Close X
Saturday, September 21, 2024
ADVT 
National

N.L. Man Who Watched His Father Murder His Mother Wants Stiffer Sentences

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 03 Nov, 2016 12:49 PM
  • N.L. Man Who Watched His Father Murder His Mother Wants Stiffer Sentences
A Newfoundland man who was four years old when he saw his father brutally beat his mother to death says he's living in fear knowing Dale Ogden is out on day parole and believes he should have received a more punitive sentence.
 
Daniel Benoit, 22, said he wants to start a national conversation about murder sentences and Canada's justice system in general, which he says lets convicted murderers off too easily.
 
Ogden was sentenced to life in prison for the second-degree murder of his wife Judy Ogden in early 2000, and the judge set his parole eligibility at 14 years. He has been out on day parole since September after being released from William Head Institution in Victoria, B.C.
 
"He can go and see his family. He can walk down the street. He can live a normal life," said Benoit in a phone interview from his home in Stephenville, N.L., on Wednesday.
 
"Meanwhile, when it comes time to see my mother for her birthday or Mother's Day or Christmas, the only chance I have is to walk up and speak to a headstone that's stuck in the ground. I'll never get a chance to hug my mother again, or kiss her, or tell her I love her. He took that away."
 
Benoit, who legally changed his last name to his mother's maiden name, said Dale Ogden was an abusive man and an addict with an extensive criminal past, having faced numerous charges including assault, theft and fraud.
 
He and his wife were headed for divorce and he was under a court order to stay away from her. Nevertheless, Ogden would drive past their home in Port au Port West, N.L.. Benoit's mother was so afraid, she had the windows and doors barred.
 
"My mom knew she was going to die," said Benoit. "He was a very violent man. He was strict with women and wanted 100 per cent control. Basically he thought, 'If I can't have you, no one can have you.'"
 
On July 23, 1997, Benoit said Ogden forced his way into the home. He said his father woke him up and Benoit cowered in the hallway, watching as Ogden beat his 25-year-old mother to death in her bedroom, shattering her nose with his fist and caving in her skull with an axe.
 
"Nothing terrifies me more than having to think back and see my mom fight for her life while this man beat her to death," said Benoit, who went into foster care with his 14-month-old sister following the murder. "I couldn't even look at a picture of my mother until I was 16 because I used to throw up. You get flashbacks."
 
Benoit said he feels revictimized with Ogden out on day parole. Ogden is currently living at a halfway house on Vancouver Island.
 
"I feel like I'm living the life my mother had before she was killed," said Benoit, who still suffers from PTSD. "I feel like I'm always looking over my shoulder, especially having a fiancee and a 15-month-old child of my own."
 
He said he wanted to share his story in the hopes that other people will come forward with their experiences to start a national conversation about murder sentences. He said setting a convicted murderer's parole at 14 years is not a deterrent.
 
"The more people that see these instances of offenders being released after a short period of time for serious crimes like murder, there's nothing to put fear in their minds. The way they're going to look at it is 'I can do what I want and basically I'll get a slap on the wrist'," said Benoit, who now works offshore and gives talks about violence against women.
 
"To do something like that in front of a four year-old boy and make him witness that, not only did you commit a crime by committing murder, but it should be a crime to traumatize a child the way that I have been."

MORE National ARTICLES

Police Say 17-year-old Boy Dies After Shooting In Northwestern Toronto

Police Say 17-year-old Boy Dies After Shooting In Northwestern Toronto
TORONTO — The stepmother of a 17-year-old boy who was fatally shot early Sunday in Toronto says he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Police Say 17-year-old Boy Dies After Shooting In Northwestern Toronto

Winnipeg Police Warn Two 17-year-olds After Multiple Creepy Clown Reports

Winnipeg Police Warn Two 17-year-olds After Multiple Creepy Clown Reports
WINNIPEG — Two teenaged boys in Winnipeg escaped with only a warning after police say they responded to a report of clowns chasing people.

Winnipeg Police Warn Two 17-year-olds After Multiple Creepy Clown Reports

Efforts to pump fuel from sunken tug on B.C. central coast due to begin

Efforts to pump fuel from sunken tug on B.C. central coast due to begin
BELLA BELLA, B.C. — Efforts to remove thousands of litres of diesel fuel from a sunken tug are expected to begin on British Columbia's central coast near the Great Bear Rainforest.

Efforts to pump fuel from sunken tug on B.C. central coast due to begin

Lack Of Black Box Makes Probe Into Fatal Plane Crash Difficult: Expert

Lack Of Black Box Makes Probe Into Fatal Plane Crash Difficult: Expert
KELOWNA, B.C. — An aviation expert says determining what caused a fatal plane crash near Kelowna, B.C., will be especially difficult because the aircraft didn't have flight recording devices.

Lack Of Black Box Makes Probe Into Fatal Plane Crash Difficult: Expert

Dozens Stage Protest At Legislature Over Muskrat Falls Hydro Project

Dozens Stage Protest At Legislature Over Muskrat Falls Hydro Project
ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — About 30 people marched in front of the legislature in St. John's this morning to raise concerns about the Muskrat Falls hydro project in Labrador.

Dozens Stage Protest At Legislature Over Muskrat Falls Hydro Project

Provincial, Territorial Ministers Meet In Toronto Before Health Accord Talks

Provincial, Territorial Ministers Meet In Toronto Before Health Accord Talks
TORONTO — There have been "no serious negotiations" on the health accord with the federal government, Quebec's Health Minister Gaetan Barrette said Monday as he prepared to meet his provincial and territorial counterparts in Toronto.

Provincial, Territorial Ministers Meet In Toronto Before Health Accord Talks