WINNIPEG — Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says the recent release of a man who killed two women “disgusts” him, and he’s asking the federal government to change sentencing and parole board provisions.
In a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney, Kinew says the recent release of Shawn Lamb seems to suggest that society is more concerned with Lamb’s well-being than with Lamb’s victims.
Lamb pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 2012 deaths of two Indigenous women — Carolyn Sinclair and Lorna Blacksmith — and was sentenced to 20 years the following year.
By law, most federal inmates are automatically released after serving two-thirds of their sentence, which is known as statutory release.
Kinew is asking Carney to reconsider sentencing and parole eligibility for repeat violent offenders.
He is also asking for a review of the composition of the parole board to reflect diverse perspectives and new review mechanisms for parole decisions involving serious violent offences.
“The release of Mr. Lamb disgusts many Canadians, myself included, because it seems to suggest our society places more concern on the well-being of a serial killer than on their victims such as Ms. Sinclair and Ms. Blacksmith,” Kinew wrote in the letter, dated Nov. 17 and released Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 25, 2025.
Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press
