edmonton

More than six-and-a-half years after Lyle and Marie McCann went missing, their son got up in the middle of the night in another country to finally learn the fate of his parents' killer.



Travis Vader, 45, was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday, after being found guilty of manslaughter in connection to the 2010 deaths of Lyle and Marie McCann, aged 78 and 77.



Bret McCann and his wife Mary-Ann watched the sentence via a video livestream that connected the Edmonton courthouse to a facility near Melbourne, Australia, where it had been arranged for them to watch the proceedings. Joined by their daughter and son-in-law, Nicole and Casey Walshe, who live in Australia, the family rose at 2 a.m. to travel to watch the decision. It was about 4 a.m. when Court of Queen's Bench Justice Denny Thomas pronounced that Vader would serve a life sentence, be ineligible for parole for seven years, and be under a 10-year weapons prohibition and lifetime restricted weapons prohibition.



"When the judge said 'life in prison', it was such a huge relief. I would have gone anywhere to have heard that," Bret McCann said.



McCann said his family still hopes to one day learn the whereabouts of his parents' bodies, but that with closure of this chapter, they will try to move on with their lives.



"We are thrilled that justice has been served today. Vader will spend the prime years of his life in prison, and the public will be protected from this criminal," he said.

Bret and Mary-Ann, who attended nearly every day of the lengthy court case, flew to Australia just before Christmas having expected the sentencing hearing to have been wrapped up. However, lengthy cross-examination of Vader by the Crown related to Vader's claims that his constitutional rights had been violated during the police investigation and while he was in pre-trial custody delayed sentencing. Thomas also dismissed the application on Wednesday.

Moments before Thomas sentenced him to life, Vader used his opportunity to address the court to avow his innocence.



"This court has convicted an innocent man, and I will continue to fight until I clear my name," Vader said as he stood in the prisoner's box. Vader maintained a stony expression, even after hearing the sentence. After speaking to Vader, defence lawyer Brian Beresh said his client was "not pleased."



In his decision on sentencing, Thomas noted that because he was handing down a life sentence, he does not “technically” have to give Vader credit for time served, but in the event of an appeal, Thomas determined that Vader should get a sentence reduction of five years and five months.



The Parole Board of Canada starts the clock on parole eligibility at the time the accused is first arrested, but doesn't give enhanced credit for time served before a trial. With the time Vader spent in custody in the run-up to his sentence, Beresh said Vader will probably serve at least four years before he gets a parole hearing.



Speaking outside the courthouse after the hearing, Beresh said he plans to file an appeal of both Vader's conviction and sentence “before the end of the week.”



Beresh said a major aspect of his planned appeal will be based on what he says are new and different reasons for conviction that Thomas included in his sentence, but that weren't present in the original conviction. He said there remain far too many unanswered questions in the case.



"After 40 years of practice, I must say this is one of those few cases which haunts me and remains a mystery in terms of what occurred and how we have gotten to this point," Beresh said.



In Thomas' 61-page written reasons for sentencing, the judge noted that he is able to find "additional" facts that weren't part of the trial, as long as they are consistent with what was found at trial.



Thomas also wrote at length about his perception of Vader's character as a self-serving "intelligent criminal" who is a danger to Canadian society.



"He is a creature of his desires, which seem to involve illicit drugs and sex. He is an angry, aggressive man with an explosive temper, but is also a surprisingly disciplined, intelligent actor," Thomas wrote.

Travis Vader. Larry Wong / Postmedia



Crown prosecutor Ashley Finalyson told reporters after the hearing that he thinks Thomas' decision was "just".



"We think that the findings in the sentencing decision are appropriate and based upon some of the initial evidence that came up during the sentencing hearing," Finlayson said.



The sentence was also met with approval by the many supporters of the McCann family who lined the benches in the courtroom gallery. Audible gasps and scattered applause could be heard when Thomas announced the sentence.



Bret McCann said he plans to attend any future parole hearings Vader gets to continue to demand he reveal the location of the bodies. Upon his return to Canada in May, he also hopes to advocate for Criminal Code reform – citing the pain and frustration caused to his family after the second-degree murder convictions of Vader had to be vacated in favour of manslaughter because Thomas had relied on an obsolete section of the Criminal Code in his original finding of Vader's guilt.



McCann said he has reached out to the federal Minister of Justice Jody Wilson-Raybould, but has yet to hear back.

Marie and Lyle McCann. Supplied



On Oct. 31, 2016, Thomas found Vader responsible for the McCanns’ deaths. The couple, both in their late 70s, vanished after leaving their Edmonton-area home on a camping trip to British Columbia in July, 2010. Thomas found that Vader was a desperate drug addict who came across the McCanns in their motorhome near Peers, Alta., and killed them during a robbery.

pparsons@postmedia.com



twitter.com/paigeeparsons