Cora Laich and Simon Grant were well known businesspeople in La Ronge. (Submitted photo/Cora Laich)

By Derek Cornet

justice system

‘The laws need to be changed’: Grant murder case comes to a close

Oct 26, 2021 | 5:00 PM

The Crown and defence have no further plans to appeal an adult sentence handed down to a man convicted of manslaughter in the death of La Ronge restauranteur Simon Grant.

Back in July, the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal reduced the sentence of the man, who was 17 at the time of the murder, from nine years to seven. At the time, Grant’s widow Cora Laich expressed her disappointment in the decision, saying she did not accept it and she was willing to take it to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Last week, she was informed by the Crown the case would not be proceeding any further, effectively ending a four-and-a half year experience with the criminal justice system.

“There is nothing more we can do except for rally and tell people the laws need to be changed,” she said. “The lawmakers need to change these laws because there’s so much holding back from the sentence of murdering a man and basically getting seven years. That makes no sense.”

Grant was killed at his Louisiana’s Bar-B-Que Restaurant in April 2017 during an armed robbery. In October of that same year, Austin Bird, who was 18 at the time, was the first to be found guilty of manslaughter in Grant’s death and received a seven year prison sentence. Another individual, who was 14 at the time, was later given a three-year youth sentence.

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Since two of the offenders were under 18 at the time, certain aspects such as the publication of their names, were restricted by the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA). Although the oldest of the two received an adult sentence, paNOW has decided not to name the man as it could lead to the younger accomplice to being identified in violation of the YCJA.

The YCJA is intended to protect the public by holding young persons accountable through measures that are proportionate to the seriousness of the offence and the degree of responsibility of the young person. It is also meant to promote the rehabilitation and reintegration of young persons who have committed offences, along with support the prevention of crime by referring young persons to programs or agencies in the community to address the circumstances underlying their offending behaviour.

Laich would like to see reforms made to the YCJA, noting there are many flaws that work against victims. She added publically identifying the man would have brought more justice to her family and would serve to protect the public.

“I think the acts of a 12-year-old are way different than a 17-and-a-half year old,” she said. “I think there needs to be more of a teered system, where there will be certain ages and the sentence follow that. It’s just not sufficient and it’s very frustrating being a victim and knowing there really isn’t anything you can do about it and your stuck with the final result.”

Laich, who now operates a pet grooming business in Eatonia, said the whole experience has been life changing. She has plans to write a book that could one day be made into a movie.

“I want to make sure the true story is told and it’s told from our perspective,” Laich said. “That’s high on the list of goals for me.”

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno