Mark Twitchell denied escorted visits to Edmonton for second time as parole board cites victim impact

The Parole Board of Canada appeal division has upheld its earlier denial of Mark Twitchell's request for escorted temporary absences to Edmonton, refusing the convicted murderer the chance to visit family outside prison.

Twitchell applied earlier this year for two escorted visits accompanied by armed guards. His initial application was denied, and on Oct. 2 the appeal division upheld that decision, finding no legal errors in the original hearing. Twitchell is serving a life sentence for the first-degree murder of John Brian Altinger in 2008 and is not eligible for parole for 25 years.

The board emphasized the impact on Altinger's family. "The appeal division finds that your perspective does not take into consideration the effect on the victims that could be expected from your presence in the city where (REDACTED) and where their loved one was murdered by you," the decision stated.

Twitchell's case management team shared the board's concern, noting that "your participation in family contact escorted temporary absences to Edmonton may adversely affect the victims given that it is the location of the index offences."

Twitchell, a one-time amateur filmmaker, modelled his crimes on the TV serial killer "Dexter," a drama depicting a police bloodstain pattern analyst who moonlights as a serial killer. During a March 12 hearing, Twitchell told the board he had created a homicidal character in his mind when facing personal and professional frustrations, and by summer 2008 was "identifying so strongly with the character that you began to wonder what it would feel like to kill someone."

Among Twitchell's personal effects were documents describing Altinger's murder in extreme detail, outlining an earlier similar attack, and expressing Twitchell's view of himself as a psychopath. He described other victims he wanted to kill. Early in his sentence, authorities found a journal in his cell containing sexual fantasies about a female corrections officer and "graphically harming or killing public figures, guards and other inmates." He was later caught sending artwork to a third party for public sale.

Twitchell's recent prison behaviour has been less concerning. He is currently classified as medium security and was not deemed an undue threat to the public. He has a wife, married after receiving his life sentence, and maintains regular contact with his parents.