Convicted killer attending McGill law school divides students over safety, 2nd chances
Despite violent past, offender’s lawyer says reintegration is ‘what rehabilitation is about’
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rehabilitation → convict → what
Students in McGill University’s law faculty say they are concerned about the presence of a convicted murderer on campus and at faculty events.
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they → say → events
The man, Jeffrey George Ewert, was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder for two attacks committed in 1984: he sexually assaulted and killed one woman and, less than six weeks later, beat and choked a 15-year-old so severely that she was paralyzed and disabled for life, according to a summary of his case in his parole board file.
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she → convict → file
Ewert is serving a life sentence and was granted day parole in 2025.
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Ewert → serve → 2025
He’s been attending law classes at McGill and going to faculty events since August.
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He → attend → August
His parole was extended for another six months in June 2026.
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parole → extend → June
While various clinical assessments ranked Ewert’s risk of reoffending as moderate to high, official parole documents say with close supervision at a halfway house and clinical follow-up, that risk “seems to fall more into the moderate risk category.”
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risk → rank → category
Although Ewert’s case management team did not believe he posed an undue risk to society, the parole board did express concern about his interactions with and attitudes toward women.
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board → believe → women
Some students, who asked not to be named for fear of repercussions, approached CBC after they learned of Ewert’s criminal past and are upset that the university did not disclose their peer’s violent history.
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university → ask → history
“For me, it’s really the lack of transparency,” said one of the students.
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one → ’ → students
Whether or not McGill was legally obligated to alert students, she feels the school had a moral obligation to let them know.
“More than half of the students are women, we’re young,” she said, adding she feels Ewert’s presence places them in a “vulnerable and dangerous position.”
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presence → obligate → position
Jeffrey George Ewert began attending law classes at McGill University in August.
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Ewert → begin → August
Some students are upset his violent criminal past was not disclosed.
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past → upset → ?
(Name withheld/Instagram)
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Name → withhold → ?
Another student also resented being left in the dark.
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student → resent → dark
“Not knowing made it more scary for us,” said the student, who pieced together Ewert’s past through their own research.
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who → know → research
“It got me worried and I was panicked.”
If the school had warned them and explained what precautions were in place, she said she would have felt safer and could have decided if or how she wanted to interact with him.
The students told CBC they were aware other students had made a formal complaint to McGill’s administration.
University cites privacy laws
CBC asked McGill University whether the institution was aware of the nature of Ewert’s criminal past and current parole status and what security plans, if any, had been conducted before allowing Ewert to attend campus.
In a statement, a university spokesperson declined to answer questions about Ewert’s specific case, citing privacy laws, but said that “criminal background checks are not typically part of Canadian universities' admissions processes.
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checks → get → processes
“McGill would act quickly and decisively should concerning information be brought forward about a student’s background or behaviour on campus,” the spokesperson wrote.
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spokesperson → act → campus
The statement continues by saying the university “would liaise closely with all relevant government bodies” and use the policy tools at its disposal “to remove the individual from campus” to ensure a safe environment.
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university → continue → environment
“The university would also actively review its admissions processes to ensure a similar situation never happens again.”
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situation → review → processes
In a statement to CBC, McGill said it would act 'quickly and decisively' if concerning information about a student’s background or behaviour on campus was brought forward.
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information → say → campus
The students who spoke with CBC have not seen Ewert on campus since Oct. 6.
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who → speak → Oct.
Ewert declined an interview, but his absence at McGill was confirmed by his lawyer, Nora Demnati, who spoke on his behalf.
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who → decline → behalf
“He applied to McGill law with the help of many students, of law professors and McGill University was fully aware of his history and his status and where he comes from,” said Demnati in an interview.
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Demnati → apply → interview
Although Ewert had not disclosed his past to everyone at the university — and was not legally obligated to — Demnati said Ewert has never hidden who he is.
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he → disclose → university
“He’s been very honest about his history, his parole status and his conditions,” said Demnati, adding she and Ewert are “completely in the dark” about what specific concerns were raised at McGill.
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concerns → say → McGill
Although she understands some students are worried, she notes Ewert was in his 20s when he committed his offences.
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he → understand → offences
Now in his 60s, Demnati says he’s a different man and she’s “disheartened” Ewert was not given a chance to hold a meeting with students to address their concerns.
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Ewert → say → concerns
Parolees continuously monitored
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Parolees → monitor → ?
The extension to Ewart’s day parole was granted under a variety of conditions, including not to enter a drinking establishment, to immediately report all sexual and non-sexual relationships with women and to allow his case management team access to all his telecommunication activity.
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extension → grant → activity
The parole board added the latter condition because Ewert had been viewing women's profiles on social media, starting discussions with them, and exploring a dating site without notifying his case management team.
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Ewert → add → team
The McGill students who spoke to CBC question how closely the university or his parole supervisor can monitor such a condition.
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university → speak → condition
They say students often work closely on group projects and the teaching assistants — many of whom are also women — meet students one-on-one.
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many → say → one
“It was more a fear of potentially women not knowing what he’s done in the past and then having interactions with him that could put them at risk potentially,” one of the students told CBC.
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one → know → CBC
While the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is unable to talk about the specifics of Ewert’s case due to privacy, it said in an email that supervising an offender “includes ongoing monitoring of their activities, including educational opportunities.”
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supervising → talk → opportunities
CBC was contacted by other students in McGill's law faculty who reported positive experiences with Ewert.
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who → contact → Ewert
They admired his efforts to improve his life and go back to school and value the perspective he brings.
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he → admire → perspective
This includes regular meetings with the offender as well as assessing their personal and professional environments.
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This → include → environments
Social media use is also monitored.
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use → monitor → ?
“We carefully monitor all aspects and if an offender's risk increases or there is a change in their behaviour or compliance with release conditions, we take immediate action, which can include suspending their release and returning them immediately to custody,” a spokesperson for the CSC wrote.
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spokesperson → monitor → CSC
…and 49 more, not listed.
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