LIFE'S LESSONS LEARNED

Most Murder Trials Fail to Capture My Attention.

I don't enjoy hearing about all of the blood and gore, and it makes
me sad to discover a twisted soul's motivation for snuffing out someone's life.

Most of all, please spare me the details of their chosen method of execution.

That's why I'm surprised by how fascinated I became with the Yorkton
murder trial of Kim Walker, who stood accused of killing his drug-
addicted daughter's drug-dealer boyfriend.

I'll admit, I'm often pretty quick to judge a defendant's guilt or innocence.

Yeah, I know, given my biased viewpoint I'll never be chosen for a
jury. I can live with that.

This case is the first one I've ever felt conflicted about. I'm able
to identify with both the prosecution, and the defence.

One of the lessons life has taught me since becoming a mother is that
I would not hesitate to kill or be killed protecting my children from harm.

As a mother, I can identify with the frustration and sense of
hopelessness Kim Walker must have felt when his teenage daughter,
Jadah, started taking drugs, and became romantically involved with a
convicted drug dealer eight years her senior.

As a mother, I also feel for the family of James Hayward, the drug
dealer who was killed.

I realize the love I feel for my children knows no bounds. No matter
what my kids do in life, good or bad, I'll always love them, want the
best for them, and wish no harm ever befalls them.

Lorrie Getty's love for her son, James, never died, despite the bad
choices he made in life.

Getty's son had a past as an award-winning body builder before
turning to a life of drug addiction and crime.

"I just want James back," said Getty in a Leader-Post article.

"We loved him so much, and I hope no one ever feels this pain,
because you will never be the same."

On Friday, Jan. 19, I eagerly awaited the trial verdict.

The jury convicted Walker of second-degree murder. He will be
eligible for parole in 10 years, the minimum time allowed for
second-degree murder.

Some people believe the caring father should be set free. He acted
out of love, and killed to protect his daughter.

I'm afraid after listening to both sides of the story, I sit squarely
on the opposite side of the fence.

Jadah Walker calls her father a hero.

He is not.

Kim Walker is an ordinary man, who out of desperation and despair,
resorted to murder to solve his problems.

He shot Hayward five times. One of those shots struck Hayward in the
back at close range. Jadah watched her father kill the man.

There is nothing heroic or admirable about this barbaric act of murder.

One way in life that we learn is to face the consequences of our actions.

Walker killed a man, and needs to spend time in jail for that murder.
I think that jury made the right call.

Before you have me tarred and feathered for my opinion, let me say
that I'm glad Walker's sentence is not too steep. I'd hate to see the
50-year-old spend 25 years in jail for what he did.

I do find it a little strange that Walker is now a convicted murderer
- - a lower form of life than his drug-dealing victim.

I'm really glad this trial is over, and I can once again begin
turning a blind eye to murder cases.

Then again, the Pickton murder trial is underway. I've been hearing
gruesome tales about severed heads found in buckets.

Excuse me, while I go and bury my head in the sand. Let me know when
it's all over.