The day Debbie Hogarth lost her son, Joshua, she said her life changed forever.
The 18-year-old was stabbed by his childhood acquaintance, Byron Blanchard, and was left to die in a flower bed just steps away from his home.
READ MORE: Family mourns loss of 18-year-old found dead in Acadia
Over the past few years, the victim’s family has started to heal, but the case keeps resurfacing.
“I think at the end of the day, which I have been shown time and time again, with this justice system, it doesn’t matter what I say or what I want or what I feel, I’m just the victim,” Hogarth said. “It doesn’t matter.”
The latest stress for the Calgary mother is an early bid for parole by Blanchard, who was convicted of manslaughter in Joshua’s death.
Blanchard was sentenced to seven years in jail in 2014.
“Well I knew he got time and a half for time served so that was three years, so I thought four years, good. Four years my family can try and rebuild, feel safe while we are rebuilding try and heal…four years. A year and a half? We still don’t feel safe,” Hogarth said.
Hogarth was allowed to write a letter to try and stop the parole board from granting the hearing, but that failed. The hearing will proceed this spring.
“All I can do is keep fighting for my son, plead with them,” Hogarth said. “My family is terrified, we’re frightened of him.”
“I can guarantee you that when I’m told he’s out on day parole I will not be coming to work. I will be in my home with the doors locked; I will keep my children in my home with the doors locked. I am terrified.”
Hogarth can’t help but wonder what it will take to have victim’s rights put first.
“What if we run into him in the grocery store when he’s on day parole? No one seems to care about the victim. The system is broken—it needs to be repaired; it needs to be fixed,” Hogarth said.
The parole hearing is scheduled for May.
Hogarth is allowed to attend, and can protest Blanchard’s release.