N.S. man in prison for 'unprovoked, brutal' murder granted 2-month pass

A Nova Scotia man with a history of violent attacks on women, including a murder, is being let out of prison on a two-month pass to prepare for his eventual, full-time release.

Antonio Edward Lavoie, 63, was convicted of second-degree murder for the 2004 killing of Sharon Ann Hatch, a crime described by the judge who presided over the case as "a sudden, unprovoked, brutal murder."

Lavoie has been let out of prison in the past on brief escorted passes. But now the Parole Board of Canada has decided it's time to give him more freedom to help him adjust to life outside prison.

He will get two brief passes before the two-month absence to get him acquainted with the community-based residential facility where he'll be staying.

And to help ensure he doesn't falter, the parole board has imposed restrictions on his freedom. They include that he abstain from drugs and alcohol and report any relationships with women.

"You were abusing crack cocaine, prescription medication and alcohol at the time of the current offence and you were under the influence of intoxicants during your previous violent offences as well," the parole board wrote in a recent decision.

"You are described as suppressing your anger and stress until you 'exploded.'"

Previous aggravated assault on teen

Lavoie has a criminal history dating back to 1978 that includes a conviction for aggravated assault on a 16-year-old girl who refused his demand that she take off her clothes.

He bludgeoned Hatch to death and left her body in woods west of Halifax.

Lavoie didn't plead guilty to second-degree murder until 2008. The conviction carried an automatic life sentence, and Justice Joseph Kennedy ruled he would not be eligible for parole until 2025.

Kennedy wrote in his sentencing decision that the murder had "no motive, no rationale, no explanation. Violence for the sake of violence." 

Lavoie has taken up painting while in prison and he told the parole board he hopes to persuade an art gallery to exhibit some of his work.

Police are opposed to his release on the two-month pass and have been granted a stipulation that Lavoie report to them three times a week while he's out.