'You took our sunshine away,' sister of fatally stabbed Hamilton teen tells student's sentencing hearing

With tears streaming down her face, Karissa Selvey told a Hamilton courtroom her brother was the "sunshine" in her life. She wore a purple sweater with his picture on the front and the words RIP Devan on the back.

It's the same sweater she's worn, along with her mother and family friends, during the more than two years of court appearances following the fatal stabbing of 14-year-old Devan Selvey on Oct. 7, 2019.

Purple sweaters could be seen throughout Ontario Superior Court in Hamilton on Friday as sentencing began for the teen who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. The sentence itself will be released in the spring.

"Do you understand how much pain and suffering you've caused?" Selvey read from her victim impact statement.

"Not only did you take such an important piece of our family puzzle — you took our sunshine away when skies were grey."

The teen, who can't be identified under a court-ordered publication ban, was also 14 when Devan died after he was stabbed behind Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School. He's been in custody ever since and is now 16.

The teen spoke directly to the family, saying he can never take back what he did and was ready to accept the consequences. 

"I wish we could both go back to our families, but I took that away from Devan," said the teen, adding he's made "good use" of his time in custody and will continue to do so "if not for me, then for the memory of Devan."

Family will have to wait for sentence

The Crown and defence jointly suggested a sentence of seven years — the maximum for a youth guilty of second-degree murder.

They're asking for recognition of time served, which would see the teen spend just under two more years in custody, then three years under supervision in the community.

The lawyers are also asking the judge to order that the teen be enrolled in the Intensive Rehabilitative Custody and Supervision program, which Crown attorney Brett Moodie described as a "unique and powerful" tool that's only available in very serious offences.

But, despite nearly 2½ years of waiting, those involved in the trial have been asked to hold on even longer.

Justice Andrew Goodman told the courtroom packed with family and supporters that given the importance of the case, he would need to write out his reasons for sentence.

Apologizing for the delay, he said that with jury trials beginning again, he wasn't available again until the end of April — a revelation met with a gasp from some.

Shari-Ann Selvey, Devan's mother, said they came to court Friday expecting some sort of resolution.

"Now we have to wait another two months to get that answer," she said outside court. "It's emotionally draining."

Mother grieves never being able to hug son

Her victim impact statement was read by assistant Crown attorney Lisa Ellins earlier in the day. Shari-Ann said she couldn't get through it without breaking down.

It described Devan as a "beautiful soul" who loved his family, nature and making others laugh. It mourned the fact she wouldn't be able to see him graduate from high school, grow up and have a family of his own.

"Your parents will be able to make lifetime memories, be able to hug you, see you become an adult," it read.

"I will never dance in the kitchen with Devan … never will I have hugs or 'I love you's' from Devan."

Shari-Ann said Devan's death took the family's "happiness" away and she hopes the teen can get the help he should have had to become a better person.

"I just hope that his words are true and it's not just for show," she said after court, responding to the teen's message to the family.

An agreed statement of facts, read when the accused pleaded guilty, said the teen stabbed Devan once in the right upper back.

The murder weapon was a knife with a 15-centimetre blade, which tore through muscle and bone before slicing into Devan's lung, court heard at the time.

Following Devan's death, his mother said he had been bullied and the school had not done enough to protect him.

Court was told that before the stabbing, the two teens were "strangers" who did not know each other.

Devan's death sparked conversations around bullying across Canada. It led to the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) assembling a report that found a "culture of fear" was preventing people from reporting incidents or taking action.

HWDSB chair Dawn Danko previously said Devan's legacy will "live on" through the recommendations of that report.

A wound that may never heal

Throughout the sentencing hearing on Friday, lawyers stressed the teen's difficult upbringing and past struggles with school and the law, starting at an early age.

Defence lawyer Lindsay Daviau contrasted that "bleak picture" with the way the teen has "thrived" behind bars — referring to reports that described him as respectful and eager to take part in counselling.

The teen's parents have said it's important he be held accountable and he appears to have taken responsibility for his actions, according to the Crown.

Still, Karissa and the others who provided victim impact statements underlined the pain they continue to feel, questioning whether it will fade and lamenting what was lost.

"Time heals wounds," she said. "But this wound is so deep that I don't think my heart will ever heal fully."

The judge is scheduled to provide the sentence on April 28.