'I will never forgive you,' Punky's sister tells Sleigh
Last updated May 27 2005 04:01 PM MDT
CBC News
EDMONTON – Clifford Sleigh broke down in tears Friday, apologizing to the family of the six-year-old girl he sexually assaulted and killed, but Corrine Gustavson's relatives dismissed his attempt to make amends, saying it's 13 years too late.

"He's not sorry," Corrine's mother Karen Vallette said outside the court. "If he was sorry he would have come forward a long time ago."


Clifford Sleigh (CP file photo)
"I thought it was just a bunch of hot air," Corrine's uncle Ron Davies added. "If he was so remorseful, he would have come forward in 1993. The only reason why he's started talking so much now is he knows that DNA profiled put him right at the spot."

Corrine, nicknamed Punky, was taken from her Edmonton yard on Sept. 6, 1992, and her body was found in a Strathcona County truck yard two days later. Sleigh was charged in 2003, after police obtained a DNA sample from him.

She had been sexually assaulted and smothered, the medical examiner said.

Court of Queen's Bench Justice Terry Clackson sentenced Sleigh to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years, the minimum sentence he could impose after a jury found Sleigh guilty of first-degree murder, kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault.

Five members of Corrine's family – Vallette, Davies, sister Roseanne, father Ray Gustavson and cousin Amanda Davies – read victim impact statements in court, detailing the effect the girl's death has had on them.

Indepth: The family's victim impact statements


Corrine "Punky" Gustavson
"There is not a day that goes by that we don't feel the pain of losing her," Vallette read. "We think of her every day. What would she be like today? I never got a chance to say bye to her or 'I love you, my little girl.'"

Vallette said she often wonders about her daughter's last moments.

"Was she cold? Did she hurt? Did she call out for me? I constantly wonder in my mind what she went through," she said.

Roseanne Gustavson wrote one line: "I've been waiting a very long time for this moment, but I just can't put my fingers on what I want to say to you, but all I would like you to hear is that I will never forgive you for taking my baby sister away from me and the rest of my family."

And Ron Davies wished Sleigh "pain every day...I pray to Mother Earth and the spirits of the wolf and the eagle that your soul will never, ever rest in peace. I hope that every time you close your eyes, you are haunted by what you did."

Sleigh, who showed little emotion throughout the trial, even when the jury pronounced him guilty, broke down Friday when he apologized to the family.

"I just want to apologize and say that I'm sorry," Sleigh said, before being interrupted by Amanda Davies, who shouted: "Don't cry for us. We don't need your remorse, buddy."

Sleigh continued, saying, "I'm sorry for the pain I've brought the family. I accept full responsibility for my actions."

Davies yelled back, "No you don't."

At the start of the trial, Sleigh admitted to abducting and sexually assaulting Punky. He tried to plead guilty to manslaughter but the Crown rejected the offer, deciding to proceed on the first-degree murder charge.

Eleven jurors deliberated for about 11 hours before deciding that Sleigh, now 42, was guilty of all three charges. They were never told that Sleigh had two previous convictions for sexually assaulting young girls.

Punky had been playing in her yard with a friend when Sleigh drove by. The court heard that Sleigh, who was angry at his common-law wife, had headed out to find and rape a girl he knew. Unable to find her, he spotted Punky and grabbed her because she was the child closest to the fence.

Police considered him a suspect early in the investigation, and said his baseball cleats matched prints where Punky's body had been found. But Sleigh's common-law wife at the time and friends said he had been with them for the entire Labour Day weekend when the girl disappeared.

شكرا على القصه الحلوه

ولو أني ما أعرف إنجليزي

عـــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــادمبموضوع
الله يخليك ترجمه عربي
مفهمتي ايش الموضوع اصلا

المهم احسنت
على العبور

هههههههههههههههههههه
ارنوب بعدك ما فهمت
كيف تبيهم يترجموها وهنا منتدى الغه الانجليزيه
بس تصدق تراها فكره حلوه ان القصه تترجم لانه را تفيد ناس كثيرين ويعرفوا موقع الكلمات وايش معناهم بالعربي والانجليزي وهذه الطريقه حلوه كثير لفهم الغه الانجليزيه بسهوله
يسلمووو على المشاركه وانا لما اوصل البيت ان شاء الله راح اترجمها الك اخي ارنوب للفائده
تحياتي

احسنت اخي على المرور

Thanks Salim for the story
Sleigh's wife said that , her hasband was with them in Labour Day weekend during the crime time. I am wondering if you could tell me what happen next I mean who is involved in the crime
Thanks

تسلم سالم على القصه
ولو انها بالانجليزي بس ها دبر عمرك

مشكور اخي على المرور

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته
كيفك اخوي سالم
اولا. ابدعت....لاكن ....طريقتك....خاطأة..

لماذا؟
السبب :
عادة الانسان انه يحب الشيء السهل البسيط...او كما قال المثل...رب قليل انفع من كثير....لذلك ...احببت ان انصحك بان تطرح قصص قصيرة حتى يسهل على الكثيرين قرأتها...ولانتفاع بها...ولاكن لو سردنا القصص ...كما فعلت...فلن يقرأها احد بكاملها ...وانما...يمر عليها مرا ...وربما بلا استفادة...بل ربما لن يقرأها لما تحتاجه من وقت....وكما قلت ...رب قليل انفع من كثير...ولهذا ..احببت التنوية..
وشكرا
best wishes
اخوووك ابو قاسم....