A father convicted of killing his son in a horrific case of child abuse has been granted full parole and is set to be deported back to Jamaica on his release.
Edward Dooley was convicted, along with his wife, of second-degree murder in 2002 for the death of his seven-year-old son, Randal.
Dooley was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 13 years.
In a recent decision, the Parole Board of Canada said it was granting Dooley full parole.
"It is the board's opinion that you will not present an undue risk to society if released on full parole," the board wrote.
A release plan in the decision said that Dooley would be taken into the custody of the Canada Border Services Agency upon release and would be deported to Jamaica shortly after.
At the trial for Dooley and his wife, court heard Randal was brutally abused for months after he and his brother came from Jamaica to live with their father and stepmother in Toronto in 1997.
The couple’s three-month trial made headlines across Canada as the devastating details of Randal’s brief life came to light.
Court heard Randal weighed only 41 pounds when he died in 1998, and had 13 fractured ribs, a lacerated liver, multiple brain injuries and bruises all over his body.
The trial found the stepmother was the one who fatally struck Randal and meted out most of the abuse, while her husband turned a blind eye to her actions.
After Randal’s death in September 1998, his father and stepmother told police that the boy had tumbled from an upper bunk bed and struck his head on the floor.
The couple appealed their conviction, but their bid for a new trial was dismissed in 2009.
The parole board decision said Dooley's case management team reported he openly admits he failed as a parent to protect his son and is remorseful about Randal's death.
"They state that you have 'made it obvious' that you never want the offending to happen again and that you have expressed 'continued sadness' over the victim's death," the board wrote. "They rate your accountability level as high."
Dooley had been denied full parole twice in the past.
In 2017, he was allowed to temporarily leave prison while supervised to perform community service, which he has said was part of an effort to atone for his crime.
In its latest decision, the parole board found that Dooley successfully completed multiple periods of community service.
The board decision said Dooley is expected to live with his sister in Jamaica after being deported until he finds his own accommodations, and his brother has offered to employ him at his company.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published October 27, 2023.
Nairah Ahmed, The Canadian Press
