Overview
- Justice Brenda Brown ruled on Monday that the Criminal Code provision that bars multiple murderers from seeking early parole review infringes protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
- The ruling immediately delayed sentencing for Abhijeet Singh, Gurkaran Singh and Khushveer Toor, and a final sentence hearing is now set for Feb. 22, 2027.
- The three men were convicted in May of first-degree murder in the 2022 Abbotsford home invasion that left Arnold De Jong asphyxiated and Joanne De Jong bludgeoned and with a slashed throat, and the family said the delay was painful and frustrating.
- Lawyers will return in November for further argument on whether the Charter breach can be saved under Section 1, and the judge will provide written reasons that are expected to clarify the scope and possible wider effects.
- The case revisits the 'faint-hope' clause, which once let some offenders seek parole-review after 15 years and was removed for multiple murderers sentenced after December 2011, so the ruling could affect other offenders if the Section 1 defence fails.