THUNDER BAY - The parents of 14-year-old Kayliegh Ivall say they are haunted by the thoughts of her last moments and are now left with the void her death has caused, and while one of the accused in her murder did not participate in the attack, they believe he still has a responsibility to bear.
“She would be 16 now. She would be in high school. All we can do is imagine what she would have become. All we have is past memories,” Kayliegh’s mother Keri said.
“There was one person who could have stopped this. You Jarett could have stopped this but you let it happen.”
Jarett Sainnawap, 23, appeared before Justice Helen Pierce via video from the Thunder Bay District Jail on Monday where he pleaded guilty to one count of accessory after the fact to murder in the death of Ivall and one count of aggravated assault for an attack on another victim that occurred three days prior.
Justice Pierce agreed with a joint sentencing submission on behalf of defense counsel Gil Labine and Crown attorney Trevor Jukes of three years.
With pre-sentence custody of 20 months enhanced to 30 months, Sainnawap will remain in custody for an additional six months, which is to be followed by three years probation upon his release.
Sainnawap was first charged on May 6, 2020 with first-degree murder along with a 14-year-old co-accused who cannot be named in accordance with the Youth Criminal Justice Act arrested on May 4.
According to facts read into the court record, the aggravated assault charge was related to an incident that took place on April 22, 2020. Police received reports of an injured male on a Thunder Bay Transit bus and upon arrival officers observed the injuries were consistent with a stabbing.
Initially the victim would only say that he was jumped on the walking trails around Boulevard Lake and did not want to provide any further information because he said if he told anyone what happened he would be dead.
The victim was transported to the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre where he received treatment in the intensive care unit for lacerations to his liver and a collapsed lung.
Upon further questioning by police, the victim revealed that it was the youth and another person later identified as Sainnawap who approached him on the traills and then attacked him. He said Sainnawap stabbed him two or three times.
Three days later, on April 27, 2020, a passerby discovered a body located in a wooded area near Lyon Boulevard and Arundel Street. Police were notified and the deceased was identified as Kayliegh Ivall.
According to an agreed statement of facts read into the court record, Sainnawap and the youth met with Kayliegh near the Current River baseball fields on the evening of April 26 and then proceeded into a wooded area nearby to look at a dead animal.
It was then that Kayliegh was hit on the head with a bottle and stabbed numerous times.
“At that point, knowing she was dead, Mr. Sainnawap broke off part of a tree to cover the body of Kayliegh Ivall,” Jukes read before the court from the agreed statement of facts.
Sainnawap and the youth then left the area, taking Kayliegh’s backback and scooter, which Sainnawap threw into Boulevard Lake.
A post-mortem examination revealed Kayliegh died as a result of multiple stab wounds.
Sainnawap and the youth proceeded to a residence where he was staying and cleaned themselves and then the bathroom, as well as discarding some items into a garbage bag. Following a search warrant executed by the Thunder Bay Police of the residence, Kayliegh’s blood was found on several seized items, including clothing, a pair of boots, and a knife.
The accessory after the fact to murder charge relates to Sainnawap attempting to conceal Kayliegh’s body, discarding her belongings, and sheltering the youth.
In their victim impact statement, Kayliegh’s parents said the thoughts of their daughter’s last moments are unbearable to think about.
“This is our life now and the void where she was will always be there,” Kayliegh’s mother said. “The pain Kayliegh experienced is over but not for us, we carry it now.”
A psychiatric assessment and Gladue report for Sainnawap were submitted by Labine to the court, but the reports are sealed for privacy reasons.
It was stated on record that Sainnawap does suffer from mental health conditions and intellectual deficiencies, leaving him susceptible to impulsive behaviours and coercion by others, as well as intergenerational trauma resulting from the Residential School system.
When given the opportunity to speak, Sainnawap apologized for his actions.
“I just wanted to say sorry for what happened,” he said. “I couldn’t stop somebody from hurting someone. I am going to have to live with that guilt for the rest of my life. I just wanted to say sorry.”
In coming to the joint sentencing submission of three years, Labine said Sainnawap has expressed remorse and regret for not doing something to stop Kayliegh’s death, further arguing he was manipulated by someone else.
Jukes stopped short of agreeing that Sainnawap was being groomed by another person but said that bad decisions resulted in a tragic outcome.
“The fact that an individual watches a crime occur in front of their face is not a criminal act,” Jukes said. “It may be a question of morality.”
Justice Pierce said Sainnawap’s plea of guilt, as well as his lack of any criminal record, his expressions of remorse, and difficult background were all mitigating factors in coming to agree with the joint submission of counsel.
In addition to the three-year sentence and three years of probation, Sainnawap is also required to submit a DNA sample, as well as being subject to a life-time weapons prohibition, with the exception of sustenance hunting. The victim surcharge fee was waived.
The co-accused youth is scheduled to appear in court again in April 2022.
