The jail sentence for a Saskatoon woman who abducted her son and staged their disappearance is “very, very light,” according to criminal defence lawyer Ari Goldkind.
“This was not a one or two day momentary lapse of judgment. This was ongoing, very serious criminal activity that even took the time of volunteers conducting endless searches for a missing child. Just think that through — that’s the stuff of an HBO or Netflix movie,” Goldkind told CTV News.
“And this is a person who’s not tasting one day of real jail, but we have homeless people who steal sandwiches that go to jail for 30 days.”
Dawn Walker pleaded guilty to forging a passport, possessing a forged document and abduction in contravention of a custody order.
She was handed a 12-month conditional sentence, following 18 months of probation. A conditional sentence is served in the community, not behind bars.
“Now the Court of Appeal will say it’s supposed to be akin to a jail sentence. It’s not,” Goldkind said.
“Ask anybody you know, under the threat of a lie detector, whether serving a sentence at home — with your own kitchen, family, living room, Xbox — is the same as being in a real jail? Of course it’s not.”
