Leave Her Alone

Karla Homolka was released from prison yesterday, after serving twelve years for her participation in the Bernardo killings. Many people believed that she received a light sentence, as she plea-bargained for a reduced sentence in exchange for testifying against her then-husband, Paul Bernardo.

The media has been over her release like the latest trend going out-of-style. The (media) circus is so fanatical over her release, that Homolka's lawyer had been pressing the courts to ban the media from her release.

Karla Homolka is now a free woman, but will likely spend many more years in hiding. It's tragic, that the media has hyped this story to such megalithic proportions, that it has re-opened old wounds, and re-angered a population that has -- until recently -- forgotten about her. It is unlikely that Homolka will be able to live the life of a "normal" parolee, just because the entire country is going to know where she is going to settle.

How is she going to get back on her feet? How can any rehabilitated criminal, who has done their time, and paid their dues, prove to society that they have learned their lesson, when the media continues to stalk them, spouting garbage like "Canada's Most Notorious Female Killer Released From Prison"? It's all about selling newspapers and television ratings, at the expense of the well-being of the subject. It is uncompassionate, rude, and damaging to the subject. All for the big bucks.

As stated earlier, Homolka fears for her life. She probably felt safer on the inside than she does right now. Her family and friends have abandoned her; she has nowhere to go. The world is full of all kinds of crazies, who are on some crusade, spouting nonsense that the system doesn't work, and feel that it is their divine right to take the law into their own hands. In a twisted state of irony, this is exactly how Bernardo and Homolka wound up behind bars in the first place. People hold grudges -- some have such hatred for her that they would be willing to spend life behind bars in exchange for taking her life. That just puts another killer behind bars, no reconciliation, no mercy, no redemption, just cold-blooded death.

Many people have been angered over Homolka's release, still believing that she was an accomplice, not a victim. When cornered in an abusive relationship, how does the victim prolong their life? The only answer I can see in Homolka's case, is acting in concert. Can you imagine her situation? What do you do? How do you act? When you know that it could very well be you whose next. If you run away, he will find you, and then you will surely be dead. If you go to the police, you will be equally charged, and spend life in prison. If you play along, you will likely live -- for a while. Abuse of all forms can wreak all kinds of havoc on one's mental well-being. Karla became a victim of circumstance, trapped in an inescapable marriage. Ask anyone who has been a victim in an abusive relationship, and they will tell you, with tears in their eyes, the horrors of feeling hopeless, cornered, being beaten, among other unmentionables.

Consider this: If Homolka had never met Paul Bernardo, would she have still become a sex-offender and murderer -- as the media made her out to be?

I am sure that the only thing Karla Homolka wants, now that she is free, is to put the past behind her. The media, the courts, the correctional system, and the people owe her Tabula Rasa -- a clean slate. The country owes her an opportunity to prove to all of us, that she was indeed a victim of Bernardo's abuse.

Now, Newspapers, Television, and Radio stations across this country, do us all a favor and leave her alone.