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A man who’s been in prison since 2013 after admitting he killed two women in Winnipeg has been given statutory release.
Shawn Lamb, 66, will have to spend at least half a year at a designated facility as part of conditions imposed by the Parole Board of Canada in a Nov. 6 decision.
Lamb pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in the 2012 slayings of Carolyn Sinclair and Lorna Blacksmith.
He had originally been charged with three counts of second-degree murder, including for the alleged killing of Tanya Nepinak, 31, but the Crown stayed that charge because of a lack of evidence.
In 2013, Justice Rick Saull sentenced Lamb to 20 years in prison minus time already served — which Saull said at the time was similar to the life sentence Lamb would have received if he had been found guilty of second-degree murder — following a joint recommendation from the defence and prosecution.
Lorna Blacksmith, left, and Carolyn Sinclair. Both women were killed by Shawn Lamb in 2012. (Winnipeg Police Service)
Lamb would have first been eligible for parole in 2022.
By law, offenders who have served two-thirds of a fixed length sentence must be released from prison under supervision, though it can be denied in some circumstances. The parole board can impose special conditions on the release if necessary.
In its decision, the board rejected a release plan for Lamb to reside in transition housing, saying he would present an “undue risk to society.”
It reviewed some of his criminal history before the killings, including several assault charges and incidents of sexual assault and robbery.
“Given your assessed levels of risk and serious nature of offences, a period of residency is required as you transition back into the community,” it said.
“Once you have demonstrated stability, the need for residency can be re-examined.”
‘We continue to die’: MMIWG advocate
Hilda Anderson-Pyrz, president of the National Family and Survivors Circle, said the news will bring back painful memories for those still grieving the deaths of Sinclair and Blacksmith, as well as Nepinak’s family, who have spent years calling for her search.
Nepinak was last seen on Sept. 13, 2011. A 2012 search for her remains was cancelled six days after it began, with police finding no evidence.
Tanya Nepinak went missing in Sept. 2011. Lamb was originally accused of having killed the woman. A second-degree murder charge in her death was stayed due to lack of evidence. (CBC)
In August of this year, the NDP government announced it would restart the search at the Brady Road landfill nearly 14 years after the woman’s disappearance.
Lamb denied involvement in Nepinak’s killing.
“When we’re looking at the vulnerabilities of Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit and gender-diverse people in our communities, we have an obligation to keep them safe from predators like Shawn Lamb,” she said.
Anderson-Pyrz said she would like to see a stronger commitment from the Canadian government from the MMIWG inquiry’s calls for justice.
“We continue to die,” she said. “We continue to experience violence, and we continue to go missing at alarming rates.”
‘Above-average risk’ for sexual reoffences
The board ruled Lamb must live in a half-way house or psychiatric facility for at least six months, with a future review on whether to renew that condition.
The decision said assessments found “high imminent” risk of violence towards a partner and a “low imminent risk” of violence towards others.
The board said a psychological assessment found an “above-average risk” to reoffend sexually, though Lamb’s overall risk was only in the moderate range.
As part of the conditions, he will have to report all sexual and nonsexual relationships and friendships to a parole supervisor, as well as any attempts to initiate them and any changes to their status.
He was also barred from consuming drugs and alcohol, and from having contact with any person who might be involved in criminal activity.
The decision reviewed some of his criminal history before the killings, including several assault charges and incidents of sexual assault and robbery. It says the man also had a “problematic” history of breaching release conditions.
Lamb met Sinclair at a drug house and killed her after they went to his apartment to smoke crack cocaine, striking her head with an axe handle multiple times
He met Blacksmith about two weeks later while purchasing drugs. He invited her to his apartment, where he strangled the 18-year-old with a TV cord after an argument.