Parole extended for Saanich, B.C. murderer Derik Lord

Derik Lord, shown in this file image, was serving a life sentence for the 1990 murders of Sharon Huenemann and Doris Leatherbarrow. (CTV News)

The Parole Board of Canada (PBC) has extended parole privileges for Derik Lord, a Saanich, B.C., man who was found guilty of killing a friend's mother and grandmother for promised inheritance money and property.

Lord has been allowed to stay four nights a week at the home of his spouse and son, before returning three nights a week to a halfway house, according to a parole ruling released Jan. 6.

Lord was first granted day parole in 2020, following the murders of Sharon Huenemann and Doris Leatherbarrow in their Tsawwassen, B.C., home in 1990.

The pair were killed after inviting Lord and his friend, David Muir, into their home for food.

PAROLE CONDITIONS

Lord's parole conditions include having no contact with the victims' families, as well as a restriction on travelling to Vancouver Island or the Lower Mainland.

Lord had requested that he be given permission to travel to Chilliwack, B.C., to visit friends of his spouse, however, that request was denied due to concerns from people who have provided victim impact statements related to the brutal killings.

"Victims state that they would be afraid if you were permitted to be so close to their communities and that some of them travel to Chilliwack from time to time and would be afraid and harmed if they ran into you there," reads the parole ruling.

The PBC says Lord's parole is progressing relatively well, with Lord – who identifies as Metis – attending an Indigenous community residential facility, where he participated in a trauma and addictions recovery program.

Elders have also reported that Lord continues to participate in cultural activities and support, according to the PBC.

However, the parole board notes that Lord continues to deny his role in the 1990 killings, adding "complexity" to assessing his risk.

"The murders were gratuitously violent, planned, and carried out in the home and safe haven of the victims who had apparently offered you kindness just moments before you killed them," reads the parole extension ruling. "This weighs heavily in the board's decision."

The board also acknowledges that it's received several letters asking for Lord not to be released.

"Victims have consistently and repeatedly sent letters to the board objecting to any form of release for many reasons, including that they are afraid of you and they feel you are a danger to society."

Lord, now 48, was a teenager at Mount Douglas Secondary School at the time of the 1990 murders.