Head of victims advocacy group says public needs more information on notorious murderer

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By MARC HUDON
Times & Transcript Staff

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OTTAWA - The mayor of Miramichi said area residents paid a high price for errors made by Corrections Canada 20 years ago when New Brunswick's most notorious serial killer escaped custody to rape, beat, and kill three women and murder an elderly Catholic priest.

"Reports of recent developments on the downgrading of (Allan) Legere's security status are causing citizens in this community to wonder if his patience has outlasted the tenure of officials with a firsthand knowledge of the danger he truly poses," wrote Gerry Cormier yesterday in a strongly-worded letter to Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day.

A source close to the decision has told the Times & Transcript that Legere -- dubbed the Monster of the Miramichi -- is scheduled to be transferred sometime this week from the super-maximum security Special Handling Unit at Ste-Anne-des-Plaines near Montreal to a regular maximum security prison in Port-Cartier, 70 kilometres west of Sept-Iles, Quebec.

The Correctional Service of Canada has neither confirmed nor denied the prison transfer because of provisions in the Privacy Act.

Cormier is asking the government to "take all necessary steps to re-evaluate and overturn any decision made by Corrections Canada to transfer Legere."

He said the facts of the case "warrant continued incarceration in the highest possible security facility available."

Allan Legere is serving a life sentence for the grisly killings of five people in the Miramichi area.

He was sentenced to life in prison for the 1986 murder of John Glendenning, a shopkeeper in Black River Bridge, before escaping custody in 1989.

That's when Legere embarked on a murderous rampage that terrorized the Miramichi region, beginning with the rapes and murders of 75-year-old Annie Flam and sisters Linda and Donna Daughney.

Legere is also responsible for the death of Father James Smith, 69, beaten in his home in Chatham Head.

Former RCMP Mason Johnston, the lead investigator on the Smith murder, said Legere fits the classic definition of a psychopath.

"He's a guy with no conscience and extremely manipulative," said Johnston.

"He can be the nicest guy in the world. He's also a very intelligent and pleasant individual. He's the type of person you could have in your home and he would impress people."

He said Legere has never admitted guilt for his crimes, adding the violence involved in the murders was "extraordinary."

"He must be conning some psychologists or case workers," said Johnston about the possibility of Legere's transfer.

"He's sitting there, 24 hours a day, planning his next escape. That's what he's doing right now."

Meanwhile, rules in the Privacy Act that prevent Corrections Canada from providing information to the public about the location and reasons why a prisoner is being transferred should be wiped from the books, says the executive director of a victims advocacy group.

Heidi Illingworth of the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime said the public should be notified if corrections officials decide to transfer serial killer Allan Legere from a special-handling unit that houses Canada's most dangerous offenders to the segregation unit or general population at a less secure prison.

She said it's important for the public to know the whereabouts of dangerous offenders such as Legere.

"I'm sure there are people in Corrections Canada who would say that he's going to a maximum-security facility and there isn't any risk to the public," said Illingworth.

"But given his history of escape and the continuing threat he poses, I would disagree with that."

Since 1992, the Corrections and Conditional Release Act has allowed the release of information about offenders to people they harmed.

Victims must register to access the information but there is no way for the public to know when or why a prisoner has changed facility.

"We can't see recent psychological reports or any other recent information about him because it's all protected by the Privacy Act," said Illingworth.

"It's upsetting because there is so much information that is unknown."

She said victims who want to access information have to call the government to get on a list.

"The victims have to register themselves," said Illingworth. "It's not automatic. Should we expect the people who are most harmed and traumatized to call and say, 'I want this information.' Or should it be provided automatically?"

"Many of the families we work with want to know that information," she said.

A spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety said the government recently completed a review of the corrections system, adding the first phase of corrections transformation will focus on enhancing offender accountability.

Cormier, who discussed the issue of Legere's possible transfer with city officials during a council meeting last night, has sent a copy of his letter to Conservative MP Greg Thompson, Liberal MP Charles Hubbard, and New Brunswick Public Safety Minister John Foran.

"I cannot understand what type of conduct could have been demonstrated by Mr. Legere which would warrant even considering a transfer out of a special handling corrections facility."