Correction: A previous version of this story said Ryan was being allowed 72-hour absences from prison. This is not correct, he has been granted day parole to a community-based residential facility.
The man convicted in the 1991 murder of an Okotoks teen has been granted day parole.
Tristan Ryan, formerly Bradley Paetsch, was convicted of first-degree murder in the stabbing death of 16-year-old Stephanie Spooner in her Okotoks home on Jan. 23, 1991.
The Parole Board of Canada granted day parole following an in-person hearing on March 7, allowing Ryan to stay at a residential facility for six months.
The Correctional Services of Canada (CSC) said Ryan abides by institutional rules at the minimum-security facility where he is housed, has completed recommended programming, and has a realistic plan for release.
Conditions attached to the decision include no contact with the victim’s family and an order to report any relationships or friendships with females to his parole officer.
Ryan was 18 when he committed the murder and had served six months in a juvenile facility for attempting to stab Spooner a year prior. He is now 51.
He was granted full parole in 2018, but it was later revoked for parole violations. At the time, he had served 27 years of a life sentence.
A subsequent request for day parole was denied in 2022.
