Canadian Teenager Charged with Murder

“A senior homicide investigator is calling for changes to the operation of some Edmonton group homes after a 17-year-old girl, supposedly under curfew, was charged with the overnight murder of Shawn Richard.

Richard, a known drug dealer, was found dead on the street early Aug. 31.

“This 17-year-old, I have to say, was living in a group home blocks away from the homicide scene and basically running wild out of that group home,” Staff Sgt. Bill Clark said Saturday afternoon. “It’s actually appalling in our investigation to find out that we have group homes around the city and this particular one really has no restrictions.”

The girl, who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, has been charged with the second-degree murder of Richard, 32. He was found dead Aug. 31 with a stab wound to his chest, lying in the middle of 95th Street, between 117th and 118th Avenues at 3:20 a.m. The teen charged was living in a privately run group home in the area, under standard court-imposed conditions such as a curfew, related to 27 additional crimes, said Clark, who did not provide details. Clark said the curfew was not enforced.

“They were allowing these juveniles out all night long, as long as they came home at some point and signed in. It wasn’t a big deal,” Clark said. He didn’t know how many children lived in the group home. “They were out all night and then they would sign in and sleep all day long … These young juveniles are running wild in the streets of north Edmonton all night long with no control. So I don’t know what’s going on with the system that we have that (situation). Something, obviously needs to be fixed.”

Clark said social workers and child and family services workers co-operated with police.

Alberta Human Services said in an email to the Journal Saturday the department doesn’t comment on police investigations or criminal charges. However there are expectations related to group homes around behaviour, curfew, school attendance and employment, said the email from Aileen Machell, press secretary for Human Services Minister Irfan Sabir.

Police had planned to charge Richard with second-degree murder before he was killed, for the death of Claudia Iron-Howard, a 29-year-old woman found stabbed to death June 4 in the area around 106th Avenue and 103rd Street. With Richard’s murder, the Iron-Howard homicide case is now closed, Clark said.”

Group homes need review after 17-year-old charged with murder, says homicide investigator [Edmonton Journal 9/4/15 by Jodie Sinnema]

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