Kelly Ellard, the woman serving a life sentence for the brutal beating and drowning of Saanich teen Reena Virk, is going to be a mother.
Ellard, 33, is eight months pregnant, and the father is a man named Darwin Dorozan, who was out of prison on day parole when he was allowed intimate visits with Ellard, according to a story by the Vancouver Sun’s Kim Bolan.
The Sun reported that Ellard and Dorozan got to know each other as pen pals, writing for more than a year before being allowed to have a private family visit.
Dorozan, 41, was granted full parole in August, but it was revoked after he allegedly violated his conditions.
In the Parole Board of Canada’s decision to grant Dorozan full parole, the board stated: “While there are concerns about your relationship with your girlfriend, who is pregnant, your [case management team] believes you have been open and accountable about the relationship.”
Ellard is not identified as the girlfriend in the documents, but the Sun has confirmed with several sources that she is Dorozan’s pregnant girlfriend.
Parole Board of Canada documents from Ellard’s unsuccessful parole bid in May also make reference to a boyfriend.
“You have family support and the support of your boyfriend,” the board said. “Your boyfriend is a federal parolee but in community assessment No. 6 he is assessed by [the Correctional Service of Canada] as a positive source of support.”
Dorozan is serving a seven-year and two-month sentence for a string of violent break and enters in 2010 and 2011 to fund his heroin addiction. Some of the homes were occupied, and Dorozan sprayed one resident in the face with bear spray.
Dorozan served a previous sentence for his part in a kidnapping of a drug dealer, who was shot and killed. He was initially charged with first-degree murder but was convicted of robbery and kidnapping with a firearm.
Virk’s grandfather, Mukand Pallan, said he was surprised by the news of Ellard’s pregnancy.
“She’s a bad name for the family,” he said. “It is shocking; you don’t expect that in the jail.”
He said he still gets angry every time he hears her name.
“There’s nothing else we can expect from a girl like that,” Pallan said. “The child she’s carrying, he or she will be very shameful of his or her mother.”
The Correctional Service of Canada would not comment on Ellard’s pregnancy, citing privacy rules.
Federal inmates are eligible for private family visits if they meet certain criteria. The visits can last up to 72 hours and occur every two months.
Correctional Service spokeswoman Megan Hooper said inmates have access to non-essential mental-health care that can contribute to their rehabilitation and reintegration, which includes pre- and post-natal care.
“Health professionals working in CSC’s health centres provide inmates with a range of essential health-care services. CSC relies on community services to provide other specialized care, including the services of obstetricians and gynecologists,” said Hooper.
An inmate would give birth at an outside hospital, and would be supervised by an escort.
It’s unclear who would care for the baby if both parents are in prison.
In some cases, babies can stay with their incarcerated mother through the mother-child residential program, implemented in 1997.
“The program is intended to foster positive relationships between federally incarcerated women and their children by providing a supportive environment that promotes stability and continuity for the mother-child relationship, and to assist in the rehabilitation and successful reintegration of these women offenders,” Hooper said.
Applications for children to live with their mothers are assessed on a case-by-case basis, with the safety, security and health of the child a top consideration.
Ellard was convicted of the 1997 death in 2005, after three trials. She was found guilty in 2000, but the decision was overturned on appeal. Her second trial ended in a hung jury resulting in a mistrial. In 2005, a third jury found her guilty, but that conviction was also overturned on appeal. In 2009, the Supreme Court of Canada reinstated her conviction for second-degree murder.
In May, during a parole-board hearing in Abbotsford, Ellard took responsibility for her role in the killing for the first time. Ellard admitted that if she hadn’t taken part in the attack, Virk would likely still be alive.
On Nov. 14, 1997, Ellard and a group of mostly girls swarmed Virk under the Craigflower Bridge in Saanich. Virk limped across the bridge, followed by Ellard and Warren Glowatski. The pair held Virk’s head underwater until she drowned.
Ellard was denied parole in May, as the board found she “demonstrated serious behavioural problems” that included “assaultive, intimidating and threatening behaviour.” Ellard also admitted to taking crystal meth while in prison.
— with files from the Vancouver Sun
