The man sentenced to life in prison for the brutal stabbing death of a Kitimat mother in 1998 has been denied parole.
Christopher Alexander appeared before the parole board April 19 and was denied both full parole and day parole based on what was described as deceitful behaviour and risky relationships on previous releases. He will remain in the medium-security Mountain Institute.
Anita Johnstone, sister of victim, Linda LeFranc, said relief for the family will be short-lived as Alexander is expected to apply for parole again in 12 months as permitted.
In 2002 Alexander was sentenced to life in prison for the second-degree murder of his 36-year-old neighbour, Linda LeFranc. Then 17-years old and armed with a knife, Alexander used a key known to be hidden outside the front door to gain access to LeFranc’s townhouse on Dec. 9, 1998. He stabbed LeFranc 83 times. Her body was found by her seven-year-old daughter.
Johnstone said this will be the 11th or 12th hearing she’s attended since Alexander became eligible for parole.
“You never get to move on,” Johnstone said last month, upon learning of the latest parole hearing. “Everybody says, ‘well, just get over it, get on with your life.’ How do you do that when it’s always there beneath the surface. You shove it down until it claws back up to the surface and needs to be acknowledged again. We expose ourselves in the process, but we need… the people need to know what type of person the parole board is potentially releasing into their communities.”
According to hearing transcripts, the board listed several areas of character and behavioural improvement with Alexander. This included the completion of several wellness programs, the National Substance Abuse Program, Cognitive Skills Reasoning and Rehabilitation, High Intensity Violent Offender Program, Aboriginal Basic Healing, as well as the Aboriginal Institutional and Community Maintenance programs.
Since incarceration Alexander has also completed his General Education Diploma (GED) as well as 17 vocational tickets and certificates.
Alexander’s parole officer also submitted that Alexander has benefited from the consequences of violating his conditions in the past, and viewed his risk in the community as manageable with structure and supports.
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However, given the extremely violent nature of his offence, and a psychological assessment saying he’s at moderate risk to re-offend violently and generally, the parole board wasn’t swayed. They listed the numerous violations of conditions on previous releases including attempts to contact family members, being in unauthorized locations, pushing boundaries, using the Internet without approval and pursuing relationships with females. They also highlighted on several occasions his habitual tendency to lie by omission.
Alexander’s day parole was suspended in 2016 in relation to claims that he engaged in non-consensual sex on several occasions with his girlfriend while she slept. Criminal charges brought against him were stayed when the court was unable to locate the victim.
With this woman and others, the parole board noted Alexanders tendency to pursue relationships with vulnerable women.
“Of great concern to the board, [you] are unable to identify why engaging in relationships with vulnerable women who have their own struggles with substance abuse increases your risk to re-offend generally or violently.”