Family of woman murdered in Dartmouth angered by killer's sentence

Warning: this story contains language some readers may find offensive.

Relatives of a woman who was murdered five years ago in Dartmouth, N.S., are angry that the man who killed their sister must only serve 10 years in prison before he can begin applying for parole.

Brandon Jake Hollohan was convicted after a jury trial in March of second-degree murder for the death of Deborah Irene Yorke.

The conviction carries an automatic life sentence, but a judge had to determine parole ineligibility — the amount of time Hollohan must spend in prison before he can begin the parole process.

The judge had to choose a term between 10 and 25 years. In a decision announced Friday afternoon, Justice Kevin Coady chose 10 years.

"Bullshit," Anne Cameron, Yorke's sister, said after the hearing. "I don't know what else to say."

Victim, killer were friends

Yorke and Hollohan had been friends and Hollohan had even stayed at Yorke's apartment.

During one of those times, court heard, Hollohan copied Yorke's door key. Early on the morning of Jan. 21, 2018, he let himself into her apartment, looking to steal drugs or money. He carried a hammer.

Yorke woke up and, according to evidence presented at trial, Hollohan struck her repeatedly with the hammer and stabbed her with a knife. She suffered more than 60 blunt and sharp injuries.

"It would be difficult to imagine more brutal and violent acts than the ones inflicted on Ms. Yorke by Mr. Hollohan," Justice Coady said in his decision.

'We'll never get over this'

The judge noted that after the murder, Hollohan disposed of the weapons and slashed the screen on Yorke's balcony to try to make it look like she'd been the victim of a break-in.

The jury deliberated for just 90 minutes before convicting.

"Putting us through stuff for five friggin' years," another of Yorke's sisters, Cheryl Campbell, said outside court. "We'll never get over this."

"They took 10 years off of our lives, made us quit our jobs — financially, it's been hard on the family," Cameron said.

"What support do we get?," Campbell asked.

"Nothing," her sister replied.

No guarantee of release in 10 years

Crown prosecutor Rob Kennedy said there is something to be learned from this case.

"This is a cautionary tale in relation to the impact of drug abuse, particularly as it relates to violent crime in our country," Kennedy said.

Kennedy also noted that while Hollohan can begin applying for parole after 10 years, there's no guarantee he'll be released. That decision will be up to the Parole Board of Canada.