The first teenage girl to be sentenced in the 2022 death of Toronto homeless man Kenneth Lee will not face any more time in custody and will instead spend time on probation while participating in a community-based program for young people with mental health issues.
The girl, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was 13 at the time of the December 18, 2022 attack in downtown Toronto, was credited for 15 months of effective pre-trial custody and will serve another 15 months of probation under an Intensive Support and Supervision Program, which is designed as an alternative to custody for youth who have been diagnosed with mental health disorders.
Justice David Stewart Rose says the sentence reflects that the teen has taken accountability for her actions by pleading guilty, and experienced institutional malfeasance while in custody, such as being forced to strip naked during searches.
100%. But this should be completely separate from the fact that she still murdered another human being (by stabbing him to death in a group swarming) and didn't get nearly enough for the justice system to show that it values human lives.
This malfeasance should punish the guard(s), not reward a murderer.
He said the teen was forced to strip naked during searches a total of seven times. She was also taken to a remote detention facility far from family, and institutional staff didn't always take her to court when necessary, he said.
That's effed. Sounds like the judge made the right call enrolling her in a mental health program.