Deidra Ann Smith: Vigil for Justice

On April 30, there will be a virtual vigil for Ashley Simpson and other women who have been murdered or who are still missing in our country. Nearly every month, I am contacted with stories about these women and I would like to include as many as possible as part of the vigil. If you have a story you would like to share, please contact me at rosalita54@gmail.com

On New Year's Eve 2017, Deidra Ann Smith and her boyfriend Justin Robichaud had much to celebrate. Deidra, a mother of three, felt her life was finally getting back on track after years of struggle. The couple decided to throw a party and invited the neighbours to their basement apartment in St. Catharines for a party.

Later, in the wee hours of the New Year, the neighbour returned and bludgeoned the couple. Their bodies were transported 300 kilometres to Haliburton where they were lit on fire; the remains were covered with branches and abandoned. Her family filed a missing person's report on January 24. Three days prior, a woman walking her dog discovered the bodies.

I'll let her sister Tasha Davidson tell the story from there.

It happened in Jan 2018. She was missing for only 21 days but as I’m sure you can imagine, it felt like a life time ago. We had weekly protests in front of the St Catharine’s court house all summer long. It was covered by The Standard and CHCH news as well as a few local radio stations.

My sister and her boyfriend were murdered in a double homicide in their own apartment while they slept by the tenants upstairs. They killed them by hitting them in the head with a hammer and then rented a car and took their bodies and their belongings and stopped in Toronto to pawn their belongings. They then drove three hours away and set their bodies on fire. Some poor soul found them 21 days later walking her dog up in Haliburton.

You can find stories on the case but what you won’t read is how the Crown and Justice system failed in the worst way. It’s a long drawn out case and in the end, out of the three accused, one is walking around on a two-year probation for being an accomplice. The other two just got sentenced this past summer and one is out this November and the third will be out next November. The Crown made a huge mistake and ended up getting accused of abuse of process and they ended up giving all three deals.

The original two counts of first degree murder and two counts of indignity to human remains was eventually dropped down to two counts of manslaughter. That’s it. What they did to my poor baby sister after wasn’t even given a second glance.

The sentencing judge had the power to go against the deal and give more time than the proposed 6.5 years but chose not to. Canadian justice needs to do better. We have gone to our MP and he was supposed to speak with the Minister of Justice. We have yet to hear from him. I pray they do better for Ashley. Our loved ones deserve more than what they endured in their final moments . #justicefordeidrasmith #justiceforashleysimpson #iammysisterskeeper #justiceforkatrinablangdon #betheirvoice

What Bell isn't telling you about Fibe TV

Update: This week, we switched back to Rogers after spending far too long using Bell's crappy television service. For those with Bell, read and weep. For those considering Bell, think twice even if you hate Rogers. RS I've always been an early technology adapter. I had a Betamax. That tells you everything (if you're over 50 at least). My first computer was a "Portable". It weighed 40 pounds and I had to lug it around town on a gurney. I've been through probably 15 computers in my lifetime. Apple is the best. It's also too expensive so I have a piece of shit HP, the one I'm writing this blog on. I've had cable, internet and now Netflix. American Netflix . That's how far ahead of the curve I am. I get all the newspapers for free. How? I disabled my cookies so they can't track me when I'm on the newspaper sites. Even the New York Times hasn't cottoned on to that trick. Hahaha. That will be a fifty buck consulting fee. Bein...

Ashley Simpson: Please sign this petition to help her family

Those who read this space regularly know that my family is frantic with worry about my cousin, Ashley Simpson , who has been missing 40 days now. Both her boyfriend and her landlord reported that she had left with no money, no car, no resources from her Salmon Arm, B.C. home after a domestic dispute over money. Since then, there has been no trace of her. The RCMP now considers this a homicide investigation, but the family has not heard any updates from them in more than three weeks. Just after she disappeared, her father, relatives and friends set out from St. Catharines on a long trek to B.C. to find her. They all left their work, and their lives, intent on finding Ashley who had always kept in touch. It was completely out of character for her to lose touch. Her parents have been consumed by worry. They have been unable to work, and are having a hard time functioning. As a result, they are now relying on donations from family and friends to keep the wolf from the door...

The strange case of Greg Etue

I got out of the daily news reporting game, I'll admit, because I didn't have the stomach to cover the many sad stories that came across my desk. I remember clearly once when I had to call an RCMP sergeant after his young son blew his head off with the officer's service revolver. "Please," he pleaded. "I really can't talk right now." "It was your gun, is that correct?" He slammed down the receiver. I was ashamed of myself. People have a right to some privacy in difficult times like that. I also used to hate having to go to the door of a dead child's home and jostle the competition for a picture. Really, it felt more like ghoulism than journalism. That said, I still believe that these stories must be told in an honest and forthright fashion with all the facts and none of the flourish and emotion that is all the rage in reporting these days. Over the past two years, we, in this community, have been treated to a lot o...

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