A Kelowna man who stabbed his fiancée to death in 2014 when she tried to extricate herself from their toxic relationship will soon be released, though into a controlled environment.
Ryan Quigley, 44, was sentenced to 12 years in prison less time served, starting in October 2016, after pleading guilty to the manslaughter death of Aimee Parkes.
He is now up for statutory release, for the second time, and the Parole Board of Canada believes that a halfway house with limited leave opportunity is the safest option for society at large, and Quigley himself.
Quigley’s history, recent and further back, is fraught with incidents of drug misuse and mental health challenges.
They came into sharp focus for the public in 2016, during a brief trial looking into a violent crime.
During what started as a murder trial, though ended early with a guilty plea to manslaughter, the court heard he was said to be in the throes of a state of agitation brought on by crack use.
“Several weeks before the index offence (Quigley) stopped taking (his) medications and attempted suicide,” the Parole Board wrote in its recent decision, offering context to the crime he’s been imprisoned for.
“(Parkes) saved (him), but the next day (he) again threatened suicide so she called the police who took (him) to the hospital. (He was) later discharged to her care.”
Parkes tried to break up with him for what she told friends was the “atomic-bomb” like threat he continually presented to her and within a day of plans to change the locks to the home she’d been paying the bills for, she was found dead, having suffered 26 stab wounds to her face, torso and arms, the court heard.
Quigley then went on the run, spending the next “two or more days living in (his) vehicle, binging on crack cocaine and pawning the (Parkes’s) possessions,” the parole board wrote.
In prison, his behaviour improved with programming and continued to get better even during the initial stages of his statutory release, which started in January, the two-thirds marker of his sentence.
He made a connection to a mental health team and a substance abuse clinic, the parole board wrote, noting that a psychologist noticed his wide range of moods and emotions and was of the impression that his presentation and symptoms were impacted by cannabis consumption and an ADHD prescription.
In March, however, a living arrangement with his parents started to fall apart.
On April 30, his father left a voicemail with a parole office stating things were not going well and Quigley had become unpredictable and threatening.
“They no longer felt safe with (him) in their home so they asked (him) to leave. On three occasions (he) challenged his father to a fight and were threatening,” the parole board wrote.
He told his parole officer his behaviour changed since beginning his ADHD medication regime and they believed he was crushing and snorting his pills.
He was apprehended shortly thereafter and due to the self-harm and suicide threats he had made, he was taken to hospital under the Mental Health Act.
Now, the Parole Board of Canada said it will let him go again, this time imposing residency at a halfway house because any other option would pose an “undue risk to society.”
“This decision is based on the following considerations. Mental health concerns and substance abuse were direct contributors to (him) stabbing (his) former fiancée to death after being asked to leave her residence,” reads the decision.
Now, on his recent statutory release, he was accused of abusing his prescription medications, introducing a knife into a tense situation with his father, and threatening suicide.
“The parallels between the index offence and the circumstances of (his) suspension are quite concerning,” the parole board wrote.
It’s of heightened concern given he had ample support including a parole supervisor, a mental health
professional, a program facilitator, parole supervision meetings, counselling, and family support but chose not to access them.
“Were you to reside in your own residence or in a shelter, the staff would have no responsibility to manage or intervene in your behaviour, and no obligation to report violations to the CSC,” the parole board wrote.
“Shelter staff would not be responsible for monitoring your comings and goings, or to log your intended destinations.”
By comparison, in a Conditional Release Setting, like a halfway house, he would have staff monitoring, enforcing, and reporting of any issues arising.
That, the parole board, would mitigate the risk to society.