to sue anybody, no
nothing. Rot.
But that's just me.
But that's just me.
David Raymond Amos
@Karin Bougie You are not alone in your thinking
Albert Ford Upton
It is time the courts put a
stop to these frivolous and vindictive proceedings. This guy has nothing
to lose and is venting his vindictiveness through the court system.
Shame on the courts for continuing to allow it to continue.
Shame on the courts for continuing to allow it to continue.
David Raymond Amos
@Albert Ford Upton By the
same token the Crown should also stop to calling legitimate lawsuits
frivolous and vexatious if the complaints point out the failings of the
RCMP etc
Mike Poska
Ron Vollans
@Albert Ford Upton
courts can't stop a suit without hearing evidence first. That's what civil rights mean.
courts can't stop a suit without hearing evidence first. That's what civil rights mean.
David Raymond Amos
@Ron Vollans I concur
Mike Poska
This is all about power and
control. Not about money. I would imagine that this woman had endured
this all of her married life. Now he still wants control of her even in
death.
David Raymond Amos
@Mike Poska I disagree I think it is all about the money
James Symonds
Ross Heller
Hugh Minet
Charles Brody
James Symonds
just one more sad, sad
example of the seeming total dysfunctionality of today's so-called
'justice' system . . . . . where's the COMMON SENSE component? Why are
our courts not dismissing out of hand these absolutely inane
postures/representations of convicted criminals?? absolutely RIDICULOUS
again and again and again!!!!
David Raymond Amos
@James Symonds The short
answer is rules are rules in a purportedly "Just Democracy" Hence even a
killer ex cop has the right to argue about his rights and interests.
Simeon Reid
Simeon Reid
Does anyone believe the legal
system has evolved for anything but the financial benefit of legal
sharks, lawyers and their Godfathers. Judges? It is no longer about
justice.
David Raymond Amos
@Simeon Reid Justice was
always a myth Just ask the fellas the Roman's crucified thousands of
years ago. Yet lawyers still love to use their lingo. For instance after
I trounced the Crown fair and square two years ago they wanted to
begin again "De Novo"
John Gaunt
"Accountability is a significant factor when assessing an offender's reintegration potential and risk to the public,,"
I can assure you the only thing a retired cop knows about "accountability" is that its for someone else.
I can assure you the only thing a retired cop knows about "accountability" is that its for someone else.
David Raymond Amos
@John Gaunt Methinks they know that long before they retire
Bob Rae
Weins isn't too bright. If
his parole eligibility is 10 years (the minimum) and he continues to
victimize the family, he is all but surrendering any hope for seeing the
outside of a prison again. Maybe that is a reasonable price for the
family to pay so that this creep will never see the outside again.
David Raymond Amos
@Bob Rae Hey Bob long time no see Do ya still work with Goodmans?
Ross Heller
RCMP....lol....the continuing walk of shame for these characters.
Why anyone would ever even consider a relationship with this type of deficient character is beyond me.....sort of like dating a terrorist.
I've yet to meet a 'law enforcement' guy (officer?..nope)...who didn't think he was the greatest thing since sliced bread and was pretty sure he knew everything about anything.
98% laughable blowhards....and quite possibly the worst neighbours in the world.
So ladies....if you want to beat up, then get divorced...then date a cop.
Why anyone would ever even consider a relationship with this type of deficient character is beyond me.....sort of like dating a terrorist.
I've yet to meet a 'law enforcement' guy (officer?..nope)...who didn't think he was the greatest thing since sliced bread and was pretty sure he knew everything about anything.
98% laughable blowhards....and quite possibly the worst neighbours in the world.
So ladies....if you want to beat up, then get divorced...then date a cop.
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David Raymond Amos
@Rusty Shackleford I know I
have based on false allegations so I learned the hard way the truth
about corrupt cops. Were you one of the dudes on the other side of the
bars laughing at my plight?
David Raymond Amos
@Janice Mann
Methinks I touched a nerve with CBC and the RCMP with my madness
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David Raymond Amos
David Raymond Amos
@Rusty Shackleford The fact
that CBC blocked my response to you spoke volumes as to their motives
behind the publication of the article N'esy Pas Minister Joly?
Content disabled.
David Raymond Amos
@Lieschen Mueller Interesting that CBC allows direct insults N'esy Pas Minister Joly?
Content disabled.
David Raymond Amos
@David Raymond Amos My My your moderator blocked that observation in record time EH Hubby Lacroix?
Hugh Minet
A bullet to the head = second
degree murder? Murder is reason enough to bring back the death penalty
and stop the soak of tax dollars spent to house these criminals and
give justice to the families who have lost loved ones. Prison is too
good for these murderers.
David Raymond Amos
@Hugh Minet I disagree with
the death penalty for the beneft of the wrongfully convicted However
don't understand why the victim's family have not sued the killer ex cp
for wrongful death and clean him out of his fancy RCMP pension etc so he
will be flat busted broke and deep in debt whenever he is released from
prison.
Gary Drummond
This is what you get thanks
to Pierre Trudeau's "Charter of Rights" ....which gives criminals more
rights than victims. We've seen this sort of thing for over 30 years
now.
David Raymond Amos
@Gary Drummond Laws regarding legal arguments about interests in estates were on the book long before Trudeau The Elder was born
Leslie Ward
Why is the judge allowing this at all. He killed her, is serving time and that should be the end of it.
Eileen Kinley
@Leslie Ward
What legal argument could the judge use to stop him?
What legal argument could the judge use to stop him?
Wilhelm LaRouge
@Eileen Kinley
there is none. the judge should laugh and accept tht he gets paid to listen to shit that wouldnt even fool the viewers of tv court dramas
there is none. the judge should laugh and accept tht he gets paid to listen to shit that wouldnt even fool the viewers of tv court dramas
David Raymond Amos
@Wilhelm LaRouge I agree
Joanne Jackson
this guy deserves nothing, should be in jail for the rest of his life
David Raymond Amos
@Joanne Jackson Methinks her family should sue the killer ex cop for wrongful death and collect his RCMP pension etc
MIke Webster
Estate litigation lawyers see
many people fighting for vindictive motives. They often fight until
all the money in the estate is gone. That is a better outcome than
letting that "wicked" spouse / sibling / relative get the money.
David Raymond Amos
@MIke Webster That is
absolutely true Sir However everybody knows it is the lawyers who
promote the unnecessary extended litigation for their benefit. The same
holds true for divorce lawyers etc
He sounds to be an extremely unpleasant sort of man.
David Raymond Amos
@Charles Brody To say the least
Joe Madden
This is important, and I hate
to have to reiterate this point; the legal system, nay the very
Charter, guarantees that women are still classified as objects.
Why?
The Charter guarantees freedom of religion(where the vast majority of the so-called "law" comes from) and as such women are seen as chattel, nothing more.
Suggest one reads crime statistics on how many men are charged with 1st degree murder of their spouses, girlfriends etc.
Less than 20%.
Yet people want religion protected and hence the "law" is protected.
This has less to do with the different strata of law for different income levels and more to do with the fairy tales some of us choose to believe in.
I have a question.
When is the species going to grow up?
Why?
The Charter guarantees freedom of religion(where the vast majority of the so-called "law" comes from) and as such women are seen as chattel, nothing more.
Suggest one reads crime statistics on how many men are charged with 1st degree murder of their spouses, girlfriends etc.
Less than 20%.
Yet people want religion protected and hence the "law" is protected.
This has less to do with the different strata of law for different income levels and more to do with the fairy tales some of us choose to believe in.
I have a question.
When is the species going to grow up?
David Raymond Amos
@Joe Madden You are not reading the same Charter I am
David Raymond Amos
@Joe Madden I would love to
argue you before the Federal Court of Canada. Perhaps you should
intervene in my lawsuit to protect your interests just like the killer
ex cop is trying to do with his?
After all if I defeat the Crown's argument it will be your tax funds that will settle my claim. Correct?
After all if I defeat the Crown's argument it will be your tax funds that will settle my claim. Correct?
Rose Black
If anyone has had the
horrible misfortune to run into a person like that and you manage to
get out of their space then run don't walk away and slam the door behind
you..you don't want to be tied to that kind of person in any way and I
know some are through children etc. They are heartless without a
conscious or a care for anyone.
Carl Shulgin
@Carol Duncan ...you just described the cops in general, and the system that spawns them.
High school jocks with low IQ who did poorly in school put on a shiny uniform to "get some respect", and when it doesn't happen, because they don't deserve it, they get angry and violent, and since they lack a moral compass, no action is impermissible if they don't get caught.
This is what we're fomenting.
High school jocks with low IQ who did poorly in school put on a shiny uniform to "get some respect", and when it doesn't happen, because they don't deserve it, they get angry and violent, and since they lack a moral compass, no action is impermissible if they don't get caught.
This is what we're fomenting.
David Raymond Amos
@Carl Shulgin "you just described the cops in general, and the system that spawns them."
YUP
YUP
sandy howard
A true psychopath. I hope his ex RCMP status is serving him well in prison. Too bad he's still with us
David Raymond Amos
@sandy howard "I hope his ex RCMP status is serving him well in prison"
Me too
Me too
Lieschen Mueller
@Stephen O'Leary
You do, but you are just one person and as such nobody!
You do, but you are just one person and as such nobody!
Content disabled.
David Raymond Amos
@Lieschen Mueller Interesting that CBC allows direct insults N'esy Pas Minister Joly?
David Raymond Amos
@David Raymond Amos My My your moderator blocked that observation in record time EH Hubby Lacroix?
Tim Mcgrath
As an RCMP veteran,certainly
he would be more than aware of what the probation officer is telling him
long beforehand. It is painfully evident he doesn't care.
Certainly this attitude has not just arose, it is part of character (or lack thereof).
Certainly this attitude has not just arose, it is part of character (or lack thereof).
David Raymond Amos
@Tim Mcgrath If he cared he would not have murdered the lady in the first place.
Louis Levesque
This is the only story CBC
allows commentary on? The Islam protest in London or the anti English
Bill 101 in Quebec story blocked? And Trudeau stories are rarely open?
Seems CBC only allows comments on Trump stories.
David Raymond Amos
@Louis Levesque Not everybody
shares your concerns FYI This not Trump story it is about the legal
actions of a killer cop that I among many others are enjoying commenting
about
Cam Rock
why cant we comment on
important international and national matters....i just dont understand.
If anything these are the articles that should allow commenting, have a
public discussion, share ideas and form help form opinions. Why waste
time filtering and monitoring click bait nothing articles. Often the
comments have more insight.
Bob Macdonald
@Cam Rock They only allow commenting when they know which way the comments are going to go.
David Raymond Amos
@Bob Macdonald I agree
John Brown
And once again our laws seem
to protect the criminals rights just a tad more than the rights of the
victim or the victims family. This hug a thug mentality really has to
stop. But in won't.
Carl Shulgin
@John Brown Not "hug a thug", "hug a cop".
David Raymond Amos
@Carl Shulgin Yup
Ralph Smyth
Another shining example of a
so-called good guy with a gun indeed. Zero remorse, just look what he
did the day of her funeral. Talk about psycho. Weins is clearly not
mentally fit to represent himself in these proceedings, what kind of
judge can't see this? Meanwhile we've got some members of the self
proclaimed/so-called law and order crowd here rushing to (quelle
surprise) HIS defense, all about HIS/a convicted criminal's rights, some
even to the point of victim/gender blaming, talk about the very cherry
picking they accuse their political opponents of. More alpha male
'con'trol/freaks, not unlike Mr Wiens himself, such types are THE root
of the problem, never the solution. Sickening.
John Wise
@Alf. Mielke
They may "seem to" have more rights,but in fact they have the right to the presumption of innocence and a fair trial. That's about it.
This guy is apparently an unfeeling and vindictive jerk. But how do you stop him from doing what he is doing?
Suppose someone were in jail for a less serious crime,and his wife died while he was in jail. Would he not have the right to represent himself in court in any dispute over the estate? How could you create a law that would deny that right to this creep,while maintaining the right for someone serving time for a minor offense?
David Raymond Amos
@John Wise Much to my chagrin I agree with you Sir. In my humble opinion your last name suits you
Glennie Whitford
" He is also attempting to
call police and forensics experts and require the family to go face to
face with him during a civil trial."
How did this "thing" ever become a Police Officer? Bet if you asked anyone he grew up with what kind of a guy he was you would hear some interesting, possibly even disturbing stories.
How did this "thing" ever become a Police Officer? Bet if you asked anyone he grew up with what kind of a guy he was you would hear some interesting, possibly even disturbing stories.
Carl Shulgin
@Glennie Whitford ... what makes you think this is unusual behaviour for the RCMP?
David Raymond Amos
@Glennie Whitford "Bet if you
asked anyone he grew up with what kind of a guy he was you would hear
some interesting, possibly even disturbing stories."
I would throw my money in with yours
I would throw my money in with yours
David Raymond Amos
@Carl Shulgin if you really want to know Perhaps you should Google Federal Court File No T-1557-15
'Vindictive and callous': Ex-Mountie wife killer costs family $45K fighting estate
Former RCMP officer acting as his own legal representative, drags out proceedings
By Kathleen Harris, CBC News
Posted: Aug 27, 2017 5:00 AM ET
A retired Mountie who murdered his fiancée with a bullet to the head has cost the victim's sister more than $45,000 in legal costs in an estate battle the family's lawyer calls "vindictive and callous."
Keith Wiens, a retired RCMP officer from British Columbia, is serving a life sentence for second-degree murder for killing his common-law spouse, Lynn Kalmring, on Aug. 16, 2011.
Despite losing all appeals, he is fighting Kalmring's family over the couple's approximately $500,000 in joint assets, acting as his own legal representative in an unusual case that Vancouver lawyer Christopher Watson sees as a deliberate attempt to add distress to the victims.
"This can therefore only be viewed as vindictive and callous and targeted to cause further trauma and grief to the family," he wrote in a letter to Wiens.
Wiens has managed to drag out proceedings by denying liability for Kalmring's death, a manoeuvre from behind bars Watson calls an "abuse of process" and a "waste of time." He is also attempting to call police and forensics experts and require the family to go face to face with him during a civil trial.
"With Mr. Wiens currently in prison, and unrepresented by legal counsel, the challenge will be both to facilitate Mr. Wiens's participation in the process and to prevent abuse and intimidation of members of Ms. Kalmring's family," Watson told CBC News.
Alternatives to face-to-face meeting
Watson said the family will ask the court for alternatives to a face-to-face meeting, including a court order for Wiens to participate by video conference and a requirement that he obtain a lawyer.
"People convicted of violent crimes should never be permitted to face their victims, or survivors of victims, without legal counsel," he said. "Counsel are bound by codes of conduct which require respect and civility. It offends my sense of decency to expose victims or survivors of deceased victims to violent criminals in civil proceedings. Legal proceedings are intimidating enough for some people, having to directly face a violent criminal who injured you or murdered a loved one is not a prospect anyone should have to face."
Kalmring's sister, Donna Irwin, who is executor of the estate, said the legal battle is causing more emotional damage by Wiens, who threw garbage bags of the victim's clothing on the family's lawn the day of her funeral.
"I haven't even had time to grieve for my sister because from the moment he shot her I've been fighting for her," she said.
"It's not like we're asking for anything more than she would be entitled to if it were a divorce. That's the disturbing part of this."
Financial assets from the sale of two homes — one in Penticton, B.C., and another in Arizona — are being held in an estate account and the inheritance has been inaccessible to Kalmring's son, daughter and three grandchildren.
Irwin said the family feels revictimized by Wiens's actions, and the prospect of having to look him in the eye is causing more distress.
'Absolutely terrified'
"He says he has that right. I would be absolutely terrified. I don't want to ever see his face or even be in the same room as this person," Irwin said.
A jury convicted Wiens, who had served with the RCMP in Summerland, B.C., for 20 years, of second-degree murder after only six hours of deliberations in 2013. The Crown said Wiens shot Kalmring in the face during a heated argument, then moved her body and placed a knife in her hand to make the killing appear to be a case of self-defence.
Wiens had claimed he acted in self-defence after Kalmring threatened him with a knife, hysterical because she feared he was going to leave her.
Heidi Illingworth, executive director of the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime, does not know how common it is for convicted criminals to drag out legal proceedings by acting as their own representative. But she said this is an example of how financial and emotional costs to victims can be "staggering."
Hold offenders to account
"We know of other lifers who have tried to prevent victims' family from accessing minor children or fought custody being given to the victim's surviving family," she said. "This is really unfortunate and it seems the system should be able to hold them more accountable."
A written response from acting warden Kathy Hinch at Bath Institution acknowledged the "negative impact" Wiens is having on the victim's family by preventing the settlement of the estate, and said his parole officer met with him to discuss accountability, insight and victim empathy.
"Accountability is a significant factor when assessing an offender's reintegration potential and risk to the public. Mr. Wiens is very aware of this and encouraged to act accordingly," she wrote.
"Hopefully this meeting will have a positive impact on Mr. Wiens's decision-making in the future, but unfortunately, beyond explaining the ramifications noted above, there is little more that we can do to prevent him from meddling in affairs of the estate and representing his own interests therein."
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