Parole denied for man who killed Toronto police Const. Todd Baylis
Clinton Gayle has now been denied parole three times in seven years. The victim's family is pushing for a five-year gap between hearings instead of 18 months.
Sources · local media reports
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Clinton Gayle, convicted of murdering Toronto police Const. Todd Baylis in 1994, has been denied parole for the third time in seven years.
Gayle shot the 25-year-old officer in the summer of 1994 while he was on patrol in North York. Another officer, Const. Mike Leone, was also seriously injured. Gayle is serving two concurrent life sentences at a B.C. prison.
In their decision Thursday, the Parole Board of Canada said they remain unsatisfied that Gayle understands his own motivation. "We as a board assessing your risk to reoffend have to understand what was truly your motivation to commit that crime and we are not satisfied you have sufficient insight as to why you used extreme violence," the board stated.
Baylis's brother, Cory, submitted a victim impact statement saying the cycle of hearings every 18 months inflicts emotional trauma on the family. He is calling on the federal government to extend the gap between parole hearings to five years for cases like this. Leone's statement noted that Gayle has never expressed genuine remorse. At a 2019 hearing, Gayle told his victims he was "sorry someone had to die that night, but I had to spend 25 years in jail" — centering his own suffering rather than theirs.
Cory said in his statement: "In 32 years, he has never reached out to us to express any kind of remorse. Please understand that the impact of this on us is debilitating. The anguish, despair and pain this has caused us is immeasurable. The insult to my brother is profound."
The facts
Who did Clinton Gayle kill?
Clinton Gayle killed Toronto police Const. Todd Baylis, a 25-year-old officer shot while on patrol in North York in the summer of 1994.
What is the Parole Board's main concern about Gayle?
The Parole Board of Canada stated they remain unsatisfied that Gayle understands his own motivation for the crime and that he lacks sufficient insight into why he used extreme violence.
What change is Baylis's family requesting?
Cory Baylis is calling on the federal government to extend the gap between parole hearings to five years instead of the current 18 months for cases like this one.
