Teen Pleads Guilty to second degree murder in the killing of a Canadian group home worker UPDATED

“A 17-year-old has pleaded guilty to second degree murder in the killing of a group home worker.

Dianne McClements’ body was found inside a group home in Camrose in May of 2012.

Police said McClements worked in the home where the 17-year-old lived.

Friends have said McClements, 61, loved and was dedicated to her work.

McClements’ sister, Gail Ruud, said the family still doesn’t know why the 61-year-old was murdered.

Ruud spoke to her sister two days before her murder. McClements told Ruud she was “making progress on him finding his way.”

McClements also told her sister the teen did some weird things, but she didn’t express feeling in danger.

The Crown is seeking an adult sentence, which would carry a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole in seven years.

The youth cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.”

Youth pleads guilty to murdering Camrose group home worker[Global News 9/2/14 by Slav Kornik]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update: “When his turn came, the young man stood in the prisoner box, a yellow sheet of paper clutched in his hand.

He spoke slowly, quietly, and for a time tried to make eye contact with the family of the woman he killed.

He told court he is sorry, that his heart is filled with pain. He said he’s ready to face the consequences of his actions, even if that means an adult sentence.

Then he sat and looked at his lap.

The young man is 20 years old now, but was 17 when he killed Camrose group home worker Dianne McClements.

He has already pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. The court must now decide whether to sentence him as an adult.

Defence lawyer Kent Teskey called the murder “senseless” and “indescribable,” and told the Wetaskiwin court room on Friday there is no explanation his client can offer that would not ring hollow.

“I’d suggest one of the cruxes of this case is what to make of him as a remorseful offender,” Teskey told the judge. “It will be for you to determine ultimately whether he has demonstrated remorse.”

McClements, 61, was working alone that day in May 2012 when she was stabbed to death at the Marler Independent Living Home, a group home where the accused was a resident.

A co-worker found her body the next day.

The young man currently poses a high risk to reoffend, according to a psychiatric report introduced at his sentencing hearing.

A psychiatric assessment by Dr. Vinesh Gupta found the young man has shown little remorse or guilt about killing McClements, and “seems to take pride in his antisocial and unusual lifestyle.”

Gupta noted the killer rationalized the murder by saying, “he was angry about the lack of video games to play, withdrawal from drugs.”

The challenge before the court, Teskey said, is to determine a sentence long enough to reflect the seriousness of the offence but short enough to allow his client one day to return to society.

He asked that his client be sentenced as a young offender, but not be given credit for more than three years already served at the Edmonton Young Offender Centre.

“There is a reasonable prospect for rehabilitation here,” Teskey said.

The Crown wants the judge to sentence the male as an adult, which would mean he would receive a life sentence with no parole for at least seven years.

“Even a maximum youth sentence won’t be enough to hold him accountable to his actions,” Crown prosecutor Ryan Pollard said.

The judge has reserved his decision and is expected to pass sentence later this year or earlier next year.

The accused will be 21 years old by the time he is sentenced. He will have to serve his time in an adult federal prison, even if he is given a youth sentence.”

Camrose killer apologizes to family of murdered group home worker [CBC 10/6/15]