Shawn Lamb gets statutory release after prison term for killing 2 women in 2012

A man who has been in prison since 2013 after admitting he killed two women in Winnipeg has been given statutory release.

Shawn Lamb, 66, will have to spend at least half a year at a designated facility as part of conditions imposed by the Parole Board of Canada in a Nov. 6 decision.

Lamb pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in the 2012 slayings of Carolyn Sinclair and Lorna Blacksmith.

He had originally been charged with three counts of second-degree murder, including for the alleged killing of Tanya Nepinak, 31, but the Crown stayed that charge because of a lack of evidence.

In 2013, Justice Rick Saull sentenced Lamb to 20 years in prison minus time already served — which Saull said at the time was similar to the life sentence Lamb would have received if he had been found guilty of second-degree murder — following a joint recommendation from the defence and prosecution.

Lamb would have first been eligible for parole in 2022.

By law, offenders who have served two-thirds of a fixed length sentence must be released from prison under supervision, though it can be denied in some circumstances. The parole board can impose special conditions on the release if necessary.

In its decision, the board rejected a release plan for Lamb to reside in transition housing, saying he would present an "undue risk to society."

It reviewed some of his criminal history before the killings, including several assault charges and incidents of sexual assault and robbery.

"Given your assessed levels of risk and serious nature of offences, a period of residency is required as you transition back into the community," it said.

"Once you have demonstrated stability, the need for residency can be re-examined."

Hilda Anderson-Pyrz, president of the National Family and Survivors Circle, said the news will bring back painful memories for those still grieving the deaths of Sinclair and Blacksmith, as well as Nepinak's family, who have spent years calling for her search.

"When we're looking at the vulnerabilities of Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit and gender-diverse people in our communities, we have an obligation to keep them safe from predators like Shawn Lamb," she said.

Nepinak was last seen on Sept. 13, 2011. A 2012 search for her remains at Winnipeg's Brady Road landfill was cancelled six days after it began, with police finding no evidence.