Child Killer Pleads Guilty

[Kurt_eh]

Warning, some of the details in this article are sickening.

I've been debating posting this. This guy should be locked up with manson...



Guilty plea in Holly Jones murder


Toronto — A Toronto man pleaded guilty Thursday to the brutal killing and dismemberment of Holly Jones, the 10-year-old girl who was abducted from a downtown street near her home last year.


Michael Briere answered, "Guilty," in a strong voice when he appeared in a Toronto court to answer a charge of first-degree murder.

The plea triggered an automatic sentence of life in prison with no parole eligibility for at least 25 years.

Holly vanished on May 12, 2003 while returning to her west Toronto home after walking a friend home in the early evening.

Briere, 36, was arrested and charged in her death on June 20, 2003.

Holly's disappearance in broad daylight, in a residential area just steps from busy Bloor Street West, struck a nerve throughout the city as police and neighbours frantically searched for her.

The kidnapping also marked one of the first times that Toronto Police issued an Amber alert, a media-intensive strategy used to seek information about missing children in the hours immediately after their disappearance.

However, a statement of facts read into the court record Thursday revealed that the quick-response strategy had been in vain.

Briere has admitted that he sexually assaulted Holly, then strangled her to death within an hour of abducting her.

He then dismembered Holly's body and carried it in gym bags to the shore of Lake Ontario, where he dumped the remains in two locations.

Briere also acknowledged in the statement that he had looked at child pornography immediately before he kidnapped Holly.

Briere broke down in court as he offered an apology to Holly's family.

"I fully recognize and acknowledge that the crime which I am guilty of is simply the worst kind of crime a person can commit," he said.

Holly's mother, Maria Jones, was present when Briere entered the courtroom, but left before he began speaking.

Family lawyer Tim Danson said Holly's father, George Stonehouse, did not attend the hearing because he was not sure he could control himself if he saw his daughter's killer in person.

Outside the courthouse, Crown attorney Paul Culver expressed doubt that Briere, whom he called a "monster," was truly sorry for what he'd done.

Culver noted that Briere had not turned himself in to police, and was only identified as Holly's killer after police canvassed her neighbourhood for DNA samples from local men.

He also said the case was precedent-setting because it was "one of the few cases where we can say, 'This guy was triggered by images of child pornography.'

"Those who traffic this kind of stuff, those that make it and put it on the internet, should share in the responsibility for the tragic murder of Holly Jones," Culver said.

Thursday's appearance marked the first time that Briere had been in a courtroom in person since his arrest.

He had been held in protective custody at Toronto's Don Jail, and kept previous court dates via video hookups.

Briere's admission of guilt had been widely predicted following his decision last month to waive his right to a preliminary hearing.

He reportedly decided to plead guilty in order to spare Holly's family the anguish of a trial.

Copyright © CBC 2004

http://toronto.cbc.ca/regional/servl..._jones20040617

That's just sickening. Hopefully, they'll take GOOD care of him in prison.

[AgentSun]

oh trust me they will. inmates have NO tolerance for rapists, women abusers, child abusers, and child molesters. murder isn't even the thing they'll kill him for in there, it's the fact that it was a child.

[zap]

OK, we've been around this before too. Here's the thing. It's nearly a myth that pedophiles automatically "get what they deserve" the instant they walk into prison. Most of them go in, and 2-5 years later they are back on the streets, none the worse for thier experience. My grandfather is a predatory pedophile. He served 3 years of a 7 year sentance for raping a family member well, he served 3 years for the one who spoke up. Anyway, he never even got shoved in the lunch line, not so much as a slap in the face for this monster.

I think this is a myth we tell ourselves to make us feel better when we realize that these pieces of shite will NOT serve long prison sentances. Believe what you want, and I'm sure any of you could pull up thousands of web pages that seem to give lie to what I've just written. I'm not a web site, Im a survivor...............and so was he. I wish with all my heart he had never been allowed out of prison, but he was, and he is still alive today, with I think either his 5th wife or his __ girlfriend.

Castration? Doesn't work, as other things can be used. Death sentance? Well sure, that person is now dead. If I was queen of the universe, pedophiles would permanatly lose their freedom, they would spend the rest of their lives in solitary confinement breaking boulders into big rocks into smaller rocks into pebbles into dust, over and over again the rest of their miserable lives.

I think the "people" that film acts of sexual abuse of children are worse though. I also think we might move furthur towards eliminating this if we choose our words carefully, and stopp calling it something it is NOT. Forcing children to comit sexual acts and then photographing or filming that is NOT creating "pornography", so stop calling it "child pornography". Pornography at least implies the willing consent of adults. Sex in whatever form with children is not even sex really. It's the foulest type of abuse, second only to murder in my mind.

I tell yall these things about myself not to gain any sort of pity. Im all grwon up, and I've bested my demons. I tell yall this stuff in an effort to point out that we can change how we think about these things, and perhaps then we can fiond ways to CHANGE these things.

[Kurt_eh]

I don't think the article mentioned this, but in Canada, he's got a maditory 25 years with no hope for parole for at least 15 (under the faint hope clause). Regardless of what happens or not on the inside, at least he will be away for at least 15 years, not 3.

[BlackThorn]

I disagree with you on one thing, zapgun. I presonally find sexual abuse to be worse than murder. Murder ends a life, but sexual abuse leaves scars that can haunt the victim for the rest of their life. Some recover, some get through it with little damage, and some are broken for the rest of their lives. But that's just my opinion.

[NebariNookiee]

My (former) brother in law was serving a prison term a few years back when a convicted pedophile was brought in -- the "myth" is no myth -- the majority of prison population will and do "take out" child murderers and pedophiles. I understand the inmates raped this guy with a bandsaw, but I don't know if my brother-in-law was being sarcastic or not. But they did frell this guy up pretty damn bad. And it is more common that you'll want to know about -- trust me.

[AgentSun]

this guy won't get out because he murdered a girl, not just raped.

(CNN) -- Convicted child sex abuser and defrocked Roman Catholic priest John Geoghan died Saturday after he was apparently strangled by a fellow inmate at a Massachusetts prison, according to local officials.

one example. and you're right, i could pull up a lot of evidence to suggest that these people get what they get in prison...but thats not the point. your experiences, (and i'm sorry), are not examples of what happens everywhere. these rapists, murderers, and pedophiles do die in prison. it's not just as simple as all rapists get out of jail, or all killers get what they deserve...it's not a myth. prison is harsh, and it's for the worst offenders. its true that many of them end up walking out of jail...but its also true that many of them don't survive.

[buggabboo]

a lot of it depends on the situation, the perp's ability to keep their mouth shut and whether or not it was a public enough trial to gain the inmate's attention.

if you don't tell your fellow inmates what you're in for, and it wasn't a public spectacle, then the chances of you getting out of the situation unharmed increase.

[Owlman]

Yeah, there is a reason why the UK has seperate wings in their prisons for sexual criminals. They will get killed or worse...

[zap]

Originally Posted by buggabboo

a lot of it depends on the situation, the perp's ability to keep their mouth shut and whether or not it was a public enough trial to gain the inmate's attention.

if you don't tell your fellow inmates what you're in for, and it wasn't a public spectacle, then the chances of you getting out of the situation unharmed increase.

exactly so buggaboo

[Nicola]

Originally Posted by Kurt_eh

I don't think the article mentioned this, but in Canada, he's got a maditory 25 years with no hope for parole for at least 15 (under the faint hope clause). Regardless of what happens or not on the inside, at least he will be away for at least 15 years, not 3.

Actually Kurt,

The plea triggered an automatic sentence of life in prison with no parole eligibility for at least 25 years.

And 25 years is when he will be eligible for parole ... not when he will be getting out. The faint hope clause just means that they can apply for parole a year or two earlier, like 22 years ... doesn't mean they will actually get it.

As to 'getting what he deserves', Canadian prisions try not to let the prisoners run the institutions. Correctional Officers feel that it is their job to run the place.

They don't always succeed, of course, and it is not a perfect system. But in the main they make a concerted effort to maintain discipline.

Clifford Olsen is still alive in a Quebec penitentary.
Paul Bernardo is still alive in Kingston.

Two infamous example of child predators.

[Kurt_eh]

From an interview with the family's lawyer, it sounded like he's gonna be Bernardo's neighbour.

[Mike0812]

Well, hopefully, they'll both rot together for a long time...sick bastards. I'd rather see them dead or tortured but alas, 'tis the system we collectively live with...