A great-grandmother found guilty of killing a woman by beating her 26 times with a crowbar, will be granted day parole.
Family and friends of murder victim Roxanne Louie are organizing a march for justice to PentictonB次元官网网址檚 courthouse after learning of the parole board decision regarding Grace Elinor Robotti.
Robotti was handed a mandatory life sentence in 2017 for killing Louie. The victim was the mother of RobottiB次元官网网址檚 great-grandchild.
During the trial, the jury had been told by RobottiB次元官网网址檚 lawyer that the killing, which she had taken responsibility for Jan. 11, 2015, was an act of self-defence. Louie, the jury heard, had a violent past and Robotti had been witness to flashes of it.
Crown counsel, however, pointed out, the forensic evidence showed that the sheer force used for a prolonged period indicated Louie had been rendered immobile and was a sign that Robotti wanted to kill the 26-year-old.
Robotti and her brother Pier attempted to cover up the killing by dumping LouieB次元官网网址檚 body off a rural Naramata area road. Pier received a 27-month sentence for his role.
RobottiB次元官网网址檚 life sentence came with no eligibility for full parole for 10 years, but she received approval in 2022 for escorted absences for personal development at a not-for-profit thrift store.
A year later, in December 2023, the Parole Board of Canada granted her day parole status.
Marty Marchand is organizing the walk, which will start at the Penticton Library at 1 p.m. and head down Main Street to the Penticton Courthouse.
B次元官网网址淲e want to get the attention, we want to get the message out there that we want equality and fairness as Indigenous people,B次元官网网址 said Marchand. B次元官网网址淩oxanne may not have a voice [herself], but she has a voice through many of us and we wonB次元官网网址檛 be silenced.B次元官网网址
Marchand said that the treatment Robotti was receiving from the parole board, which she believes the court showed at sentencing, is an unfairness in the system which doesnB次元官网网址檛 give enough weight to Indigenous victims particularly Indigenous women who are murdered.
B次元官网网址淚f the shoe was on the other foot, if I had killed a white girl, I know IB次元官网网址檇 be sentenced for a lot longer and harsher, no eligibility for parole for 25 years,B次元官网网址 said Marchand. B次元官网网址淚 would have been made an example of. I would be serving time in a maximum security prison, not minimum security.
B次元官网网址淚t just continues to prove that in a sense that Roxanne didnB次元官网网址檛 matter, but she did matter.B次元官网网址
Friends and family of Louie hope that through a community response and voicing of concerns, that the parole board might reconsider its decision and take a closer look at the impact statements sent to the board before retracting the day parole.
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