Quebec- the following is about Karla Homolka

[Sher]

Karla Homolka faces severe restrictions upon her release from prison to the streets of Montreal, sources say.

They say Ontario prosecutors are poised to ask a Quebec court to control where Homolka lives, where she works, what she does, who she sees and the hours she keeps.

Homolka, 35, is scheduled for release from Joliette prison no later than July 5 after serving 12 years for manslaughter in the deaths of Kristen French, 15, Leslie Mahaffy, 14, and Homolka's youngest sister, Tammy, 15.

Homolka's ex-husband, Paul Bernardo, 41, is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years for the first-degree murders of French and Mahaffy and faces an additional indefinite term as a dangerous offender for Tammy's manslaughter and a slate of rapes in Scarborough.

At a June 2 court hearing in Montreal, Ontario officials will try to convince a Quebec judge that Homolka still poses a real danger to the public and should be kept on an incredibly short leash when freed.

The short leash is made possible by Section 810 of the Criminal Code, which allows a court to place whatever restrictions are deemed necessary on a released prisoner if it is convinced the offender is a public danger.

Among the conditions being considered are:


- Homolka's residency must be given court approval.

- Her comings and goings controlled by daily curfews.

- She must report to police at least weekly.

- She must advise police of any change of address.

- She must disclose any new employment or change of job.

- She must notify police of any travel plans.

- She must avoid places where children gather, such as public playgrounds, swimming pools and schoolyards.

- She must not associate with any other criminals.

"We think this is a totally inadequate response to someone with her profile, but it is the only response we have," said a source close to the case.

Sources say it is improbable Homolka will live in the Notre-Dame-de-Grace neighbourhood of Montreal's west end, where her father has said he believes she will live.

"Her father may have been misinformed," one source said.

Homolka, who is reportedly fully bilingual, has asked that her hearing be in French.

Officials say the request for a French hearing may not be to make it more difficult for authorities, but to throw English language media off the scent.

[Sher]

Victims' advocates, police and political foes are urging the Liberal government to fast-track a DNA bill before sex-killer Karla Homolka is freed from prison.

At a meeting this morning, Conservative justice critic Vic Toews will demand Justice Minister Irwin Cotler "hive off" a retroactive section of the bill and rush it through the House of Commons. That would allow authorities to collect genetic samples from Homolka before her July release.

"If we have disagreements on other parts of the bill, it won't impact on the rapid adoption of the retroactivity portion that affects Karla Homolka," Toews said.

"It's another mechanism to monitor her behaviour and to ensure she will not commit offences because we don't have the option of putting her on parole. It will assist police officers and will serve as a self-regulator on Homolka. If she knows we have the DNA, she can't get involved in another serious crime."

Tony Cannavino, president of the Canadian Professional Police Association, is also urging Cotler to act quickly before a potential election, noting Homolka isn't the only violent offender who could walk out without their DNA in the databank.

[Sher]

OTTAWA -- Karla Homolka will be compelled to provide federal authorities with a DNA sample - as long as the Liberal government doesn't fall before a new bill is passed into law.

MPs from all political parties agreed yesterday to fast-track Bill C-13 so Homolka and other violent offenders don't slip out of prison without their DNA in the national database. Currently DNA collection - even for the most serious crimes such as murder - isn't mandatory.

Steve Sullivan of the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime said Homolka has become the "poster child" for the urgent need to pass the bill because her release is set for July. But there are many other reasons the government should pull the bill to the top of its legislative agenda, he said.

"It may be a deterrent, it may be an ability for police to solve a crime earlier if they reoffend, it may be a way of solving crimes that haven't been solved yet. So, for public safety and for victims' families, this is a very important bill," he said.

Conservative MP Vic Toews pressed Justice Minister Irwin Cotler to "step up to the plate" and do the right thing, but Government House leader Tony Valeri was non-committal in the Commons.

"When we co-operate and focus on the interests and priorities of Canadians, Parliament can in fact work," he said.

"I would ask the two parties opposite, both the Conservatives and the Bloc, that if they want to in fact be in Parliament and be in this Parliament for the interests of Canadians, then let us work together to ensure we can pass this DNA bill and other bills."

Carolyn Gardner, whose sister Sheryl was murdered by psychopath Ralph Power in 1981, wrote to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper yesterday warning of the "serious implications" and asking he postpone toppling the government. "Unless this bill is passed, Homolka's DNA will not be in the national DNA databank. I believe Canadians will question the motives of anyone who does not do whatever they can to prevent that from happening - especially when we are so very close," she said.

[Sher]

OTTAWA -- Bickering MPs briefly dropped their swords yesterday to ensure Karla Homolka and other violent criminals don't leave prison without providing DNA samples.

All political parties gave unanimous consent to ram the DNA bill through the House of Commons - just minutes before the Conservatives pushed a vote to shut down for the day.

Tory justice critic Vic Toews said he's optimistic the bill will sail through the Senate and become law before the election.

"They virtually have no work in the Senate, so it's not that there's a list of priorities that are ahead of this bill.

"They can accommodate this very quickly if there's a will to do it," he said.

The bill expands the authority to retroactively order collection of DNA from those convicted of one murder, manslaughter or serious sex assault, including Homolka.

Steve Sullivan, president of the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime, breathed a sigh of relief after the bill rushed through the Commons, but expects legal challenges to the bill on constitutional grounds.

A Liberal source said senators will review the bill at committee, but expect it could be passed in a matter of days.

[Sher]

The woman who helped Karla Homolka escape Paul Bernardo's clutches and initially supported her as a "battered woman" now believes Homolka is dangerous and should be kept in prison for life.

"I think she should still be in there serving the same time as Paul," said Wendy Lutczyn, who worked with Homolka at the Martindale Animal Clinic in St. Catharines.

Homolka is scheduled to be released from prison in Joliette, Que., in five weeks after serving her full 12-year sentence for manslaughter in the deaths of Ontario schoolgirls Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French.

She will appear tomorrow in a Quebec courtroom, where the Ontario government will seek to impose strict controls on Homolka's movements and actions when she is released.

Lutczyn said she cannot accept Homolka's inability to see herself as any sort of aggressor during her involvement in Bernardo's sex slayings of French and Mahaffy, the fatal drug rape of her youngest sister, Tammy, 15, and a string of sex assaults on other teens and young women.

ACTIONS OF A PSYCHOPATH

And she is outraged at seeing Homolka's smiling face in prison photographs.

"She is a very smart young lady and she knows exactly what she is doing," Lutczyn said.

"She poses for these pictures like she is a movie star, posing with the cats and stuff."

Lutczyn now believes Homolka's actions were those of a psychopath, not of an abused, controlled woman as she once thought.

Lutczyn recalled in an exclusive interview with the Toronto Sun that she became concerned about Homolka's health and safety shortly after the pair began working together at the St. Catharines animal clinic in October 1992.

"She was the cutest, nicest little blond. She loved animals. She seemed to be a very genuine and caring young lady," Lutczyn recalled.

"I can't say she was a happy person ... she kept to herself."

Lutczyn never did take to Homolka's husband, Paul Bernardo, with his flashy clothes and sports car.

"He was just a little too sure of himself for me ... leather jackets, hair all done, too much for me," she said.

Lutczyn immediately noticed that Homolka had bruises over much of her body. Homolka told Lutczyn the marks were caused by her rambunctious dog, Buddy the Rottweiler.

Lutczyn pointed out her suspicions that the bruises were signs of abuse to other staffers, who suggested Lutczyn was off the mark.

"I thought, okay, fine, if I am the only one who thinks that way, then it can't be true."

But Lutczyn's fears heightened later that year when Homolka came to work with a limp.

Lutczyn demanded to see the injury.

Homolka, who wondered if she needed antibiotics, pulled down her pants in the clinic washroom and showed Lutczyn a bloodied hole in her thigh.

"I just went, 'oh my God' ... it was a hole in her leg the size of a pencil," Lutczyn said.

Homolka gave some thingy-and-bull story that she suffered a hole in her leg when she took Buddy to the basement and bumped into Bernardo's work bench. Homolka would later testify that Bernardo had stabbed her with a screwdriver.

"I told her I didn't believe her. She just kind of walked away."

Lutczyn received all the proof she needed Jan. 4, 1993, when Homolka walked into work with blackened eyes.

"I almost passed out. I had never seen anybody like that before. I just started to cry. She was comforting me, saying, 'I'm okay, I'm okay. I was in a car accident.'"

But Homolka said she had not been to hospital.

Lutczyn called police and an abused women's centre.

TRIED TO HIDE FROM MOM

But there was nothing anyone could do unless Homolka sought help.

In a bid to get help for Homolka, Lutczyn had a male friend make an anonymous call to Homolka's family.

Dorothy Homolka came to the clinic that day.

Homolka tried to hide from her mom. Lutczyn knew that if Homolka's mom didn't know of any car accident, Homolka's story was a lie to cover up something else.

Dorothy Homolka and her daughter went for dinner.

Homolka returned to work, black eyes and all.

"Everything's going to be okay," she told Lutczyn.

That night, the Homolkas went to the Port Dalhousie house their daughter and Bernardo rented, but nobody answered the door.

It was the next night, Jan. 5, 1993, that Karel Homolka pulled his eldest daughter kicking and screaming out of the house.

Homolka was in hospital three days.

The entire animal clinic staff visited her there.

After a few weeks, Homolka went to stay with relatives in Mississauga. She called Lutczyn and thanked her for her help.

"I was overjoyed," Lutczyn says now.

"I thought I was helping an abused woman."

Lutczyn was shocked Feb. 14, 1993 -- three days before Bernardo's arrest -- when Niagara detectives came to her house and handed her Green Ribbon Task Force business cards.

"I thought there was no way a woman who loved animals and seemed to love young children would ever harm another human being," Lutczyn said.

"I couldn't believe it. I still thought she was innocent for a long time ... I wanted to believe that tiny little thing had been beaten so badly and she was innocent."

Homolka promised she would explain herself to Lutczyn.

EXCHANGED LETTERS

The pair exchanged a series of letters while Homolka was in prison and waiting to testify at Bernardo's trial. Lutczyn shared all the letters with Niagara police. After Homolka finished testifying against Bernardo in mid-July 1995, she wrote Lutczyn another three letters. At no time, however, did Homolka try to explain to Lutczyn why she did what she did.

Instead, Homolka referred Lutczyn to two books and articles on beaten women.

Lutczyn read those books, but also read a book on psychopaths, Without Conscience, by Dr. Robert Hare.

Lutczyn said when she weighed Hare's assessment of psychopaths with Homolka, "they were perfectly Karla.

"He described (the psychopath) as someone in sheep's clothing who turns into a wolf."

[Sher]

Karla Homolka has made her first public appearance in 12 years, arriving at a courthouse in Joliette, Que. for a hearing on whether she should face restrictions following her release next month.

The convicted killer arrived in a police vehicle with tinted windows just before 7 a.m. ET and was whisked into the back of the courthouse ahead of the 9:30 hearing.

Homolka, 35, wants to be in the court as a team of lawyers from the Ontario government presents evidence calling for imposing limits on Homolka's movements when she is released from prison.

The lawyers, working under the direction of Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant, have kept tight-lipped about exactly what the evidence is.

It is expected the lawyers will try to invoke Section 810 of the Criminal Code to ensure authorities can keep tabs on Homolka when she is released from prison.

Under Sec. 810, a judge can restrict a violent offender's movements and associations and even impose curfews, if there are grounds to believe the person is a threat to the public.

CTV News has learned Ontario lawyers will seek conditions that will include:

that she not associate with anyone with a criminal record
that she report to police twice a month
that she give police four days notice before travelling to Ontario, including a complete itinerary
that she not use any drugs or alcohol
that she stay away from parks, playgrounds and community centres
To press their case, it is likely that lawyers will cite a National Parole Board decision made last fall that said it was convinced Homolka "will commit an offence causing the death or serious injury of a person" if released on parole.

Stephen Williams, who has written two books on the Homolka-Bernardo crimes, says the application seems to him to be a desperate attempt by Crown prosecutors to make up for the poor deal they made with Homolka in 1993.

"I don't think she should have any restrictions placed on her. She's done her time," he told Canada AM Thursday. "They did their deal and they should live with it."

Williams adds that he doesn't believe the application will succeed. "Any judge who understands the law will not grant this application."

But Bryant says what they are seeking is "not about continuing a sentence,'' it is about a belief that the public is in danger because Homolka is still a risk to harm others.

"It is about considering whether or not a person who is being released and completed her sentence, in fact, should have restrictions placed on her and should be monitored.''

It is unclear when Judge Jean Beaulieu will issue his decision.

The topic of Homolka's new love interest is also expected to come up at today's hearing.

The Toronto Sun reports that Homolka is still romantically involved with a convicted killer, Jean-Paul Gerbet, whom she met in a prison library.

Gerbet is serving a life sentence for murdering his girlfriend when she tried to leave him. He could get out on parole in 2008.

Tim Danson, the Toronto lawyer who represents the French and Mahaffy families, says the romance is one of the factors that is behind the 810 application.

"She is attracted like a magnet to people like this is the point we're trying to make,'' he told the Sun.

A number of violent offenders, including convicted pedophile Wray Budreo and sex offender Martin Ferrier, have been the subjects of Sec. 810 orders.

But any order against Homolka could only stand for 12 months, giving rise to questions about whether the courts would try to continue renewing the orders.

Williams doesn't believe the restrictions would affect Homolka much.

"In the 12 months, if she's under these minor restrictions, she will adhere to it because that's the kind of person she is. And then in 12 months, she will disappear," says the author.

Danson says he's disappointed that the hearing is happening in Quebec rather than in Ontario.

"I think when this is all done, the families may be seeking consultation with the federal officials to amend the Criminal Code because it is our view that 810 applications should be taking place in the venue where the crime took place and where there's the knowledge of what took place."

Speaking out

By next month, Homolka will have served her entire 12-year sentence for the manslaughter deaths of schoolgirls Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy and her role in her sister Tammy's death.

The brutal nature of those crimes, however, and the so-called "deal with the devil" that saw Homolka get 12 years in exchange for testimony against her then-husband Paul Bernardo, has made her complete freedom an uneasy proposition.

Mary Smith, who spent five years in the same prison residence as Homolka, once considered her to be a best friend.

But now, recalling how Homolka used to talk about the death of her younger sister, Smith says she remains convinced the schoolgirl killer is still a danger.

"Karla has no remorse and it's sad," Smith told CTV. "She didn't think she did anything wrong ... She's very cold when she talks about her it's like nothing, it's like losing a pair of socks."

Smith's view is not shared by Homolka's psychiatrist, who told a Montreal newspaper the public is under no threat whatsoever.

Meanwhile, Homolka's father says none of his family will be waiting to greet Karla when she emerges from prison.

Karel Homolka says he's not quite ready to rebuild his relationship with his eldest daughter.

"Someday, I guess," the senior Homolka told The Canadian Press from his home in St. Catharines, Ont.

[Sher]

The lawyer for two teenage victims of convicted killer Karla Homolka is warning it could be a fiery day as a hearing continues for her in Joliette, Que.

"All I can say is: stay tuned," lawyer Tim Danson told Canada AM.

Homolka has now arrived at the courthouse for Day 2 of the hearing, and a psychiatrist who examined her is expected to testify.

"The cross examination may be revealing," Danson says.

Homolka, who's become the most notorious female prisoner in modern Canadian history, is attending a hearing on whether the Crown should be able to restrict her life when she gets out of prison next month.

The hearing began Thursday, after Homolka was led into the courtroom in shackles.

Homolka will leave the prison in early July after serving a 12-year sentence for her role in the deaths of teenagers Kristen French, Leslie Mahaffy, and her sister, Tammy.

Her prison deal has proven to be highly controversial, since Homolka was allowed to plead guilty to manslaughter. By the time she is released early next month, she will have served virtually all of her sentence.

Bernardo, meanwhile, is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole.

Danson, who represents the French and Mahaffy families, as well as "Jane Doe" -- another rape victim of Homolka and Bernardo -- says it's been very difficult for the victims' families to deal with these hearings.

"They're just feeling numb," he said.

"They feel like they're in a bit of straitjacket. They are having great difficulty in hearing some of the things that they've heard."

CTV's Lisa LaFlamme, who attended the first day of the hearing on Thursday, said Homolka's presence was strangely compelling.

"It was actually impossible to take your eyes off her," LaFlamme told Canada AM.

"There is a stone-faced emotionless approach that she has."

On Thursday, as Const. Brian Noble of the Niagara Regional Police described Homolka's role in Tammy's death, Homolka, who until then had appeared subdued and impassive, appeared to be crying.

She blew her nose and rubbed her eyes, with her long blond hair falling over her face.

"It was actually difficult to tell if there were tears or not," LaFlamme said. "As soon as the subject of her sister came up, the breathing increased."

But, LaFlamme added, "I wouldn't call it a breakdown."

'They don't buy it'

Danson said the victims' families did not feel the tears were genuine.

"They feel that's a con job," he said. "They don't buy it for a moment."

Court artist Mike McLaughlin told Canada AM he did see evidence of tears in Homolka's eyes during talk about her sister's murder.

"I saw her when the crying period happened," he said.

"When she lifted her head, her yes appeared to be wet," he added. "But then she went back to that stone-cold look."

A team of lawyers from the Ontario government is presenting four volumes of evidence calling for limits on her movements.

They are asking for a peace bond under Section 810 of the Criminal Code, to ensure authorities can keep tabs on Homolka when she is released from prison.

Under Sec. 810, a judge can restrict a violent offender's movements and associations and even impose curfews, if there are grounds to believe the person is a threat to the public.

Lawyer Alan Young, who attended the Bernardo trial in 1995, said it's not easy to accept the fact that, once out of prison, Homolka could still have a full life.

"She destroyed three lives. So Canadians can't accept that fact that she's getting out."

But, he said, "we have to accept it" because the reality is, at the end of a sentence, a prisoner will be set free.

"There's nothing the law can do about it," Young said. "Which goes to show: get it right the first time."

When asked about the issue of whether Homolka would reoffend, Young said: "everybody has got their theories."

'Diagnostic mystery'

Young referred to a description of Homolka as "a diagnostic mystery."

During the hearing, Homolka's lawyer Sylvie Bordelais asked Noble to prove her client poses a threat to the public.

"You're before the court to say she is still a danger," Bordelais said.

"Apart from one report, no others are saying this woman is dangerous."

Bordelais had Noble read from about half a dozen psychiatric and psychological reports that suggested Homolka posed a minimal risk to society.

"The likelihood of her finding a second Paul Bernardo is extremely low, although she may be attracted to traditional males," said one excerpt.

Another excerpt read out said the risk of Homolka reoffending "is much lower than the majority of offenders who have been released from the federal system."

But a flash point of concern is Homolka's contact with Jean-Paul Gerbet. He was convicted of murder in 1998 for murdering his girlfriend Cathy Caretta in a rage when she tried to leave the abusive relationship.

Homolka and Gerbet, who met in a prison library, have sent steamy letters to each other.

Gerbet didn't just send letters. Naked pictures of him were found in Homolka's cell, along with his underwear, according to Homolka's caseworker.

If granted parole at the first opportunity, Gerbet could be released in 2008.

Bordelais asked on Thursday: "Are we re-trying her?"

In an interview, Danson defended the detailed review of Homolka's crimes.

"The only two people in that courtroom right now who have seen those videotapes are Karla and myself, and I just think sometimes there's got to be an air of reality, of remembering what she did," he said.

Danson was referring to videotapes Mahaffy and Kristen French, who were both kidnapped, sexually assaulted, tortured and finally killed by Homolka and Bernardo, in the early 1990s.

The videos were never shown publicly at Bernardo's 1995 trial, but the sound of the girls' screams and cries haunted the courtroom.

[Sher]

A court hearing in Joliette, Que., has heard that convicted killer Karla Homolka has problems with her self-esteem, but she is not a psychopath.

The testimony came during the second day of a hearing to determine whether restrictions should be placed on Homolka when she gets out of prison.

She will leave the prison in Joliette early July after serving a 12-year sentence for her role in the deaths of Ontario teenagers Kristen French, Leslie Mahaffy, and her sister, Tammy.

Her prison deal has proven to be highly controversial, since Homolka was allowed to plead guilty to manslaughter.

Meanwhile, Homolka's ex husband, Paul Bernardo, is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole.

On Friday, psychiatrist Louis Morissette suggested that, for Homolka, meeting Bernardo is what placed her on a destructive, murderous path.

"The experts mostly agree, if she hadn't met (Paul) Bernardo, it would never have happened."

Morissette, who examined Homolka, also downplayed reports of a relationship between her and Jean-Paul Gerbet, who is serving time in a Canadian prison for the murder of his girlfriend.

Morissette said his examination of her did not supply evidence to back reports of an all-out romance between Homolka and Gerbet.

And, just as Homolka's lawyer has been doing in court, Morissette referred to Homolka by her legally-changed name of Karla Teale.

"When you ask Madame Teale, it was a kiss in the library that was seen by a guard," Morissette said.

Gerbet was convicted of murder in 1998 for murdering his girlfriend Cathy Caretta in a rage when she tried to leave the abusive relationship.

Homolka and Gerbet, who met in a prison library, have sent steamy letters to each other.

But Morissette denied on Friday that Homolka had a naked photo of Gerbet in her cell. In fact, he said, the snapshot only showed Gerbet naked from the waist up, while in a swimming pool.

If granted parole at the first opportunity, Gerbet could be released in 2008.

Threats to safety

Even before the hearing resumed Friday, there was a flurry of interest of Homolka's safety.

"Homolka stayed overnight at a maximum security prison because of threats to her," CTV's Peter Murphy told CTV Newsnet on Friday.

"Corrections Services Canada officials are worried about her safety," he said.

Tim Danson, who represents the French and Mahaffy families, as well Jane Doe -- another rape victim of Homolka and Bernardo -- says it's been very difficult for the victims' families to deal with these hearings.

"They're just feeling numb," he said.

"They feel like they're in a bit of straitjacket. They are having great difficulty in hearing some of the things that they've heard."

CTV's Lisa LaFlamme, who attended the first day of the hearing on Thursday, said Homolka's presence was strangely compelling.

"It was actually impossible to take your eyes off her," LaFlamme told Canada AM.

"There is a stone-faced emotionless approach that she has."

On Thursday, as Const. Brian Noble of the Niagara Regional Police described Homolka's role in Tammy's death, Homolka, who until then had appeared subdued and impassive, appeared to be crying.

She blew her nose and rubbed her eyes, with her long blond hair falling over her face.

Danson said the victims' families did not feel it was genuine.

"They feel that's a con job," he said.

"They don't buy it for a moment."



A team of lawyers from the Ontario government is presenting four volumes of evidence calling for limits on her movements.

They are asking for a peace bond under Section 810 of the Criminal Code, to ensure authorities can keep tabs on Homolka when she is released from prison.

Under Sec. 810, a judge can restrict a violent offender's movements and associations and even impose curfews, if there are grounds to believe the person is a threat to the public.

Lawyer Alan Young, who attended the Bernardo trial in 1995, said it's not easy to accept the fact that, once out of prison, Homolka could still have a full life.

"She destroyed three lives. So Canadians can't accept that fact that she's getting out."

But, he said, "we have to accept it" because the reality is, at the end of a sentence, a prison will be set free.

"There's nothing the law can do about it," Young said.

"Which goes to show: Get it right the first time."

When asked about the issue of whether Homolka would reoffend, Young said "everybody has got their theories."

Young referred to a description of Homolka as "a diagnostic mystery."

[Sher]

Quebec judge thinks Karla Homolka is a risk to reoffend when she's released from prison.

After a two-day hearing, Judge Jean Beaulieu gave the Crown the Section 810 order it had been seeking to put some restrictions on Homolka after she is released in early July.

On Friday, Beaulieu gave the Crown basically all it asked for -- and more than observers expected. Here are some of the restrictions Homolka will face:

Inform police in Montreal or wherever she is of her whereabouts
Supply her address, occupation, roommates
Report to police on the first Friday of every month
Inform them if she moves or leaves her home for more than 48 hours
Give 96 hours notice if she intends to leave Quebec to visit Ontario
No association with people who have a criminal record
No contact with Paul Bernardo, his family or the families of their victims
Can take no drugs except those prescribed to her
No use of intoxicants that were used in the murders
Enter therapy immediately and continue for a year
Must provide a DNA sample to authorities (she had volunteered to do so)
Cannot take on a role of authority with any children under the age of 16
Michael Bryant, Ontario's attorney general, told reporters in Toronto that "Canada's justice system had acted, not reacted, to prevent harm on Homolka's release."

Tim Danson, lawyer for the victims' families, said outside the courthouse in Joliette, Que. his clients "feel they've gotten as much as they could, given the state of the law today."

He said they are also "relieved that Karla Homolka did not get away with what they see as another attempt to manipulate the system."

Sylvie Bordelais, Homolka's lawyer, told reporters: "In a sense, she understands that people are still very mad and angry with her.

"Her intentions, whether we appeal or not, are to respect the conditions ... except for a very short period of her life, she has been a very obedient citizen, respecting all the laws of this country."

If Homolka violates her conditions, she could be sent to jail for 24 months.

When Homolka is out -- she is scheduled to be released July 5, but it might be a day or two earlier -- she will have served a full 12-year sentence for her role in the deaths of Ontario teenagers Kristen French, Leslie Mahaffy, and her sister, Tammy.

Her prison deal has proven to be highly controversial, since Homolka was allowed to plead guilty to manslaughter.

Meanwhile, Homolka's ex-husband Bernardo is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years for the murders of French and Mahaffy. He has also been declared a dangerous offender and is unlikely to ever get out of prison.

'Not a psychopath'

Earlier Friday, Beaulieu heard defence evidence that Homolka has problems with her self-esteem, but she is not a psychopath.

The testimony came during the second day of a hearing to determine whether restrictions should be placed on Homolka when she gets out of prison.

Psychiatrist Louis Morissette suggested that, for Homolka, meeting Bernardo is what placed her on a destructive, murderous path.

"The experts mostly agree, if she hadn't met (Paul) Bernardo, it would never have happened."

Morissette, who examined Homolka, also downplayed reports of a relationship between her and Gerbet. He is a French national who is serving time in a Canadian prison for the murder of his girlfriend.

Morissette said his examination of her did not supply evidence to back reports of an all-out romance between Homolka and Gerbet.

And, just as Homolka's lawyer has been doing in court, Morissette referred to Homolka by her legally-changed name of Karla Teale.

"When you ask Madame Teale, it was a kiss in the library that was seen by a guard," Morissette said.

Gerbet was convicted of murder for killing his girlfriend Cathy Caretta in a rage when she tried to leave the abusive relationship in 1998.

Homolka and Gerbet, who met in a prison library, have sent steamy letters to each other.

But Morissette denied Homolka had a naked photo of Gerbet in her cell. In fact, he said the snapshot only showed Gerbet naked from the waist up, while in a swimming pool.

If granted parole at the first opportunity, Gerbet could be released in 2008. But Morissette said Homolka knows her relationship with him can't continue, since he will be deported to his native France when his sentence is up.

As well, Morissette said Homolka had sex with a female inmate at Joliette, but he did not consider that abnormal, under the circumstances.

The last straw?

At one point, Beaulieu said: "Here we are in 2005 and she's come back to the same pattern. She's back with a partner who is acting in the same style as the old one."

Homolka reportedly grimaced when told she wouldn't be able to communicate with anyone with a criminal record.

CTV's Lisa LaFlamme, speaking from Joliette, said Homolka's lawyer "skirted past that question" when she was asked if Karla was upset.

"She said (Karla) wasn't bothered by it, but that's difficult to believe, considering it's been going on for five years," she said.

LaFlamme said the relationship clearly played a major role in the judge's decision.

"There was actually a chuckle in the courtroom today when it was revealed through the psychiatrist that Karla had suggested this murderer, however, was not controlling, and Paul Bernardo had been controlling.

"So she tried herself to draw a difference between these two men, but clearly the judge didn't see the difference."

Back next year?

Friday's order is only good for 12 months. The province of Ontario said it will be back before the courts in a year to get another one.

"She is so good at playing the game," said Tina Daenzer, a juror in Bernardo's trial, on CTV Newsnet's COUNTDOWN.

"She could just behave herself really, really well. And (over the next year), if she behaves herself really well, what's the chance of getting this order next year?"

Stephen Williams, the author of two books on the Homolka-Bernardo case, called the conditions "toothless" and predicted Homolka would adhere to them, noting she was a model prisoner.

Steven Skurka, a lawyer and CTV legal analyst, said the order was "a preventative Band-Aid. It didn't do very much, but it's the least we can do to protect the community."

[Sher]

INDEPTH: BERNARDO
Bernardo/Homolka timeline

CBC News Online | May 31, 2005


The imminent release from prison of Karla Homolka has served to reignite a public fury that’s been simmering just below the surface for as long as the whole story’s been known. Her “deal with the devil” – 12 years in prison in return for testifying against husband Paul Bernardo – caused an outcry when the true scope of her involvement in murder became clear: not a helpless, manipulated victim, as it turned out, but a willing and enthusiastic participant in some appalling acts.

The nature of the murders, the videotapes, the fact that an attractive, seemingly normal young couple was responsible for causing so much pain – the story riveted our attention, even as we were repelled by its details. There were books, TV specials, a movie and too many front pages to count. And now, the story gets new life as Homolka prepares for a freedom most feel she doesn’t deserve.

What to do with her now? Where will she live? What will she do? Is she still a danger?

The questions linger. But for the public, and especially for the families of her victims, there’s likely to be little satisfaction from learning any of the answers.

May 1987:
A young woman is raped in Scarborough, Ont., the first in a chain of rapes committed by the person the media dubs the Scarborough Rapist. Paul Bernardo would later admit to the sexual assaults of at least 14 women in southern Ontario. At one point, Bernardo faced 53 charges related to the rape – and in some cases, murder – of young women.

Oct. 17, 1987:
Karla Homolka, 17, meets Paul Bernardo, 23, at a hotel restaurant in Scarborough, Ont. They have sex in their hotel room two hours later.

Dec. 24, 1989:
Bernardo and Homolka are engaged.

1990:
Bernardo loses his job at accounting firm Price-Waterhouse. He would later turn to cigarette smuggling to make money.

July 1990:
According to Bernardo's testimony, he and Karla Homolka serve her younger sister, Tammy, a spaghetti dinner spiked with Valium stolen from Karla's workplace. Bernardo rapes Tammy for about a minute before she starts to wake up.

Nov. 20, 1990:
Bernardo provides hair, blood and saliva samples to Metro Toronto police as part of their Scarborough Rapist investigation.


Dec. 23, 1990:
After a Homolka family Christmas party, Bernardo and Karla Homolka drug Tammy Homolka with animal tranquilizers Karla stole from her work. Bernardo and Karla Homolka rape Tammy while she's unconscious. Tammy later chokes on her own vomit and dies. Bernardo tells police he tried to revive her, but failed, and her death is ruled an accident.

mid-January 1991:
Bernardo picks up a young female hitchhiker, brings her back to the Homolka home and rapes her in Karla Homolka's bedroom. He drops her off on a back street.

Feb. 1, 1991:
Bernardo and Homolka move into a rented house in St. Catharines, Ont.

June 14, 1991:
Bernardo kidnaps 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy from outside her house. With Homolka, he rapes and murders her.

June 29, 1991:
Bernardo and Homolka are married in a lavish ceremony. Mahaffy's dismembered body is found encased in concrete in Lake Gibson near St. Catharines.

April 16, 1992:
Bernardo, with the assistance of Homolka, kidnaps Kristen French from a church parking lot. After raping, torturing and killing her, they leave her body naked in a ditch, her hair cut off.

April 30, 1992:
French's body is found.

December 1992:
The Centre of Forensic Sciences begins DNA testing of the samples Bernardo provided in 1990.

January 1993:
After Bernardo beats Homolka with a flashlight, leaving her with two black eyes, she leaves their home and files charges against him.

Feb. 17, 1993:
Bernardo is arrested. An inquiry into the Bernardo case would later find that officers in charge violated Bernardo's charter rights by not allowing him to call a lawyer despite his repeated requests, making his initial eight-hour interrogation inadmissible as evidence.

Feb. 19, 1993:
A search warrant is executed in the Bernardo home. During the 71-day search of the St. Catharines house that follows, police fail to find videotapes containing the recordings of the rapes of Mahaffy, French, Tammy Homolka and at least one other girl.

May 6, 1993:
Ken Murray, Bernardo's lawyer, gains access to Bernardo's home. Murray retrieves the videotapes from above a ceiling light fixture in the upstairs bathroom. He would keep the videos in his possession for 16 months.

May 1993:
The plea agreement between Crown prosecutors and Homolka's lawyers is finalized.

June 28, 1993:
Homolka's trial begins.

July 1993:
Homolka pleads guilty to two counts of manslaughter and receives a 12-year jail sentence. Her pleas and the statement of facts agreed to by her lawyer and the Crown are both covered by a publication ban ordered by the judge to ensure a fair trial for Bernardo.

September 1994:
Ken Murray quits as Bernardo's lawyer and hands Bernardo's videotapes over to his successor, John Rosen. Rosen turns the videos over to police later in the month.

May 18, 1995:
Bernardo's trial begins.

June 29, 1995:
Homolka testifies against Bernardo.

Sept. 1, 1995:
Bernardo is found guilty of all nine charges against him, including two counts of first-degree murder for killing French and Mahaffy.

Sept. 15, 1995:
Bernardo is sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole for 25 years.

November 1995:
Bernardo is declared a dangerous offender, meaning he will likely spend the rest of his life in jail.

April 1996:
An Ontario Court judge rules that videotapes showing the rape and torture of Bernardo's victims must be destroyed when they are no longer needed for legal purposes.

July 1996:
A six-month-long inquiry into the police investigation of Bernardo concludes that the investigation was hampered by dozens of mistakes by individual officers and by rivalries between different police departments. The inquiry concludes that some of Bernardo's crimes could have been prevented if Bernardo's DNA samples had been processed more quickly.

January 1997:
Ken Murray is charged with obstruction of justice and possession of child pornography for failing to turn over the Bernardo tapes.

Summer 1997:
Homolka is transferred to Joliette Institution in Quebec when the Kingston Prison for Women is closed.

March 2000:
The Ontario Court of Appeal dismisses Bernardo's request for a new trial.
» CBC STORY: Bernardo appeal dismissed

June 2000:
Murray is acquitted of charges arising from his failure to turn over the Bernardo tapes.
» CBC STORY: Court finds Bernardo lawyer not guilty

Sept. 21, 2000:
The Supreme Court of Canada denies Bernardo's leave to appeal his murder convictions.
» CBC STORY: Bernardo appeal rejected

Oct. 9, 2000:
Homolka is transferred to a maximum-security prison in Saskatoon for a psychiatric examination. Homolka's lawyers attempt to block the move, saying her life would be in danger if she were removed from the prison in Joliette.
» CBC STORY: Homolka transferred to maximum-security facility
» CBC STORY: Homolka's arrival irks inmates

Nov. 30. 2000:
Crown prosecutors drop charges against author Stephen Williams. The charges alleged that Williams broke a court order by watching the Bernardo tapes. The Crown said it didn't want to air the tapes again in court, so the judge dismissed the charges.
» CBC STORY: Prosecutors drop charge against Bernardo author

January 2001:
Homolka is transferred to a Montreal psychiatric hospital to undergo treatment.
CBC STORY: Homolka on her way to Quebec: report

March 2001:
The National Parole Board denies Homolka's application for early release, saying she is a risk to kill again.
» CBC STORY: Karla Homolka denied statutory release

December 2001:
The six videotapes depicting the rape and torture of Bernardo and Homolka's victims are destroyed.
» CBC STORY: Tapes made by Bernardo destroyed

March 2002:
The National Parole Board rules that Homolka is still a risk to society and will not be granted early release.
» CBC STORY: Homolka refused early release

Nov. 13, 2002:
A book on Homolka written by Stephen Williams is published in French, containing excerpts from letters between the author and Homolka. Questions arise over whether the book violates a condition of Homolka's plea bargain, which states that she would not "talk directly … or indirectly to the media for a book … or live endeavour." Williams says he didn't speak to Homolka about the crimes, so the argument is moot.
» CBC STORY: Questions over controversial Homolka book

February 2003:
The English language version of Williams' book, and Karla: A Pact with the Devil, appears on bookstore shelves.
» CBC STORY: Families lash out at Homolka book

May 4, 2003:
Author Stephen Williams is arrested and charged with violating a court order barring publication of courtroom exhibits used in the Bernardo and Homolka trials. Williams had used his website to show a collection of photographs, videotapes and police interviews from the cases.
» CBC STORY: Homolka author arrested over Internet content

October 2003:
Ontario Provincial Police lay 94 new charges against Stephen Williams related to his books Invisible Darkness and Karla: A Pact with the Devil.
» CBC STORY: Bernardo author faces new charges

May 2004:
Williams wins a grant from Human Rights Watch, an organization that supports victims of political persecution, to help defer his legal costs. The award places Canada alongside countries such as Myanmar, Peru and Sierra Leone.
» CBC STORY: Canadians awarded persecuted-writer prizes

Dec. 16, 2004:
The National Parole Board rules that Homolka must stay in prison for her full term, ending July 5, 2005.
» CBC STORY: Parole Board keeps Karla Homolka behind bars for 7 more months

Jan. 14, 2005:
Stephen Williams, author of two books on Bernardo and Homolka, pleads guilty to breaking a publication ban by posting the names of the couple's sexual assault victims on his website. He receives a three-year suspended sentence and is ordered to do 70 hours of community service.
» CBC STORY: Bernardo author pleads guilty to breaching publication ban

April 11, 2005:
Ontario Attorney General Michael Bryant says all provinces should place restrictions on Karla Homolka's activities once she's released in July. Bryant says he will ask a Quebec court judge to impose conditions on Homolka under section 810 of the Criminal Code, which allows for curfews and other restrictions.
» CBC STORY: Ontario calls for restrictions on Homolka after release

April 12, 2005:
Michael Bryant says Homolka will not be charged with killing her sister when she is released from prison in July.
» CBC STORY: Ontario won't charge Homolka in sister's death

April 26, 2005:
Two officers with Niagara Regional Police meet with Homolka to discuss her plans after her release from prison. The details of that conversation are not released.

May 19, 2005:
A law passes through the Senate requiring violent criminals, including Karla Homolka, to give a DNA sample to a national databank. The bill, C-13, speeds through the minority government in part because of Homolka's impending release.
» CBC STORY: Homolka, others must give DNA sample under new law

June 2, 2005:
Karla Homolka appears in a court in Joliette, Que., as prosecutors argue that restrictions should be placed on her freedom when she is released. It is the first time she is seen in public since she testified against her former husband, Paul Bernardo, 10 years earlier.
» CBC STORY: Homolka in chains in court hearing

www.cbc.ca/news/background/bernardo/

[Sher]

INDEPTH: BERNARDO
Homolka court appearance - Online diary

CBC News Online | June 3, 2005



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tracey Madigan is CBC.ca's online journalist in Montreal. She was a television and radio reporter before she joined cbc.ca/montreal when it was launched in 1999.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two days of drama. Karla Homolka's return to the public eye as the clock ticked down on her 12-year manslaughter sentence for her role in the murders of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy.

Before her scheduled release, Crown prosecutors from Ontario wanted a judge to put restrictions on her freedom – under Section 810 of the Criminal Code. The argument was that Homolka still poses a risk to society.

At the end of two days of testimony, the judge agreed and listed several conditions that Homolka would have to adhere to after walking out of the maximum security prison in Joliette, Que.

CBC online journalist Tracey Madigan was there. The following is what she filed as the case unfolded.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7:25 a.m.
Here we all go again. So far, the morning is a carbon copy of yesterday, weatherwise. Bright, warm and humid.

Everyone knows their roles a little better today. The photographers and some cameramen are staking out the side door already. They're waiting for Homolka's armoured van to arrive.

I'm in the Louisbourg, the cosiest of restaurants, and I'm sure I'm the only person here who is not from Joliette.

As I order my muffin, the sole two employees giggle behind the counter: “Hey, did you see yourself on Radio-Canada last night?” one asks the other.

“Yeah! It was just a shot of my arm pouring a cup of coffee. You couldn,t even see my face,” she laughed.

“I tuned in again at 10. I got to see it twice.”

The regulars are out in full force this morning. Ordering the usual.

If they don't look out the window of this tiny place, to spy all of the hubbub the media is building in front of the Joliette courthouse, it's because they're savouring the gory details of yesterday's proceedings in the morning paper.

Yet my impression is that they, like those in the rest of the country, are sharing their opinions on Homolka, as opposed to the fact that all of this is happening in their backyard.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8:45 a.m.
The weather may be the same as yesterday, but the mood is decidedly different. First of all, although the media tents are still up, reporters and technical crews are not as abundant. Only a handful of morning shows are doing live interviews from here.

The other difference is the lineup: There is no lineup.

In fact, there is nobody standing in front of the door where dozens crowded yesterday, many silently fearing that there would be no space for them in the courtroom. It turned out not to be a concern at all. Not as many members of the public showed up as had been expected, and seats sat empty yesterday -- not in the main courtroom, but in the spillover room.

So, many gambled today that there was no need to worry about having access. That gamble will likely pay off in the form a few more hours of sleep this morning.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9:24 a.m.
The camera lenses looked like suction cups up against the windows of the white van.

Photographers and cameramen lunged at the moving vehicle as it turned off the small street and into the restricted driveway to the Joliette courthouse.

The driver does slow down ever-so-slightly, long enough for lenses to move in. And as the van rolls the 20 metres to the restricted area, the gang follows.

It is a black mass. It is stuck to the van. And it is made up of people who intend to hold their very spot on the van despite the fact that it is moving.

I'm surprised to see that the van is actually moving at about 10 km per hour. Pretty fast, considering. Pretty dangerous, too.

Once the van enters the restricted area, everyone backs off. Photographers cower over the tiny displays on their cameras, rifling through the shots they grabbed.

No one seems to be confident that they got a good shot of Homolka. But they can't tell for sure, because of the bright sunlight on their screens.

They'll have to check out their goods on their laptops. Off they scurry.

As they walk away, I hear one of them say, ”I got banged really hard with the back of a TV camera.”

“Yeah, me too. Oh, it broke the skin, there's blood here,” another says as they scurry.

A TV camerman leans over to check his foot. He's wearing running shoes. They didn't protect him from a little trampling.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9:48 a.m.
The proceedings have begun.

Today, Homolka is wearing a dark khaki or maybe gray jacket. It's tough to tell because I'm watching her on a big screen TV.

The sound, though, is fine. So I can tell that once again, she is free of her shackles.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10:04 a.m.
Dr. Louis Morissette from the Pinel Institute is testifying this morning. He is a witness called by Homolka's lawyer.

Morissette met with Homolka for a total of three-and-a-half hours over two days – May 19 and May 25. Homolka also completed a written questionnaire for him.

He is here to talk about the “risk evaluation” he has completed on Homolka.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10:20 a.m.
Morissette says it's tough to do a risk evaluation. It's not a perfect science. He says he had to try to stay objective, despite his knowledge of the crimes she has committed.

He started by looking at what kind of person she was before she met Paul Bernardo. Was she stable? Did she have a job? Was she getting into trouble?

Her record back then was spotless, Morisette says.

But a psychological evaluation made some important discoveries about the Karla Homolka who had yet to meet Bernardo. She had very little self-esteem. She was vulnerable. She was convinced that she needed to be with a man.

So in many ways, Morisette says, Bernardo was a perfect match for Homolka.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10:31 a.m.
Morissette continues, saying that once Homolka and Bernardo hooked up, gradually, she began to do horrible things.

As far as her relationships in prison, Morissette says Homolka did have a homosexual relationship with a fellow inmate. The relationship lasted a few years and ended over two years ago.

He says it is very common for homosexual relationships to grow in prison, especially among prisoners serving lengthy sentences.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10:39 a.m.
Details about Homolka's current boyfriend are now being revealed.

Yes, she has verbal and written communication with a man in another prison. Yes, they exchanged pairs of clean underwear not too long ago. Yes, she has a photo of her boyfriend. It's a shot of him in a swimming pool. He is not wearing a shirt, but he is not naked, Morissette says.

He says Homolka and the man exchange letters at least once a week. Homolka doesn't hide the relationship. She often discusses it, Morissette says.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10:52 a.m.
As Homolka sits watching Dr. Morissette paint the picture of a woman who was fine before he met her and improving over the past few years, she shuffles in her seat every once in a while.

He outlines how his evaluation shows that Homolka is neither a sexual deviant, nor a psychopath. In fact, on a test given to find out whether she has psychopathic tendencies, she scored a five. A very low score, Morissette tells the court.

He goes on to say that not only is it virtually impossible to get a zero on the test, but most of the people in the courtroom would score at least a one or two.

Virtually all of Morissette's findings on Homolka's behaviour today are very positive.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11:05 a.m.
Morissette was asked to evaluate Homolka's empathy, loyalty, and promiscuity.

As for promiscuity, Morissette outlined the sexual relations Homolka has had: one boyfriend before Bernardo, Bernardo, a boyfriend in 1993, and then the girlfriend she had while in prison.

He had earlier told the court that Homolka and her new boyfriend – Jean-Paul Gerbet – had been caught exchanging a kiss in a library once.

Gerbet is serving a life sentence for murdering his ex-girlfriend. He will be eligible to apply for full parole in 2008.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11:45 a.m.
Homolka is a woman who has developed significantly since being locked up 12 years ago. That is what Dr. Morissette says he has discovered in his three-and-a-half hours of meetings with her.

He says she has much higher self-esteem now. She wants her rights to be respected, and demands her opinion be heard now, which Morissette believes are all signs that her personality is improving.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12:07 p.m.
Morissette is still talking – most of his points have been made before.

Homolka knows what she did was wrong. She knows that it was her bad choices that led her to stay with Paul Bernardo. She acknowledges that she chose her own life to the detriment of others.

Morissette says she stuck by Bernardo while he committed horrendous crimes, not because she enjoyed doing what she did, but because she was bound and determined to stay with her husband.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12:22 p.m.
Judge Jean R. Beaulieu is now questioning Morissette directly. Homolka's lawyer is standing silent.

Beaulieu has questions about Homolka's current boyfriend, who seems to be exactly the type of man experts say she shouldn't be seeing. Jean-Paul Gerbet is in a Québec prison for killing Cathy Carretta in the Montreal suburb of Laval on Feb. 10, 1998.

Morissette says Homolka poses no threat to society. Yet other experts say she does pose a threat, especially if she's involved with a violent or dangerous person – like her current boyfriend.

Morissette acknowledges that Homolka has shown bad judgment by keeping this relationship going. He says judgment is something she will have to work on in her years of therapy that she has agreed she must undergo.

Homolka's head is slightly tilted. She looks a little tired.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12:27 p.m.
Homolka's lawyer wraps up her questioning of Morissette. Judge Beaulieu adjourns the proceedings for lunch.

We're scheduled to resume at 2:15 p.m. EDT.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2:10 p.m.
The media pounce on Tim Danson, the lawyer representing the familes of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy. During the court proceedings, he is in the main courtroom, sitting not far from Homolka.

He is complimentary of the judge's work today. I had noted how the judge was asking very specific questions about the reams of information he has been given to read. And so has Danson, who says the judge's “informed, insightful questions” show that he has read all of the material he has been given.

Earlier, I had kept looking at Homolka as the judge grilled Morissette on her bad choice of boyfriends. And the fact that if dating a violent man is the one thing she's not supposed to be doing it, why should he believe that she is working on her behaviour.

Homolka didn't flinch. She didn't physically react at all to what was, in effect, a criticism of her behaviour. The reporters are feverishly taking notes today. A lot more information than yesterday is coming at us.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3:00 p.m.
Karla Homolka taps the security guard sitting next to her on the shoulder. She whispers something in his ear and, like yesterday, her lawyer comes to the edge of the prisoner's box to listen.

This is the third time Homolka has done this, the first time today.

No way of knowing what she said. But it might have been about what Morissette was telling the court at that very moment: James Ramsay, the lawyer representing Ontario prosecutors, wanted to know how Karla feels today about the crimes she committed.

She played an active role in the murders, Ramsay said. She did it deliberately, in cold blood. She doesn't apologize for it. Her husband made her do it. She recognizes now she should have left him earlier. She was ready to do anything to keep him.

"Why was she laughing in the video during the crimes?" Ramsay asks.

The response appeared at first to come out of left field.

"I saw (former Montreal child entertainer) Nathalie Simard in a video shot years ago," Morissette said. "She smiled and laughed, even though she was being abused."

Simard made headlines recently, coming forward years after she was abused at the hands of her manager. Morissette says Homolka recognizes that she was being “self-centred” when she played along with her husband's sordid criminal pleasures.

That's the point in the testimony that Homolka felt the urge to share something with her lawyer.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3:10 p.m.
Letters exchanged between Karla Homolka and her current boyfriend say things like “some day we'll be together.” Ramsay also points out that there are sexual connotations in their correspondence.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3:25 p.m.
As part of her counselling, Homolka has established criteria for selecting her next eventual partner. It was read out in court today.

He should:
Believe in the moral value of marriage.
Be loyal.
Have a good education.
Want to have children.
Love his mother.
Have a good attitude towards women.
Have no history of family abuse.
Love pets.
... And "if possible, be attractive.”

Ramsay replied, “This isn't a good description of Jean-Paul Gerbet.”


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4:05 p.m.
Speculation is that the reason Karla Homolka opted to have this entire hearing in French is not to help her practice her new second language, or to embrace the language of the province which has housed her since the summer of 1997. Au contraire.

Homolka chose to have lawyers, specialists and a judge talk about her future in a different tongue to spite the media. Canada's – and especially Ontario's – English-speaking media, has jumped all over any and all news on Homolka since the day Bernardo was arrested in February of 1993.

Recently, a Toronto newspaper reporter discovered a psychiatric report on Homolka that wasn't covered by the usual publication ban. The paper jumped on the opportunity to publish large chunks of the report.

When Homolka found out, she was furious. She tried to get the document to be covered by the publication ban, but by then, the cat was obviously out of the bag.

The buzz is that Homolka requested that effective immediately, any and all paperwork carried out regarding her case was to be in French. And so unilingual English reporters sit through these proceedings, struggling to understand the nuances of what is being said.

Voila.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4:25 p.m.
Things are starting to wrap up.

Homolka's lawyer – Sylvie Bordelais – closed her final arguments by reiterating that she believes Homolka poses a minimal risk to society upon her release.

Homolka is ready to undergo counselling. There is nothing to justify the public's fears of her release. Nor the fears of the victims' families.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4:35 p.m.
The judge says he will hand down his decision in 10 minutes.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4:58 p.m.
The crown has put forward 11 conditions to be placed on Homolka upon her release. And the judge has ruled there are reasonable grounds to suspect that Homolka poses a threat.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5:10 p.m.
Homolka stares stone-faced at the judge as he outlines the restrictions she'll have imposed on her.

She will have to tell police where she is almost all the time.

She is to tell police her home address, work address and who she lives with.

She has to notify police as soon as any of the above changes.

She will also have to notify police of any change to her name.

If she wants to be away from her home for more than 48 hours, she will have to give 72 hours notice.

She cannot contact Paul Bernardo, the families of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French or Jane Doe. She also may not contact any violent criminals.

She also will be forbidden from being with people under the age of 16 and from consuming drugs other than prescription medicine.

If she violates any of the conditions, she could go back to jail for two years. The conditions are in effect for a year. Crown prosecutors would have to go back to court and reapply to have them extended.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5:54 p.m.
Tim Danson – the lawyer for families of Karla Homolka's victims – says his clients will likely be very pleased with the conditions imposed upon her.

“It will give them some level of comfort to know that (Karla Homolka's) attempt to con the system failed,” he said just moments after the decision was handed down.

A formal document outlining the conditions is being signed by those involved as I write this.

Homolka's reaction to her new rules and to news she will have to give authorities a DNA sample, is pretty much a mystery. She showed no emotion as she stared at the judge while he read his decision.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6:05 p.m.
Danson says he spoke to Donna French, Kristen's mother, who said that she would be willing to fight this fight again next year. Danson says he'll be with the families every step of the way.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6:51 p.m.
The judge has spoken, and Homolka will soon have her own definition of freedom.

As the media wraps up its equipment, it occurs to me: this could very well be the last time the media covers Homolka this way.

Next time she won't have the protection of a courtroom setting. Nothing to prevent someone from sticking a microphone in her face.

But the media won't lose interest in her … But will they ever lose track of her?

[Sher]

MONTREAL -- Correctional Service Canada has been working for three months with police on an undisclosed plan to whisk Karla Homolka safely from prison when she completes her 12-year manslaughter sentence in the sex slayings of two Ontario schoolgirls.

Unlike most inmates, Homolka's notoriety means she can't taste freedom by simply walking through the prison gates into the arms of her waiting family when she's freed from a Quebec prison sometime between June 30 and 12:01 a.m. on July 5, officials say.

"Because of the astronomical ... unprecedented attention that she is getting, we will be seeking police assistance to get her off to her destination," Michele Pilon-Santilli, national media director for the federal prison system, said in an interview.

Details of those arrangements are being closely guarded.

"We wouldn't share how she is going to be released or where she is going to be released from with anyone, except for police forces," said Pilon-Santilli.


A case management team develops an exit plan for all inmates. But the intensive media interest in Homolka has meant officials have had to take into account her safety as they prepare for her release.

Homolka herself is aware of the public interest and might issue a statement when she's freed, said her lawyer, Sylvie Bordelais.

"We'll be discussing that and we'll see," Bordelais told The Canadian Press.

Homolka is one of Canada's most reviled convicts after a controversial 1993 plea bargain with Ontario officials that saw her plead guilty to manslaughter in the deaths of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy in exchange for her testimony against Paul Bernardo.

The deal was made before officials knew of videotapes that portrayed Homolka as an active participant in the rapes of the girls.

Bernardo has been declared a dangerous offender and is serving a life sentence for the slayings.

[Sher]

Canada's prisons for women, it seems, are more like kindergartens or resorts than places that dish out enough hard time to deter inmates from ever coming back.

Homolka's apparent easy life - seen here in photos taken in Joliette women's corrections camp, northeast of Montreal - will end when her 12-year sentence is over in two weeks.

The sentence was part of a controversial plea bargain that saw Homolka plead guilty to two counts of manslaughter for her part in ex-husband Paul Bernardo's unfathomable sex murders of Leslie Mahaffy, 14, and Kristen French, 15, and in the drug-rape death of her youngest sister, Tammy Homolka, 15.

Homolka also testified against Bernardo at his 1995 trial.

Sources say Homolka will be released on July 4 - Independence Day.


Judging from these exclusive photos, one wonders why she would want to get out of prison at all.

Smiling and posing for the camera as she squeezes into a kiddies' playhouse, rides a rocking horse and shows off her form on a bench, Homolka brings new meaning to the words "Say cheese."

It remains to be seen where Homolka goes and what she does after her release.

A list of conditions placed upon her by a Quebec judge earlier this month ensures that over the next year, Homolka will have to tell police where she is living and working and give advance notice of any travel plans outside Quebec.

Homolka is also banned from contacting any of her victims and hanging out with violent criminals.

The forbidden contacts include her prison boyfriend, Jean-Paul Gerbet, a French national who is serving a life sentence for the 1998 second-degree murder of his ex-girlfriend Cathy Carretta.

Gerbet can already apply for day parole and in the fall will be eligible for full parole.

Ironically, it is Homolka's bizarre prison love affair with Gerbet that prompted her jilted lesbian lover Lynda Veronneau to hand over these exclusive photos to the Sun.

Veronneau and Homolka were involved in a deep love affair from 1998 to 2001.

Documents released at Homolka's court hearing in Joliette reveal that Homolka and Veronneau had sexual encounters at least three times a week in Joliette.

Homolka told medical experts that she regarded Veronneau - a butch woman - as a man.

Veronneau was so lovestruck for Homolka that, following her 1998 parole release, she confessed to an old crime and demanded to get a two-year federal prison sentence - just to get back inside jail and be with Homolka.

Veronneau was paroled again in 2000.

Homolka mailed these photos to her from Joliette.

The pair planned to live together upon Homolka's release.

Veronneau, who was set to inherit about $700,000, had talked of moving to a paradise island with Homolka.

Homolka even hinted to Veronneau they would get married.

And they talked about Veronneau getting a sex change.

But Homolka broke Veronneau's heart in late 2001 when she ended the relationship.

Veronneau's new girlfriend, Chantal Meuneer, told the Sun she was on the same cellblock as Homolka in Ste-Anne-des-Plaines prison when Homolka laid eyes on Gerbet for the first time.

Meuneer said that Homolka fell quickly and deeply in love with Gerbet when they saw each other in the prison library.

Homolka was looking for books.

Gerbet worked in the library as a volunteer.

Meuneer said the pair subsequently exchanged underwear, wrote each other letters and that Gerbet sent her his photograph. All these items were hidden in library books.

Meuneer said she witnessed Homolka touching Gerbet's genitals through a gap in a chainlink fence that separates the male and female prisoners.

Homolka, Meuneer said, talked of marrying Gerbet and moving to France. But she did not end the relationship with Veronneau until Veronneau delivered on a promise to bring her a new computer and lingerie.

Veronneau said she isn't mad at Homolka ending their relationship, but just angry at the callous way she did it.

[Sher]

Karla Homolka's ex-lover Lynda Veronneau warns that Homolka is a master manipulator, in an exclusive interview with CTV's Jennifer Tryon.

"I want to show the people who she is, that woman," she says in broken English. "… and I think I am the only person to know how she is."

Veronneau and Homolka were involved in a relationship for almost four years, which began in 1998 while both were incarcerated in Joliette Institution in Quebec. Homolka ended the affair in 2001 after Veronneau had been released.

They first met in the cafeteria, then later shared a prison condo. When Veronneau found out about Homolka's past with Paul Bernardo, she says was already in love.

Homolka told Veronneau she was a victim in the brutal murders of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy.

"I always felt she was the victim in this because she's very good at saying she's the victim," she says in French.

But Veronneau says she no longer believes Homolka's claim. Veronneau says that Homolka received a plea bargain, resulting in a 12-year sentence, by "saying she's the victim."

She also says the public is right in its anger at the so-called "deal with the devil," which enabled Homolka to avoid the same life-sentence as her husband.

"They're right," Veronneau says. "And she knows. She knows that the public hate her because of that. Because she got 12 years for what she did, and they're right."

Asked if Homolka cares about the public's opinion, Veronneau responds: "She's scared."

Veronneau's relationship with Homolka ended after Veronneau was released from prison. It was then that Homolka fell in love with another inmate, the convicted killer and French national Jean-Paul Gerbet.

"She could have been with a plumber, with a taxi driver," Veronneau says in French. "Anything, but not another killer."

Veronneau is unsure if Homolka will be a danger to society when she is released, but believes if she does commit a crime it will be through manipulation.

She says she has much more to tell about Homolka, and is currently writing a book about her ex-girlfriend.

[Sher]

Bernardo denied bid to speak out about Homolka
CTV.ca News Staff

Two of Canada's most notorious killers, and former spouses, Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka are both considering holding news conferences to address the media as Homolka's 12-year prison sentence comes to an end.

But Corrections Canada has rejected Bernardo's request to talk about his ex-wife.

"He's anxious to have his say about her," his lawyer, Tony Bryant, told the Toronto Star.

"He wanted to speak about her release and the conditions imposed on her since few other people could speak with the authority he has because of the length of time they were together."

Bryant added that it might be best to hold a news conference, perhaps via video hookup, as at least a dozen journalists have tried to interview his client since he was sent to Kingston Penitentiary 10 years ago.

But Corrections Canada officials dismissed the suggestion, saying there was a media ban on Paul Bernardo.

Holly Knowles, a spokesperson for the department, cited several reasons, ranging from safety issues to disruptions at the maximum-security prison.

Bryant said he didn't understand the prison's reluctance.

"This excuse about worries over prison security just doesn't make sense to me. Who's at risk here? The guards? Him? The interviewers?"

Meanwhile, Homolka's lawyer Sylvie Bordelais said she is also considering holding a news conference.

She argues that it would help alleviate the expected media crush once Homolka leaves Joliette prison.

Her 12-year jail term for the slayings of the two schoolgirls, and the death of her sister Tammy Homolka, ends on July 5. There is speculation that she might be released a few days before the sentence ends.

'I want to show the people who she is'

While there was no confirmation on whether Homolka would address the media upon her release, her ex-prison lover warned in an exclusive interview with CTV's Jennifer Tryon that Homolka is a master manipulator.

"I want to show the people who she is, that woman," Lynda Veronneau said.

"… and I think I am the only person to know how she is."

Veronneau and Homolka were involved in a relationship for almost four years. It began in 1998 while both were incarcerated in Joliette Institution in Quebec. Homolka ended the affair in 2001 after Veronneau had been released.

They first met in the cafeteria, then later shared a prison condo. When Veronneau found out about Homolka's past with Paul Bernardo, she says was already in love.

Homolka told Veronneau she was a victim in the brutal murders of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy.

"I always felt she was the victim in this because she's very good at saying she's the victim," she says in French.

But Veronneau says she no longer believes Homolka's claim.

While Veronneau said she was unsure if Homolka will be a danger to society when she is released, investigative criminal profiler Pat Brown told CTV's Mike Duffy she has no doubt Homolka will re-offend.

But Stephen Williams, author of Karla: A Pact with the Devil, dismissed such claims.

As one of the few journalists, who has been in contact with Homolka, he believes she is not a serial killer.

Both Williams and Brown found it difficult to believe what Veronneau said about Homolka.

"Frankly, Lynda Veronneau is a career criminal with a record longer than her entwined arms and legs," Williams said Thursday, appearing on CTV Newsnet's Countdown: with Mike Duffy.

"To be perfectly blunt, I'd believe what Karla said before I'd believe what Lynda Veronneau said."