Walker's parole is denied

Kim Walker's application for parole has been denied.

Walker, the Yorkton man who was convicted of manslaughter last spring for the shooting death of James Hayward in 2003, has been eligible for parole since January.

A parole board in Regina on April 5 denied Walker's application on the basis that he has failed to take sufficient responsibility for his actions.

Walker, 55, has apologized for the pain he caused Hayward's family, but denies having any memory of shooting the 24-year-old at the victim's home in March of 2003. At his trial, Walker testified that he "[didn't] know" whether or not he was justified in shooting Hayward, who was in a relationship at the time with Walker's 16-year-old daughter Jadah.

Walker's failure to be granted parole last week will only delay his release by three months. Except in extreme cases, offenders are automatically released under Canada's statutory release law after serving two-thirds of their sentences. Walker is eligible for release one year after his sentencing: July 13.

At the Yorkton Court of Queen's Bench last summer, Walker was given a sentence of eight years for manslaughter. It was the conclusion to his second trial for the death of James Hayward; Walker's first conviction of second-degree murder was overturned by the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal. After credit for time already served, Walker had just 18 months remaining on his sentence when he resumed his prison term last July.

At the time of the murder in 2003, Jadah Walker and James Hayward were addicted to drugs and living together in Yorkton. Kim Walker believed Hayward was supplying his daughter with drugs.

On March 17 of that year, Walker drove to Hayward's home and fired ten shots from a handgun at the unarmed man in an act that Walker insists was self-defense.