Corrine Schneider was violently murdered last October by her on again, off again longtime partner. Tim Faulkner was handed a life sentence on Friday.--SUBMITTED PHOTO
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
A city man has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 13 years for killing his common-law wife with a box cutter last fall.
Tim Faulkner gave no statement to the court, and only answered ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to questions at Court of Queen’s Bench on Friday.
He pled guilty to second-degree murder on March 18 for killing Corrine Schneider at the couple’s Third Avenue apartment in October 2021, but again Friday refused to co-operate with prosecutors’ request to take part in a pre-sentencing report.
Justice Charlene Anderson said based on the facts and case law alone, the extreme violence of the domestic homicide, balanced by Faulkner’s willingness to plead guilty, required her to apply the minimum sentence of life and the Crown’s suggestion for parole eligibility.
“It is a tragedy to her parents and it is a tragedy for society, in general,” said Anderson.
“We’ve needlessly lost another woman to violence.”
Faulkner, 56, appeared in person at the virtual Queen’s Bench court hearing, answering questions loudly to be heard by microphone in the mostly vacant courtroom.
He sat tensely, mostly hunched over in the prisoner’s dock, and at one point appeared emotionally overwhelmed as prosecutors detailed comparable cases.
Faulkner, who represented himself, also refused to look at copies of two victim impact statements before they were read aloud by Crown prosecutor Ryan Anstey.
Schneider’s mother, Marilyn Taylor, said in her statement her daughter’s murder robbed her of her only confidant.
It also leaves Taylor with no one to entrust her care or follow her instructions as she progresses with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.
“Tim should have walked away,” wrote Taylor. “I hate that I can’t know how she died. He has taken my sunshine away.”
She believed her daughter was prepared to leave the relationship and start a new life after recovering from recent medical problems.
Dale Schneider, the victim’s father, remembered his daughter as a bright light in his life. She was handy, worked as a building supervisor and loved learning tips about home repair that he would teach her.
“I can’t argue with the sentence, but I reckon he should stay in jail for 25 years,” he told the News after attending Friday’s hour-long hearing in person. “That’s what he stole from her … a third of her life.”
An agreed statement of facts read aloud at the March 18 hearing stated the couple was in a decades-long on again, off again relationship. They reunited several years ago, but were experiencing difficulties and were considering separation.
No motivation was given for the specific attack, but the statement signed by Faulkner outlines how he used a razor knife, leaving dozens of deep cuts in her face and neck, breaking the blade “numerous times” until she bled to death. Afterwards, Faulkner cleaned himself up, changed his clothes, covered Schneider’s body with a blanket and called police.
An autopsy has yet not been completed.
Crown prosecutor Marni MacKay said the violence of the crime and “extreme” violation of trust in a domestic relationship, were aggravating factors. Case law suggested the minimum sentence of life should be coupled with a potential parole timeline of no less than 12-14 years, she said
“The court is left with a limited picture of the accused,” she said. “While he has pleaded guilty, he has not made a confession or any formal statement to police.”
Court also heard that a risk assessment, typical in sentencing, could not be completed in the three weeks since it was ordered. Faulkner told the court he did not agree to an extension.
Faulkner has been in custody for 166 days since his arrest on Oct. 25, and made his intention to plead guilty known early. He argued at an earlier hearing that he wished to proceed directly to sentencing immediately.
Judge Anderson allowed a guilty plea to be entered at the earliest possible date in March, but postponed sentencing while the report process was initiated.
“He has not expressed any remorse, though he has entered a very early guilty plea, which itself shows some level of remorse,” said Anderson while delivering the sentence.
“He’s taken responsibility … and he didn’t attempt to conceal evidence. That said, it’s a domestic violence case, and Mr. Faulkner was in a position in trust. The extreme violence is an aggravating factor, and very tragic.”
