Victim’s father says warrant for Cheyann Peeteetuce no surprise

The father of a 17-year-old girl killed by a drunk driver who was fleeing police in a stolen truck says he’s not surprised to learn the woman responsible for his daughter’s death is once again in trouble with the law.

Correctional Service Canada (CSC) confirmed this week that an arrest warrant had been issued for Cheyann Peeteetuce. She was released in May after completing two-thirds of her sentence for causing the 2014 deaths of Sarah Wensley and J.P. Haughey, both 17.

Wensley’s father, David, said he was disappointed, but not shocked in the least when he learned about the warrant issued just a few months after Peeteetuce was let out of prison.

“She’s just not a nice person. And the courts know that and the courts shouldn’t be surprised either. Nobody should be surprised.”

He said he’s been on edge ever since he learned Peeteetuce had been released.

“I can’t even go downtown without looking for her. I’m always watching the crowd in case I do run into her.”

He said the latest news about the warrant for Peeteetuce’s arrest only adds to his belief that she’ll likely be in and out of prison for the rest of her life, noting she’d already had frequent run-ins with the law before the crash that killed his daughter.

“I blame most of this on the justice system, because if they would have handled her correctly when she first started getting in trouble, maybe she wouldn’t be where she is now.”

While he didn’t hold out much hope for Peeteetuce’s long-term ability to stay out of trouble, he said he hoped she’d be quickly caught and returned to prison for now.

“I hope she’s not in another stolen vehicle or some gang-related situation where she’s hurting somebody.”

In the meantime, he said he’s focused on continuing treatment for his own mental health — and determined to focus on happy memories of his daughter.

“She’s with me all the time. She’s at my side. She’s always on my mind…me and my wife talk about her just about every day and we have laughs. She had such a great personality. She was a great kid.”

CSC declined to provide the conditions imposed on Peeteetuce at release, or to say if the warrant for her arrest was related to her breaching conditions, citing privacy laws.

However, documents obtained by 650 CKOM from the National Parole Board show she was ordered not to consume alcohol or go to any business whose primary purpose is selling liquor.

She was also ordered not to use illicit drugs, to take medication prescribed for her mental health, to follow the treatment plan laid out by her parole supervisor and not to have contact with her victims. Her release conditons also forbade her from associating with known criminals, gang members, drug users or others engaged in criminal activity.