‘It’s not ‘like day camp’: Experts weigh in on killer’s transfer to medium-security prison

John Vennvally-Rao reports on the outrage from families after an Ontario serial killer was moved from a maximum-security prison to a medium-security facility.

The transfer of convicted triple-murderer Dellen Millard to a medium-security prison has sparked fury from the victim’s families, who called the decision “abhorrent.”

However, penal system experts say the move is both routine and part of a legally mandated procedure based on an inmate’s risk assessment, not the nature of their original crime.

Millard was convicted of killing his father, along with Laura Babcock, a woman he’d been romantically linked to, and Tim Bosma, a man from Ancaster, Ont. who was selling his pickup truck.

His co-conspirator Mark Smich was also convicted in connection with the latter two murders. Both have been in custody since 2013. Smich was moved to a medium-security jail four years ago and Bosma’s family say they’ve been notified the same has now happened to Millard.

Experts explain the law

Howard Sapers, the former correctional investigator of Canada, said he certainly understands why surviving family members would be concerned. But he says the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is required by law to manage a sentence using the least restrictive ways necessary, based on a risk assessment, and not necessarily a reflection of what the person is convicted of.

He added that medium-security institutions remain highly secure, challenging suggestions that it’s like going to “day camp.”

“I think it’s an uninformed view, really, to think that somehow being moved to medium security is the next best thing to a ‘get out of jail free’ card. It’s not like that at all,” said Saper.

“Medium security does mean you have a greater ability to interact with other prisoners. You have greater ability to engage in correctional programs. But it’s no cake walk.”

Sapers says medium-security prisons are still federal penitentiaries with high walls, barbed wire and “lots of correctional officers.”

Anthony Doob, a well-known criminologist and former professor at the University of Toronto, explained that security reclassification is routine. Offenders convicted of murder start in maximum security, but are legally re-evaluated.

Doob stressed that he understands the Bosma family’s desire for maximum punishment, but noted an old slogan that people are sent to prison as punishment, not for punishment.

“My guess is that they’re not arguing a public safety thing. They’re arguing a punishment thing, that they want another pound of flesh, and that’s not the way in which our correction system works.”

Part of the process, he says, is moving from maximum security to medium, then eventually, minimum security.

Families call move ‘disgusting’

The family of Tim Bosma issued a scathing statement, calling the transfer a grievous offence to common sense.

“We are disgusted by the news that Dellen Millard has recently been moved to a medium-security prison,” read a written statement sent to media on behalf of Bosma’s widow, Sharlene, and his parents, Hank and Mary.

The family called Millard a “psychopath monster” and said the decision was an “abhorrent transgression.” They accused the CSC of disregarding their input.

“Corrections Canada disregarded the feedback provided by our families in response to the possibility of such a move, instead giving a condescending pat on the head of the victims’ families, and carrying forward anyway,” the statement read.

They questioned the system, stating, “if a three-time convicted, first-degree murderer is rewarded for ‘good behaviour’ in the Canadian penal system, and moved to a lower security prison, who then is filling the maximum-security prisons? White collar criminals?”

CSC confirms safety is ‘paramount’

A spokesperson for the CSC would not confirm Millard’s transfer, but affirmed that public safety remains their “paramount consideration.”

In a statement, the agency noted it is legally required to reassess security classifications every two years.

“These decisions use evidence-based assessment tools, the professional judgment of specialized staff and psychological evaluations, while also considering factors such as…escape risk, and risk to public safety,” the statement read, confirming transfers only occur when an offender can be safely managed at a different security level.

The CSC also confirmed that Dellen Millard and Mark Smich will be eligible to apply for day parole in 2036 and full parole in 2039 but noted that is by no means a guarantee of release.