Day parole for Reena Virk's killer extended another 6 months

Kerry Sim, formerly Kelly Ellard, is seen in a file image.

The B.C. woman who killed Reena Virk has been granted another six months of day parole, with the Parole Board of Canada recognizing her for “continuing stable and co-operative behaviour.”

Kerry Sim, who changed her name from Kelly Ellard, has been allowed day parole regularly since 2017, allowing her to raise the two children she birthed while in custody, and gradually foster a support network of friends in the community.

She’s currently serving a life sentence for drowning 14-year-old Virk underneath Victoria’s Craigflower Bridge on Nov. 14, 1997, after the victim had already been swarmed and beaten by Sim and her friends.

At the time, Sim was one year older than Virk. She’s now in her early 40s.

In approving her latest parole extension earlier this month, the board noted that while Sim has had stumbles – including allegations of domestic violence between her and the father of her children in 2021 – she has been on good behaviour over the past several terms of her daytime privileges.

“Importantly, you are fulfilling your responsibilities as a parent,” the board wrote in the Oct. 9 decision.

“Though you have yet to find employment, the board recognizes that this is difficult to do for a single parent when childcare is so expensive and balancing parental roles and work responsibilities so challenging.”

She is not in a relationship with the father of her children, according to the documents, and her mother does not live near the community-based residential facility where Sim has been staying in the Lower Mainland.

Sim has also taken more accountability for Virk’s death than she initially admitted to, demonstrating “some level of remorse and victim empathy,” the board wrote.

In one example of that increased empathy, cited at the time of her last day parole extension in March, Sim called the TV dramatization of her notorious crime, in the Hulu series “Under the Bridge,” disrespectful to Virk’s family.

The most recent psychological risk assessment of Sim was completed in 2016, and found she presented a “moderate to high-moderate risk for future violence over the long term, and a relatively low risk over the short term.”

“Your risk would be on the higher end should you abuse substances or associate with negative individuals,” the board wrote.

To address those concerns, Sim is under several conditions for her day parole, including that stay away from alcohol, drugs, and anyone involved in criminal activity.

She’s also barred from having any contact – direct or indirect – with Virk’s family and must report any sexual and non-sexual relationships to her parole supervisor.