{"id":935542,"date":"2026-10-16T19:42:16","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T19:42:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/935542\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T19:42:16","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T19:42:16","slug":"convicted-killer-attending-mcgill-law-school-divides-students-over-safety-2nd-chances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/935542\/","title":{"rendered":"Convicted killer attending McGill law school divides students over safety, 2nd chances"},"content":{"rendered":"

Students in McGill University\u2019s law faculty say they are concerned about the presence of a convicted murderer on campus and at faculty events.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The man, Jeffrey George Ewert, was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder for two attacks committed in B.C., in 1984: he sexually assaulted and killed one woman and, less than six weeks later, beat and choked a 15-year-old so severely that she was paralyzed and disabled for life, according to a summary of his case in his parole board file.<\/p>\n

Ewert is serving a life sentence and was granted day parole in 2025. He\u2019s been attending law classes at McGill and going to faculty events since August.<\/p>\n

His parole was extended for another six months in June 2026. While various clinical assessments ranked Ewert\u2019s risk of reoffending as moderate to high, official parole documents say with close supervision at a halfway house and clinical follow-up, that risk \u201cseems to fall more into the moderate risk category.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Ewert\u2019s case management team did not believe he posed an undue risk to society, the parole board did express concern about his interactions with and attitudes toward women.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some students, who asked not to be named for fear of repercussions, approached CBC after they learned of Ewert\u2019s criminal past and are upset that the university did not disclose their peer\u2019s violent history.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, it\u2019s really the lack of transparency,\u201d said one of the students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Whether or not McGill was legally obligated to alert students, she feels the school had a moral obligation to let them know.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than half of the students are women, we\u2019re young,\u201d she said, adding she feels Ewert\u2019s presence places them in a \u201cvulnerable and dangerous position.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Jeffrey George Ewert began attending law classes at McGill University in August. Some students are upset his violent criminal past was not disclosed. (Name withheld\/Instagram)<\/p>\n

Another student also resented being left in the dark.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNot knowing made it more scary for us,\u201d said the student, who pieced together Ewert\u2019s past through their own research. \u201cIt got me worried and I was panicked.\u201d<\/p>\n

If the school had warned them and explained what precautions were in place, she said she would have felt safer and could have decided if or how she wanted to interact with him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

University cites privacy laws<\/p>\n

CBC asked McGill University whether the institution was aware of the nature of Ewert\u2019s criminal past and current parole status and what security plans, if any, had been conducted before allowing Ewert to attend campus.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a statement, a university spokesperson declined to answer questions about Ewert\u2019s specific case, citing privacy laws, but said that \u201ccriminal background checks are not typically part of Canadian universities’ admissions processes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMcGill would act quickly and decisively should concerning information be brought forward about a student\u2019s background or behaviour on campus,\u201d the spokesperson wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The statement continues by saying the university \u201cwould liaise closely with all relevant government bodies\u201d and use the policy tools at its disposal \u201cto remove the individual from campus\u201d to ensure a safe environment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe university would also actively review its admissions processes to ensure a similar situation never happens again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Students<\/p>\n

In a statement to CBC, McGill said it would act ‘quickly and decisively’ if concerning information about a student\u2019s background or behaviour on campus was brought forward. (Kolya Hubacek-Guilbault\/CBC)<\/p>\n

The students who spoke with CBC have not seen Ewert on campus since Oct. 6.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ewert declined an interview, but his absence at McGill was confirmed by his lawyer, Nora Demnati, who spoke on his behalf.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe applied to McGill law with the help of many students, of law professors and McGill University was fully aware of his history and his status and where he comes from,\u201d said Demnati in an interview.<\/p>\n

Although Ewert had not disclosed his past to everyone at the university \u2014 and was not legally obligated to \u2014 Demnati said Ewert has never hidden who he is.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been very honest about his history, his parole status and his conditions,\u201d said Demnati, adding she and Ewert are \u201ccompletely in the dark\u201d about what specific concerns were raised at McGill.<\/p>\n

Although she understands some students are worried, she notes Ewert was in his 20s when he committed his offences.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now in his 60s, Demnati says he\u2019s a different man and she\u2019s \u201cdisheartened\u201d Ewert was not given a chance to hold a meeting with students to address their concerns.<\/p>\n

Parolees continuously monitored<\/p>\n

The extension to Ewert’s day parole was granted under a variety of conditions, including not to enter a drinking establishment, to immediately report all sexual and non-sexual relationships with women and to allow his case management team access to all his telecommunication activity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The parole board added the latter condition because Ewert had been viewing women’s profiles on social media, starting discussions with them, and exploring a dating site without notifying his case management team.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The McGill students who spoke to CBC question how closely the university or his parole supervisor can monitor such a condition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

They say students often work closely on group projects and the teaching assistants \u2014 many of whom are also women \u2014 meet students one-on-one.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was more a fear of potentially women not knowing what he\u2019s done in the past and then having interactions with him that could put them at risk potentially,\u201d one of the students told CBC.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is unable to talk about the specifics of Ewert\u2019s case due to privacy, it said in an email that supervising an offender \u201cincludes ongoing monitoring of their activities, including educational opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"McGill<\/p>\n

CBC was contacted by other students in McGill’s law faculty who reported positive experiences with Ewert. They admired his efforts to improve his life and go back to school and value the perspective he brings. (Kolya Hubacek-Guilbault\/CBC)<\/p>\n

This includes regular meetings with the offender as well as assessing their personal and professional environments. Social media use is also monitored.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe carefully monitor all aspects and if an offender’s risk increases or there is a change in their behaviour or compliance with release conditions, we take immediate action, which can include suspending their release and returning them immediately to custody,\u201d a spokesperson for the CSC wrote.<\/p>\n

CBC was contacted by two other McGill students who supported Ewert.<\/p>\n

They spent time alone with him and described the experience as positive. Both were aware of his past convictions and said they never felt threatened or unsafe.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s a difference between feeling uncomfortable and being in danger,\u201d said one student in reaction to other students\u2019 unease. \u201cI think sometimes those two things feel really similar, but they\u2019re not similar.\u201d<\/p>\n

The student, who asked not to be named for fear of repercussions, admired the efforts Ewert had made to improve his life and go back to school. She felt it would be unfortunate if his experience and perspective were lost.<\/p>\n

Navigating reintegration can be difficult<\/p>\n

Ewert\u2019s day parole \u2014 first granted in February 2025 \u2014 was temporarily suspended in May 2025 because he had contacted and collected the phone numbers of multiple women, and after the counsellor at his community residential facility took issue with his attitude and behaviour.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The parole board decision also noted that Ewert continues to assert that his interactions with women do not constitute a risk factor and that he denies a sexual element in his crimes, despite what court records say.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Demnati says they may request his file be corrected to show \u201cthere is no evidence of a sexual offence.\u201d<\/p>\n

CBC found Ewert\u2019s Instagram and Threads accounts, which he operates under a different name. CBC confirmed it was Ewert\u2019s.<\/p>\n

On the Threads account, Ewert is actively communicating with women, commenting on images of women, many of which appear to be altered or created by AI. Below one image, he commented \u201chotties like you drive us crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Demnati told CBC she was not aware of the specifics of what Ewert wrote on social media, but she said occasional breaches are expected after nearly four decades in prison.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Nora Demnati, Ewert\u2019s lawyer, says her client is still trying to settle into life as a student and is urging people to ‘give the man a chance.’ (Nora Demnati\/LinkedIn)<\/p>\n

She said she has countless clients with a life sentence who are working, studying and going about their daily lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the choice we have made as a society, to believe in rehabilitation,\u201d said Demnati, who is also the president of the Canadian Prison Law Association.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alysha McDonald, an assistant professor in the department of sociology at MacEwan University, said that, while she can\u2019t speak to the specifics of Ewert\u2019s case, this situation reflects a tension present in many reintegration cases.<\/p>\n

McDonald said education can help offenders reintegrate and provide a \u201cstructure, purpose, and the chance to build a new social identity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

But as this situation shows, there is often no framework as to how an institution will navigate that reintegration and manage students\u2019 concerns.<\/p>\n

Universities \u201crarely have clear, consistent processes for how reintegration intersects with their communities and it needs thoughtful attention if we\u2019re going to see real progress in people\u2019s experiences with reintegration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Demnati said Ewert is still trying to settle into life as a student and adjust to the rhythm of taking classes, studying and tackling new technology.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLike give the man a chance,\u201d said Demnati. \u201cThis is what rehabilitation is about and it\u2019s not making people feel like they\u2019re alienated from society and an outcast and they have to run around the city with something on their forehead saying, \u2018Hey, I just got out of prison.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither the parole board nor CSC responded to questions about whether they were aware of Ewert\u2019s current online activities.<\/p>\n

\u2018He\u2019s not the same person\u2019<\/p>\n

The details of Ewert\u2019s crimes, reported by newspapers in B.C. at the time, recounted in various court documents and summarized in the parole board decisions, indicate that in a two-month span, he attacked two women.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In May 1984, he met Corrina Lea Makiev, who was hitchhiking outside of a nightclub. He choked her unconscious, sexually assaulted her and beat her before dropping her in the Fraser River, where she was later found dead.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On June 17 of the same year, Ewert arrived late one night at his adoptive parents\u2019 home and found a 15-year-old family friend asleep on a couch.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ewert forcibly removed the teen from the home and beat her so severely that she suffered permanent serious brain damage and physical injuries that left her paralyzed. He left her in a ditch, but she survived. She has been unable to live independently since the attack.<\/p>\n

He was convicted of second-degree murder for Makiev\u2019s killing and attempted murder for the attack on the 15-year-old.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Jeffrey George Ewert was in his 20s when he attacked two women in British Columbia. He was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder. (The Province)<\/p>\n

Ewert first applied for parole in 2022 but his application was denied. The parole board concluded he still posed an undue risk to society. He challenged the decision, however, and won in Federal Court, when a judge agreed that the board had failed to consider Gladue principles \u2014 his Indigenous background and his traumatic upbringing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It was not Ewert\u2019s first litigation. He has been involved in numerous lawsuits that deal with prisoners\u2019 rights and the rights of Indigenous prisoners.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Notably, in 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada agreed with Ewert\u2019s contention that risk-assessment tools used by CSC were not valid for assessing Indigenous offenders.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ewert also leads the Canadian Prisoners\u2019 Labour Confederation, a group that advocates for labour rights for inmates.\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to the Parole Board of Canada\u2019s decisions about Ewert, he has partially attributed his past violence to his upbringing. Parole documents say his birth mother was M\u00e9tis, but he was adopted by a white B.C. family. His adoptive father was an alcoholic and his mother was psychologically ill and, he alleges, abused him physically, mentally and emotionally.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was such a broken individual at the time, full of self-hatred, who didn\u2019t know love,\u201d said Demnati.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said Ewert has worked hard to understand his triggers for violence and has been sober for decades. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not the same person… at all,\u201d said Demnati. \u201cWe just need to remember that and maybe find some reassurance that he is not that broken person anymore. That he not only changed, but he healed.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Students in McGill University\u2019s law faculty say they are concerned about the presence of a convicted murderer on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":935543,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[49,48,44],"class_list":["post-935542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=935542"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/935542\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/935543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=935542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=935542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=935542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}