NAN Statement on Brayden Bushby Parole Decision
THUNDER BAY, ON: Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler, on behalf of the Executive Council, has issued the following statement following the Parole Board of Canada’s decision to grant full parole to Brayden Bushby:
“This is devastating news for Barbara Kentner’s family, the community of Wabigoon Lake Ojibway First Nation, and the entire Thunder Bay community. Barbara was greatly loved and is greatly missed. We are extremely disappointed to learn that her attacker has been granted full parole and that parole officials have deemed him suitable for reintegration into society. This feels like a profound injustice.
During his sentencing, the court sent a strong message of deterrence. Justice Pierce recognized the dehumanizing nature of his attack and its ripple effect in the community and beyond. The granting of full parole has entirely undermined that important message.
The Parole Board’s own decision acknowledges that Bushby has shown a repeated pattern of high-risk behaviour. It acknowledges his concerning attitudes that support violence and anti-social behaviour toward women and possible ingrained racist attitudes. It is incomprehensible to us that the board has granted him the full parole he asked for even though its own decision states that he has not expressed remorse for the victim and has indicated that he simply ‘wants to move on’.
We reject the Board’s conclusion that releasing Bushby on full parole will not pose undue risk to society. Anyone with even the most basic understanding of the racism and violence being perpetrated on Indigenous people in Thunder Bay should be able to determine that he remains a risk. Granting him parole sends a dangerous and misguided message.”
Barbara Kentner, 34, died on July 4, 2017, five months after being struck by a trailer hitch thrown by Brayden Bushby from a moving vehicle while she was walking with her sister on a residential street in Thunder Bay. Bushby was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years imprisonment. On August 13, 2026, the Parole Board of Canada granted Bushby full parole, effective immediately.
Justice Helen Pierce, in delivering the original sentence, acknowledged the far-reaching effect of this attack on the Thunder Bay community and on Indigenous Peoples across Canada, stating that it warranted a sentence emphasizing denunciation and general deterrence.
For more information please contact:
Michael Heintzman,
Director of Communications
Cell: (807) 621-2790
mheintzman@nan.ca