Convicted killer attending McGill law school divides students over safety, 2nd chances
Students at McGill University are expressing concern and frustration after learning that a convicted murderer is attending law classes on campus. While the university maintains the student's right to education, peers argue that the lack of transparency regarding his violent criminal history creates an unsafe environment.
Why it matters
This case highlights the ongoing tension between the principles of prisoner rehabilitation and the safety concerns of academic communities.
The man, Jeffrey George Ewert, was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder for two attacks committed in B.C., in 1984: he sexually assaulted and killed one woman and, less than six weeks later, beat and choked a 15-year-old so severely that she was paralyzed and disabled for life, according to a summary of his case in his parole board file.
Ewert is serving a life sentence and was granted day parole in 2025. He’s been attending law classes at McGill and going to faculty events since August.
His parole was extended for another six months in June 2026. While various clinical assessments ranked Ewert’s risk of reoffending as moderate to high, official parole documents say with close supervision at a halfway house and clinical follow-up, that risk “seems to fall more into the moderate risk category.”
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