THUNDER BAY — After serving two years and two months in federal penitentiary, Brayden Bushby, who was found guilty of manslaughter in the 2017 death of Barbara Kentner, has been granted day parole.
According to documentation from the Parole Board of Canada obtained by Tbnewswatch, Bushby has been granted day parole for six months following a hearing held on Aug. 10.
The Parole Board of Canada’s website states: “Day parole allows an offender to participate in community-based activities in preparation for full parole or statutory release. Offenders on day parole must return nightly to a community-based residential facility or halfway house unless otherwise authorized by the Parole Board of Canada.”
Full parole for Bushby was denied by the parole board, which noted that it is “premature at present.”
Bushby was found guilty of manslaughter in December 2020 following a four-day trial before Justice Helen Pierce.
The court heard that Bushby was consuming alcohol throughout the day on Jan. 29, 2017. That evening, Bushby and several others, were driving the Cameron Street and McKenzie Avenue area where Kentner was walking down the street with her sister.
Bushby, sitting in the passenger seat, threw a metal trailer hitch at the two women, striking Kentner in the abdomen.
The injuries Kentner sustained resulted in her death five months later in July 2017. She was 33 years old.
In June 2021, Bushby was sentenced to seven years and 11 months in a federal penitentiary.
The parole board wrote that Bushby is considered “low risk of reoffending,” and noted that he has a “strong release plan with good support” from family.
“You have an offer of full-time employment, a young daughter you wish to spend time with, and resources you plan on accessing in the community,” the parole board wrote in its decision. “The release plan and protective factors further reduce your risk of re-offending.”
The day parole includes conditions that Bushby not consume, purchase, or possess alcohol, do not enter establishments where the primary source of income is the sale of alcohol, no contact with Kentner’s family, and follow a treatment plan arranged by a parole supervisor.
Bushby initially planned to appeal his conviction and sentence, but the parole board decision notes he has indicated that he is no longer pursuing an appeal.
