A convicted Calgary killer’s bid for release from prison has been denied.
Shaun Desautels choked his 65-year-old landlord, Alexander Potoroka, at his Royal Oak home in January 2013.
He was frustrated by the noise Potoroka was making and decided to confront him.
The senior was rushed to hospital but was declared brain dead and taken off life support.
In November 2014, Desautels pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to ten years in prison. With credit for time served, he had a little more than seven years remaining in that sentence.
He became eligible for full parole in late June, but his application was denied following a hearing.
According to documents obtained by Global News, Desautels told the Parole Board of Canada it was “beyond him what else he had to do” as he believed he had done everything asked of him.
He also told the board it was self-defense, as he put Potoroka in a headlock during the altercation and thought he had just passed out. He claimed he had no intention of taking his life, but that, despite his age, Desautels was afraid of his victim, who he called “a bear of a man.”
While the board agreed he has made some gains through programs and counselling, concerns still lingered about Desautels’ criminal past, which includes convictions for sexual assault and assault causing bodily harm.
“The board is not satisfied that the work you have done since your incarceration has resulted in adequate measurable and observable change to break the violent cycle you continue to engage in, which has ultimately and tragically resulted in the death of a victim,” the board wrote.
Desautels failed to get the support in his parole application from Correctional Service of Canada (CSC), as he wasn’t able to graduate to a minimum-security setting.
“Your inability to effectively manage yourself in a medium-security institution on a consistent basis, without significant monitoring and interventions, together with your lack of insight into your violent offending behaviours, concerns the board and indicates your return to the community on full parole at this point would greatly compromise public safety,” the board concluded.
Desautels’ statutory release date is in September 2019, while his sentence officially ends on Jan. 30, 2022.
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