Mother of Edmonton homicide victim pushes for changes to bail laws

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Last year, Jodi Dunn was diagnosed with bladder cancer, but she hardly knew her diagnosis wasn’t the only big fight she faced.

In September, Aylissa Rovere, 32, the daughter of Dunn, was found dead on a property west of Edmonton. Her accused killer, Collin Boucher-Gionet, said she had a “close relationship” with Rovere and was charged with second-degree murder and insults to human remains.

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Last month, Boucher-Gionet was granted bail on multiple conditions. Postmedia confirmed to Edmonton police that Boucher-Gionet was still in custody as of last Friday, but in a recent email sent to Postmedia by Alberta Crown Prosecutor, he could release him once the list of conditions was met.

Boucher-Gionet has a bail of $2,500 and he will be arrested under supervision. He is not allowed to consume alcohol or illegal drugs, nor can he carry weapons.

He had a non-connected order to 24 people, including Dunn. Boucher-Gionet was on probation when he was arrested.

Dunn prepares for a fight to ensure that his daughter’s defendant killer remains in jail until a preliminary hearing and potential trial in September.

“I hope the law will change so that the defendant’s murderer cannot be released on bail,” Dunn said.

“It sends the wrong message to other women who have been abused and beaten. What do you say to them if their abusers are free and come back to hurt them?“

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Dunn said her daughter is a vibrant and entertaining person who always looks at and takes care of others.

Rovere and Boucher-gionet first met when they started dating as teenagers. The relationship between the two is another difficult relationship.

Dunn said just days before her daughter was reported missing, when she received the text message, she was worried if anything happened to her daughter to make sure she was caring for her son Geo.

‘Begging her to leave’

“I think she knew something was going to happen,” Dunn said. “It killed me. I begged her to leave him and stay away from him.”

Dunn is upset that she is trying to drive the justice system and knows that her daughter’s defendant killer is free of charge.

Dunn said she is forming a group of victims of domestic violence and women to meet with government officials and try to change the law.

“Some days, I have nightmares – Nightmare. I just want to stay strong and be there for our family. ” Dunn said.

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“I have to fight for her and try to make sure that other people don’t go through the same thing.”

Win House executive director Leslie Allen said the justice system was difficult to navigate and said women reached out to seek help from domestic violence and women’s situation.

“They hear different things, see different things, they are told different things, and it’s really a hard system to drive, especially when you have the most stressful situation in your life,” Allen said.

“Maybe your life is at risk and you have to escape a situation where some elements of security are left behind.

“Now, you have to go into a legal system that doesn’t necessarily trust you in every step.“

Allen said Wynn House received funding from the Legal Aid Foundation and hired justice navigators to help women learn the justice system and help them through potential barriers.

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“We’re very excited about this project, and we really hope it will be a long-term thing, and we really hope women can browse the system better because it’s complex and you’re working on a lot of different areas.”

“I really hope we can collect some data that has some really good results, and also understand what’s going on in the system because we’re going to have a person walking next to the victim throughout the process and we’re going to better understand where these obstacles are.“

Major red flags

Allen said many women who reached out to win didn’t want to participate in the legal system, they didn’t want to make allegations against abusers, they wanted to try to get out of the situation without entering the legal system – a major red flag.

“Why are some people so afraid of participating in the legal system? It’s fear of revenge on abusers,” Allen said.

“In situations of domestic violence, the most dangerous time for a woman is when she leaves or intends to leave, the abuser will find out.

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“If they thought it was safe to do it, I think there would be more women. It’s just how the legal system works, they can’t be protected during that period, so they choose not to do anything.“

Allen said she felt about what Dunn and her family were going through. She understands people have rights, but she is concerned about how people with criminal history will be bailed in his case.

“In this case, he was on probation and he was stolen.

“I certainly believe everyone has rights, but Jody and her family have rights, too.“

jhills@postmedia.com

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