August 7, 2025 • 21 mins
In this chilling episode of Exhuming the Truth, we revisit one of Australia’s most infamous serial murder cases — the Snowtown “bodies in the barrels” killings. At just 19 years old, James Vlassakis became a key accomplice to stepfather and ringleader John Bunting. Now, after serving over two decades behind bars, he’s been granted parole.
What does justice look like when one of the most disturbing crimes in Australian history resurfaces in the public eye? Should someone involved in torturing and murdering multiple victims ever walk free?
Join me as I unpack the case, the court’s decision, and what it means for the families of victims and the public at large.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:17):
Welcome to Exhuming the Truth, the podcast where we delve into
the mysterious worlds of cold cases, missing persons, true
crime, and the fascinating science that is forensics.
I'm forensic scientist and criminologist Asha Walther, and
I am so thrilled to have you with me on this journey as we
dance in the shadows of the world of crime, shining a light
(00:38):
on scientific discovery while becoming another voice for those
who need it most. So grab a drink and get
comfortable while we jump into this episode together, this
podcast. Is recommended for persons over.
The age of. 18 and contains explicit content not suitable
for minors. We will be covering sensitive
content that ranges from sexual assault, physical, mental,
(01:01):
social and emotional abuse, suicide, homicide, murder,
attempted murder, and other violent crimes, including crimes
involving weapons and drugs. This often extends to drug
misuse and other harmful and illegal activity.
If you find any content to be distressing, I have listed a
number of resources that may be able to help you in the podcast
(01:21):
notes. I'd also like to remind our
listeners that all victims and all perpetrators is someone's
loved 1. So I ask that in any discussions
in our group or on our social accounts that you remain
respectful of that at all times.And by listening today, you
acknowledge that all persons of interest remain innocent until
proven. Adult Hi guys, and welcome to
(01:43):
housekeeping. It is Thursday.
Today is my oldest son's birthday.
You turned 11. What the actual hell.
I feel so old and so sad. It seriously feels like I just
had him. So it's just, it's wild.
So I gave the kids the day off school today and we had a really
good day. I'm just messing around at home
(02:05):
and that's all I have to share with you for housekeeping
because literally all I have been doing aside from housework
of course is school drop off andpick up from uni work and this
work. So I have just been really busy
and trying to concentrate on what I'm doing.
It's been a really fun week because it was my birthday and
(02:27):
then my son's birthday and my partner.
I got into some football thing that we're doing on the weekend.
We're doing an escape room tomorrow, so there's a lot of
extracurricular things going on as well, but I'm really trying
to knuckle down with work and I appreciate everybody so much.
(02:47):
So many people getting back to me with feedback and case
requests and things like that. And I am working really hard
trying to get it done while alsotrying to maintain my grades at
uni. So I appreciate you so much for
being here and for listening to our episodes.
And Oh my gosh, how did I forgetto say the most important thing,
(03:07):
aside from my son's birthday of course, is we got a new puppy,
which was not on the cards. We were not looking.
It's a bit of a situation with abit of a story behind it.
But yes, her name is Shadow. She is a Dane F Cross Cane
Corso. So a Dane, a Dane, a Great Dane.
(03:28):
Cross Mastiff was the mum and the Cane Corso was the dad.
So I've always wanted both a mastiff and a Cane Corso, and
circumstances just LED up to it.Anyway, we ended up with her and
she is doing really well, although she has been sleeping
in my bed every night, so I do need to get on top of that.
(03:50):
And Woody thinks I have bought Shadow for him as a personal
gift. So yeah, we're working on
introductions with the other dogs and things like that.
But yeah, that's my exciting news.
So let's get into this episode about the snow town serial
killers and the youngest offender in the snow town serial
(04:10):
killings, James Vlasakis. Vlasakis.
Vlasakis. Yeah, I think that's it.
And I think by now everybody cankind of no, that I'm not great
at pronouncing names. I'm doing my best here for
Lusaka. Sounds right to me.
I could be wrong. So usually I would go by
(04:31):
somebody's surname, but I'm going to go by his first name,
James, because I know I've got that right.
However, he has been granted parole.
OK, so May 1999, let's go way back.
So I was only a few years old sothis case I did have to read up
on, but my family and like my parents, well my mum and my
(04:55):
partner were familiar with this case, the Snow Town serial
killings. But just to give you a bit of an
overview. May 1999, the police discovered
the remains of murder victims inside a former bank inside a
vault in SA in a regional town called Snow Town.
So there were 12 deaths between 1992 and 1999 that were linked
(05:17):
to this specific crime, and 11 of them were ruled as murders.
So James Lisakas pled guilty to four of those murders.
In 1998 when he was 18 he took part in the murder of his half
brother Troy and then he later took part in the murders of Fred
(05:38):
Brooks, Gary O'dwyer and David Johnson.
So what happened was he was taken into custody for the
crimes on the 2nd of June 1999. But because James assisted in
the conviction of the three Co accused by giving evidence
against them in court, his imagewas suppressed for his
protection as it still remains. So you will not find photos of
(06:01):
his face. They will they keep that in
place regardless of parole or not.
But how did he get involved in these serial killings?
Like what was the motive here? So a Co accused, John Bunting
actually lived with James and his mother in the northern
suburbs of Adelaide. And James claims that he was
(06:25):
drawn into Bunting's behaviour, like basically saying it was
kind of against his will and he feared him.
So he is believed that Bunting had taken the place of like,
quote, UN quote, the man of the house when James was like a
vulnerable young teen. He was 14 years old.
The majority of the victims in these serial killings were
either family or friends of the four men that were accused.
(06:49):
There is a movie actually on theSnowtown murders.
And this was said to be told from James's perspective.
But when we're talking about James, who is he?
His birthday is Christmas Eve 1979.
His mother's name is Elizabeth Harvey, he had a half brother
Troy you'd and his stepfather was John Justin Bunting, AKA the
(07:11):
ringleader of these serial killings.
So then there was David Johnson which is James's stepbrother and
he was lured into Snowtown by James himself on the 9th of May
in 1999. He actually believed he was
going to be purchasing a cheap computer but when he entered the
building he was strangled with abelt by Bunting.
(07:35):
He was then cut up and put in barrels.
James actually later confessed to police in what was at the
time a confidential interview which has obviously come out as
evidence that Bunting and Wagner.
So Wagner is another Co accused.They took a piece of flesh from
Johnson's right thigh, heated itin a frying pan and cooked the
(07:56):
flesh and ate it. You'd was actually 21 and asleep
at home and James Bunting and Wagner hit him with planks and
Jack handles then dragged him into the bathroom, handcuffed
and gagged him and squeezed his toes with pliers.
Wagner then said was said to stand on his chest to make sure
(08:18):
that he was actually dead. After they had strangled him and
before killing him, they had forced him to apologise for the
sexual assault of James when James was thirteen years old.
Now James was the youngest of the four perpetrators in these
serial killings and he was sentenced to life imprisonment
in 2002 with a non parole periodof 26 years, which was actually
(08:43):
backdated to begin when he was originally taken into custody
over these killings. On Tuesday this week, he was
approved for parole. The chair of the parole board
had actually said that James would not be able to change his
name when he's released unless he got permission from the chief
executive of the Department of Correctional Services.
(09:04):
So at the moment, he's currentlyin his mid 40s.
So just to state the others who were involved in these serial
killings, we've got John Bunting.
Like I said, he claimed to be like the new man of the house.
In James's house. We've got Robert Wagner and then
we have Mark Hayden and Mark wasan accomplice who was charged
(09:25):
and convicted of seven counts ofassisting an offender and that
was for storing bodies at his home north of Adelaide and for
helping move these bodies. He was actually released into
the community last year after serving a 25 year sentence,
which absolutely blows my mind. But anyway, Bunting and Wagner
are serving life sentences without the possibility of
(09:47):
parole and James was the only one accused who was given a non
parole period because he cooperated and gave evidence in
court against all the other Co accused.
So when he was sentenced by Justin Kevin Duggan, Duggan said
in 2002 during the hearing that had it not been for your plea of
guilty, your extensive cooperation with the police and
(10:10):
your undertaking to give evidence for the prosecution in
the forthcoming trial, I would have imposed a non parole period
of 42 years. I am satisfied, however, that
you have given extensive assistance to the police in this
matter and I take into account your understanding to give
evidence. Your confinement is likely to be
much more restrictive. Restrictive, sorry, then would
(10:32):
otherwise be the case. So what he's saying there is
basically you've helped out so you're going to get a non parole
period instead of like no parole.
It's just like we'll give you the sentence you're not eligible
for parole and tool so and so and then you actually will be
eligible for parole. But once you are incarcerated,
(10:52):
it's going to be a more restrictive sentence.
You're probably going to be in confinement a lot of the time
for your own protection given the nature of the crimes and how
you've spoken out and assisted police.
So in this assessment on whetherhe would be accepted for parole,
they said that he does not present as a risk to the
(11:13):
community and that his institutional behaviour has
been, and I quote, excellent. This is a comment that is
obviously going to divide a lot of people and I want to know
your thoughts on this. If it's true that he was under
Buntings direction, as he said, should he be able to reintegrate
(11:34):
into society or is he still a risk?
At the end of the day, he's still committed murder.
He's therefore capable of murder.
And I don't know, like, do we want to be sitting next to
people like that in our local cafe?
Is there a place in the community for these people and
(11:59):
did they really have excellent behaviour or was it just an
obvious tactical Ave. for them to do all that they can to get
out of incarceration? And does that even matter?
A large majority of offenders aren't just constantly offending
and that's what you have to remember.
They can also hold jobs or studyor commit to typical human
(12:22):
occasions such as participating in things that are going to be
of benefit to them. So in saying that, it's very
possible that offenders are doing that inside, knowing that
if they do XYZ, they'll be eligible for parole and they'll
get the desirable outcome. Like it's just totally not
rocket science here. But who's in control here?
(12:45):
So there's the South Australian Police Commissioner, the
commissioner for victims Rights and the attorney general.
OK, so they all hold power to challenge the parole decision.
So far, the police commissioner of SA is the only one of the
three who has actually made a comment on this judgement.
(13:09):
He basically said that he hasn'tseen the basis for the Parole
Board's decision in this case and that he will look at it.
Then there is the former S Australian Director of Public
Prosecutions who's actually turned political candidate.
Candidate. That is Stephen Polaris or
(13:30):
Steph. Yeah, Alright, man, like I just
suck at this. I'm so sorry.
Stephen. Or Stephen, one of the two.
He's not in agreement with this decision at all and I'll read
you his comments. He said.
I am astonished that they would even consider parole.
This man was convicted in relation to 4 murders.
(13:54):
The reliance on the fact that the prisoner has behaved himself
is absolute nonsense. That is what they're meant to do
in jail and I agree with him here.
I'm sorry to say it, but I do. They are supposed to behave in
jail. Like are you kidding me?
It is called corrections for a reason.
(14:15):
Does the system need an overhauland do we need to offer more to
rehabilitate our prisoners? Absolutely.
Absolutely. And I'm huge on that.
And I think we don't do enough and what we do is just not good
enough and not working. But I just don't feel
comfortable given at the circumstances of these murders.
And that's exactly it, isn't it?It's murders, plural.
(14:40):
This isn't something like something small or something
accidental, you know, And we have to consider the rights of
the victims and and their families.
So if you are much like myself and you are wondering how the
victims of these horrific murders are dealing with this
news, and by victims I obviouslymean those who are still with us
(15:04):
today, there was a nephew of oneof the victims who was murdered.
His name is Ronald Lane. And he actually spoke out and
said that he was angry and saddened by the decision and he
wants to see the decision essentially be reviewed, and
rightly so. He had a little bit to say and
(15:24):
I'll read you a little bit of that, but basically he said I
think they're a complete fool tobe honest.
I mean this guy has done some terrible murders and killed 4
innocent people. I'm absolutely disgusted.
I'm mad and upset about the whole thing.
When he says by they he means the parole board and the
(15:46):
decision that they have made. So in summary, here we've got
James who has been eligible for parole.
They've seen his case. The parole board have looked at
it. They said, oh, he's got
outstanding behavior inside prison.
I mean, anyway, they've gone ahead and said yes, he will be
(16:09):
eligible for parole. Is he out right now?
No, he's not. It is a bit of a process and
they will give him a date, but he will be released back into
society. I would imagine that they would
have things in place like stopping him from going to
certain areas such as suburbs orlocations where victims family
members are and things like that.
(16:29):
I would love to at least hope that they'll be very strict
conditions. I would like to hope that he
would remain permanently on parole because usually what
happens is they'll give a persona parole period, say 12 months.
Like this is just a rough example.
And they're to stick to the conditions, stick to reporting
(16:52):
in and all of their appointmentsand things like that, make sure
they're on the right track and they've reintegrated nicely.
And then after that 12 month period, they are off parole.
They're not conditioned, you know, under any rules or they
don't have any reporting requirements and they're free to
leave back in society as normal.I would like to hope in this
(17:12):
situation that James does not get that privilege and that
since they have for some absolutely bizarre reason
allowed him out on parole, that he would remain on parole
indefinitely and that he would continuously need to check in.
He would continuously need to beattending programs and things
(17:33):
like that to help himself, help keep the community safe.
This really frightens me, not for my own safety per SE, but
just for the sake of the community.
I guess we can never judge someone whom we don't know, but
I think it's very easy to form an opinion when you know that
(17:55):
that person has murdered four people.
So that it's just wild to me actually that he's been eligible
for parole. Yeah, I, that's my opinion.
I'd love to know yours. I'm trying to keep it as PG as
possible here. Again, I'm not 1000% invested in
(18:17):
this case because it is a bit around before my time, I guess.
But just, yeah, just knowing to me our life sentence isn't a
life sentence. When you give a life sentence to
me that that means your life like the remainder of your life.
(18:38):
If you have taken a life and you're only getting 25 years in
prison, I don't think that's fair.
Let alone taking 4 lives and only serving 25 years.
I'm, I don't care how outstanding your behaviour is in
the system. Maybe keeping him in the system
as a mentor, as a teacher or something like that.
(18:58):
But living in incarceration, I just don't agree with this
decision at all. So I'm going to leave you with
that. I hope that this has given you
clarity around the situation. If you have any other questions,
yell out again. If you are able to continue
listening, give us a review, give us a share, anything like
(19:22):
that. It'd be greatly appreciated.
You can also subscribe to extra things on the podcast.
You will get more episodes than us, others and things like that.
You'll get exclusive access and like priority notice and things
like that. Your case requests will get
priority. And yeah, the list goes on.
(19:42):
And you're also helping me to pick up more cases and to help
more missing persons and cold cases in our country.
So thank you so much. I appreciate you for being here
and for listening. And yeah, I hope you have a
beautiful weekend. So much for being here.
I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, you can subscribe to stay
(20:04):
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episodes on Spotify only that issubscriber only episodes.
Those payments help us greatly in being able to accept new
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(20:24):
You can join in on any discussions on the Facebook
group, you can join in in the case discussions and make case
requests there. And you can find the link to our
group in our podcast notes and also on our website.
But as always, stay curious, stay informed, and until next
time, trust your instincts and keep seeking the truth.
Welcome to Exhuming the Truth, the podcast where we delve into
the mysterious worlds of cold cases, missing persons, true
crime, and the fascinating science that is forensics.
I'm forensic scientist and criminologist Asha Walther, and
I am so thrilled to have you with me on this journey as we
dance in the shadows of the world of crime, shining a light
(00:38):
on scientific discovery while becoming another voice for those
who need it most. So grab a drink and get
comfortable while we jump into this episode together, this
podcast. Is recommended for persons over.
The age of. 18 and contains explicit content not suitable
for minors. We will be covering sensitive
content that ranges from sexual assault, physical, mental,
(01:01):
social and emotional abuse, suicide, homicide, murder,
attempted murder, and other violent crimes, including crimes
involving weapons and drugs. This often extends to drug
misuse and other harmful and illegal activity.
If you find any content to be distressing, I have listed a
number of resources that may be able to help you in the podcast
(01:21):
notes. I'd also like to remind our
listeners that all victims and all perpetrators is someone's
loved 1. So I ask that in any discussions
in our group or on our social accounts that you remain
respectful of that at all times.And by listening today, you
acknowledge that all persons of interest remain innocent until
proven. Adult Hi guys, and welcome to
(01:43):
housekeeping. It is Thursday.
Today is my oldest son's birthday.
You turned 11. What the actual hell.
I feel so old and so sad. It seriously feels like I just
had him. So it's just, it's wild.
So I gave the kids the day off school today and we had a really
good day. I'm just messing around at home
(02:05):
and that's all I have to share with you for housekeeping
because literally all I have been doing aside from housework
of course is school drop off andpick up from uni work and this
work. So I have just been really busy
and trying to concentrate on what I'm doing.
It's been a really fun week because it was my birthday and
(02:27):
then my son's birthday and my partner.
I got into some football thing that we're doing on the weekend.
We're doing an escape room tomorrow, so there's a lot of
extracurricular things going on as well, but I'm really trying
to knuckle down with work and I appreciate everybody so much.
(02:47):
So many people getting back to me with feedback and case
requests and things like that. And I am working really hard
trying to get it done while alsotrying to maintain my grades at
uni. So I appreciate you so much for
being here and for listening to our episodes.
And Oh my gosh, how did I forgetto say the most important thing,
(03:07):
aside from my son's birthday of course, is we got a new puppy,
which was not on the cards. We were not looking.
It's a bit of a situation with abit of a story behind it.
But yes, her name is Shadow. She is a Dane F Cross Cane
Corso. So a Dane, a Dane, a Great Dane.
(03:28):
Cross Mastiff was the mum and the Cane Corso was the dad.
So I've always wanted both a mastiff and a Cane Corso, and
circumstances just LED up to it.Anyway, we ended up with her and
she is doing really well, although she has been sleeping
in my bed every night, so I do need to get on top of that.
(03:50):
And Woody thinks I have bought Shadow for him as a personal
gift. So yeah, we're working on
introductions with the other dogs and things like that.
But yeah, that's my exciting news.
So let's get into this episode about the snow town serial
killers and the youngest offender in the snow town serial
(04:10):
killings, James Vlasakis. Vlasakis.
Vlasakis. Yeah, I think that's it.
And I think by now everybody cankind of no, that I'm not great
at pronouncing names. I'm doing my best here for
Lusaka. Sounds right to me.
I could be wrong. So usually I would go by
(04:31):
somebody's surname, but I'm going to go by his first name,
James, because I know I've got that right.
However, he has been granted parole.
OK, so May 1999, let's go way back.
So I was only a few years old sothis case I did have to read up
on, but my family and like my parents, well my mum and my
(04:55):
partner were familiar with this case, the Snow Town serial
killings. But just to give you a bit of an
overview. May 1999, the police discovered
the remains of murder victims inside a former bank inside a
vault in SA in a regional town called Snow Town.
So there were 12 deaths between 1992 and 1999 that were linked
(05:17):
to this specific crime, and 11 of them were ruled as murders.
So James Lisakas pled guilty to four of those murders.
In 1998 when he was 18 he took part in the murder of his half
brother Troy and then he later took part in the murders of Fred
(05:38):
Brooks, Gary O'dwyer and David Johnson.
So what happened was he was taken into custody for the
crimes on the 2nd of June 1999. But because James assisted in
the conviction of the three Co accused by giving evidence
against them in court, his imagewas suppressed for his
protection as it still remains. So you will not find photos of
(06:01):
his face. They will they keep that in
place regardless of parole or not.
But how did he get involved in these serial killings?
Like what was the motive here? So a Co accused, John Bunting
actually lived with James and his mother in the northern
suburbs of Adelaide. And James claims that he was
(06:25):
drawn into Bunting's behaviour, like basically saying it was
kind of against his will and he feared him.
So he is believed that Bunting had taken the place of like,
quote, UN quote, the man of the house when James was like a
vulnerable young teen. He was 14 years old.
The majority of the victims in these serial killings were
either family or friends of the four men that were accused.
(06:49):
There is a movie actually on theSnowtown murders.
And this was said to be told from James's perspective.
But when we're talking about James, who is he?
His birthday is Christmas Eve 1979.
His mother's name is Elizabeth Harvey, he had a half brother
Troy you'd and his stepfather was John Justin Bunting, AKA the
(07:11):
ringleader of these serial killings.
So then there was David Johnson which is James's stepbrother and
he was lured into Snowtown by James himself on the 9th of May
in 1999. He actually believed he was
going to be purchasing a cheap computer but when he entered the
building he was strangled with abelt by Bunting.
(07:35):
He was then cut up and put in barrels.
James actually later confessed to police in what was at the
time a confidential interview which has obviously come out as
evidence that Bunting and Wagner.
So Wagner is another Co accused.They took a piece of flesh from
Johnson's right thigh, heated itin a frying pan and cooked the
(07:56):
flesh and ate it. You'd was actually 21 and asleep
at home and James Bunting and Wagner hit him with planks and
Jack handles then dragged him into the bathroom, handcuffed
and gagged him and squeezed his toes with pliers.
Wagner then said was said to stand on his chest to make sure
(08:18):
that he was actually dead. After they had strangled him and
before killing him, they had forced him to apologise for the
sexual assault of James when James was thirteen years old.
Now James was the youngest of the four perpetrators in these
serial killings and he was sentenced to life imprisonment
in 2002 with a non parole periodof 26 years, which was actually
(08:43):
backdated to begin when he was originally taken into custody
over these killings. On Tuesday this week, he was
approved for parole. The chair of the parole board
had actually said that James would not be able to change his
name when he's released unless he got permission from the chief
executive of the Department of Correctional Services.
(09:04):
So at the moment, he's currentlyin his mid 40s.
So just to state the others who were involved in these serial
killings, we've got John Bunting.
Like I said, he claimed to be like the new man of the house.
In James's house. We've got Robert Wagner and then
we have Mark Hayden and Mark wasan accomplice who was charged
(09:25):
and convicted of seven counts ofassisting an offender and that
was for storing bodies at his home north of Adelaide and for
helping move these bodies. He was actually released into
the community last year after serving a 25 year sentence,
which absolutely blows my mind. But anyway, Bunting and Wagner
are serving life sentences without the possibility of
(09:47):
parole and James was the only one accused who was given a non
parole period because he cooperated and gave evidence in
court against all the other Co accused.
So when he was sentenced by Justin Kevin Duggan, Duggan said
in 2002 during the hearing that had it not been for your plea of
guilty, your extensive cooperation with the police and
(10:10):
your undertaking to give evidence for the prosecution in
the forthcoming trial, I would have imposed a non parole period
of 42 years. I am satisfied, however, that
you have given extensive assistance to the police in this
matter and I take into account your understanding to give
evidence. Your confinement is likely to be
much more restrictive. Restrictive, sorry, then would
(10:32):
otherwise be the case. So what he's saying there is
basically you've helped out so you're going to get a non parole
period instead of like no parole.
It's just like we'll give you the sentence you're not eligible
for parole and tool so and so and then you actually will be
eligible for parole. But once you are incarcerated,
(10:52):
it's going to be a more restrictive sentence.
You're probably going to be in confinement a lot of the time
for your own protection given the nature of the crimes and how
you've spoken out and assisted police.
So in this assessment on whetherhe would be accepted for parole,
they said that he does not present as a risk to the
(11:13):
community and that his institutional behaviour has
been, and I quote, excellent. This is a comment that is
obviously going to divide a lot of people and I want to know
your thoughts on this. If it's true that he was under
Buntings direction, as he said, should he be able to reintegrate
(11:34):
into society or is he still a risk?
At the end of the day, he's still committed murder.
He's therefore capable of murder.
And I don't know, like, do we want to be sitting next to
people like that in our local cafe?
Is there a place in the community for these people and
(11:59):
did they really have excellent behaviour or was it just an
obvious tactical Ave. for them to do all that they can to get
out of incarceration? And does that even matter?
A large majority of offenders aren't just constantly offending
and that's what you have to remember.
They can also hold jobs or studyor commit to typical human
(12:22):
occasions such as participating in things that are going to be
of benefit to them. So in saying that, it's very
possible that offenders are doing that inside, knowing that
if they do XYZ, they'll be eligible for parole and they'll
get the desirable outcome. Like it's just totally not
rocket science here. But who's in control here?
(12:45):
So there's the South Australian Police Commissioner, the
commissioner for victims Rights and the attorney general.
OK, so they all hold power to challenge the parole decision.
So far, the police commissioner of SA is the only one of the
three who has actually made a comment on this judgement.
(13:09):
He basically said that he hasn'tseen the basis for the Parole
Board's decision in this case and that he will look at it.
Then there is the former S Australian Director of Public
Prosecutions who's actually turned political candidate.
Candidate. That is Stephen Polaris or
(13:30):
Steph. Yeah, Alright, man, like I just
suck at this. I'm so sorry.
Stephen. Or Stephen, one of the two.
He's not in agreement with this decision at all and I'll read
you his comments. He said.
I am astonished that they would even consider parole.
This man was convicted in relation to 4 murders.
(13:54):
The reliance on the fact that the prisoner has behaved himself
is absolute nonsense. That is what they're meant to do
in jail and I agree with him here.
I'm sorry to say it, but I do. They are supposed to behave in
jail. Like are you kidding me?
It is called corrections for a reason.
(14:15):
Does the system need an overhauland do we need to offer more to
rehabilitate our prisoners? Absolutely.
Absolutely. And I'm huge on that.
And I think we don't do enough and what we do is just not good
enough and not working. But I just don't feel
comfortable given at the circumstances of these murders.
And that's exactly it, isn't it?It's murders, plural.
(14:40):
This isn't something like something small or something
accidental, you know, And we have to consider the rights of
the victims and and their families.
So if you are much like myself and you are wondering how the
victims of these horrific murders are dealing with this
news, and by victims I obviouslymean those who are still with us
(15:04):
today, there was a nephew of oneof the victims who was murdered.
His name is Ronald Lane. And he actually spoke out and
said that he was angry and saddened by the decision and he
wants to see the decision essentially be reviewed, and
rightly so. He had a little bit to say and
(15:24):
I'll read you a little bit of that, but basically he said I
think they're a complete fool tobe honest.
I mean this guy has done some terrible murders and killed 4
innocent people. I'm absolutely disgusted.
I'm mad and upset about the whole thing.
When he says by they he means the parole board and the
(15:46):
decision that they have made. So in summary, here we've got
James who has been eligible for parole.
They've seen his case. The parole board have looked at
it. They said, oh, he's got
outstanding behavior inside prison.
I mean, anyway, they've gone ahead and said yes, he will be
(16:09):
eligible for parole. Is he out right now?
No, he's not. It is a bit of a process and
they will give him a date, but he will be released back into
society. I would imagine that they would
have things in place like stopping him from going to
certain areas such as suburbs orlocations where victims family
members are and things like that.
(16:29):
I would love to at least hope that they'll be very strict
conditions. I would like to hope that he
would remain permanently on parole because usually what
happens is they'll give a persona parole period, say 12 months.
Like this is just a rough example.
And they're to stick to the conditions, stick to reporting
(16:52):
in and all of their appointmentsand things like that, make sure
they're on the right track and they've reintegrated nicely.
And then after that 12 month period, they are off parole.
They're not conditioned, you know, under any rules or they
don't have any reporting requirements and they're free to
leave back in society as normal.I would like to hope in this
(17:12):
situation that James does not get that privilege and that
since they have for some absolutely bizarre reason
allowed him out on parole, that he would remain on parole
indefinitely and that he would continuously need to check in.
He would continuously need to beattending programs and things
(17:33):
like that to help himself, help keep the community safe.
This really frightens me, not for my own safety per SE, but
just for the sake of the community.
I guess we can never judge someone whom we don't know, but
I think it's very easy to form an opinion when you know that
(17:55):
that person has murdered four people.
So that it's just wild to me actually that he's been eligible
for parole. Yeah, I, that's my opinion.
I'd love to know yours. I'm trying to keep it as PG as
possible here. Again, I'm not 1000% invested in
(18:17):
this case because it is a bit around before my time, I guess.
But just, yeah, just knowing to me our life sentence isn't a
life sentence. When you give a life sentence to
me that that means your life like the remainder of your life.
(18:38):
If you have taken a life and you're only getting 25 years in
prison, I don't think that's fair.
Let alone taking 4 lives and only serving 25 years.
I'm, I don't care how outstanding your behaviour is in
the system. Maybe keeping him in the system
as a mentor, as a teacher or something like that.
(18:58):
But living in incarceration, I just don't agree with this
decision at all. So I'm going to leave you with
that. I hope that this has given you
clarity around the situation. If you have any other questions,
yell out again. If you are able to continue
listening, give us a review, give us a share, anything like
(19:22):
that. It'd be greatly appreciated.
You can also subscribe to extra things on the podcast.
You will get more episodes than us, others and things like that.
You'll get exclusive access and like priority notice and things
like that. Your case requests will get
priority. And yeah, the list goes on.
(19:42):
And you're also helping me to pick up more cases and to help
more missing persons and cold cases in our country.
So thank you so much. I appreciate you for being here
and for listening. And yeah, I hope you have a
beautiful weekend. So much for being here.
I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, you can subscribe to stay
(20:04):
up to date on new episodes or you can find us on Instagram,
Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. You can subscribe to our paid
episodes on Spotify only that issubscriber only episodes.
Those payments help us greatly in being able to accept new
cases and to help us continue towork.
(20:24):
You can join in on any discussions on the Facebook
group, you can join in in the case discussions and make case
requests there. And you can find the link to our
group in our podcast notes and also on our website.
But as always, stay curious, stay informed, and until next
time, trust your instincts and keep seeking the truth.
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