"It's Time": A Victim's Stepmother on Word That Clifford Olson Was Dying (CHEK News, 2011)

Name: "It's Time": A Victim's Stepmother on Word That Clifford Olson Was Dying (CHEK News, 2011)
Uploaded: 2011-10-04T00:00:00Z
Duration: 1 min 55 s
Description: In September 2011, as victims' families were told Clifford Olson was dying of cancer, the stepmother of victim Colleen Daignault, who created a memorial to her, spoke to CHEK News. Olson is not heard.

In September 2011, as victims' families were told Clifford Olson was dying of cancer, the stepmother of victim Colleen Daignault, who created a memorial to her, spoke to CHEK News. Olson is not heard.

Subject: Clifford Robert Olson
Recorded: about September 21, 2011
Runtime: 1:55

Content warning: Refers to the torture and murder of 11 children and teenagers; no graphic detail.

The Interview

This is not an interview with Clifford Olson, who is not heard. It is a two-minute report by CHEK News of Victoria, British Columbia, from September 2011, when victims' families were told that Olson, then 71, was dying of cancer. Reporter Stacy Ross speaks with Dee Johnston, whose stepdaughter, Colleen Daignault, was one of Olson's victims, and who created a memorial to her 20 years earlier (shown in the report as a web page).

Historical Context

Between November 1980 and July 1981 Clifford Olson murdered 11 children and teenagers, aged 9 to 18, in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. Colleen Daignault, 13, of Surrey, disappeared on April 16, 1981, and was found five months later. Olson was arrested on August 12, 1981. Under a disputed agreement in which the RCMP paid $10,000 per victim into a trust for his wife, he confessed and led police to remains. In January 1982 he pleaded guilty to 11 counts of murder and was sentenced on January 14, 1982, to concurrent life terms.

Circumstances

On September 21, 2011, victims' families reported that Correctional Service Canada officials had told them Olson's cancer had spread and that he had been moved to hospital in Quebec. Correctional Service Canada declined to confirm his illness, citing privacy. At the same time the federal government was moving to cut off his Old Age Security payments. Olson died in custody, in hospital in Quebec, on September 30, 2011, nine days after the report. CHEK posted it on October 4, 2011, together with its report on the 1981 arrest.

What the Recording Covers

The anchor introduces the news that Olson "may only have days to live." The reporter describes Johnston's memorial and Colleen Daignault's murder, and the families' news that Olson had been moved to hospital and was not expected to live out the month. Johnston says she and other parents had hoped he was "really sick," that she was raised not to wish ill of anyone, "and yet, my gut reaction is, yes, yes, yes, it's time." The reporter recalls the 1982 "dollars-for-bodies" deal, his parole applications and his fight to keep his federal pension. Johnston says "what goes around comes around," but that his death will bring her no peace: "It's never going to happen." The report ends by noting that Corrections Canada had not confirmed Olson's illness.

What Makes the Recording Significant

It records a victim's family member reacting in the last days of Olson's life, before his death was announced, and shows how the case still weighed on the families thirty years on.

Archival Importance

A report from the Vancouver Island station CHEK, posted on its own channel.

Important Caveats

Olson is not heard or seen speaking. The spelling "Colleen Daignault" appears on screen on the memorial page. The spellings of Dee Johnston's and Stacy Ross's names come from the audio and machine captions and should be confirmed from the on-screen graphics. The report's "11 children" is the reporter's phrase; his victims were aged 9 to 18. The prognosis was what officials told the families; Correctional Service Canada did not confirm it. Johnston's opinions are her own.

Chek Anchor: Good evening. A horrific chapter in several families' lives could soon come to a close as Canada's most notorious serial killer, Clifford Olson, who's serving multiple life sentences, at the age of 71 is dying of cancer and may only have days to live. Stacy Ross reports.

Stacy Ross: Dee Johnston created this memorial 20 years ago to help her cope with her stepdaughter's murder.

Dee Johnston: People never forget the faces of the children that he killed.

Stacy Ross: Colleen Daignault was one of 11 children tortured and killed by Clifford Olson in an eight-month stretch in the early '80s in greater Vancouver. Today, his victims' families have been told that this country's most reviled serial killer is himself near death.

Dee Johnston: I'm in touch with a couple of the other parents, and we all said there's something going on, hopefully. And this is a terrible thing to say, but it was, hopefully he was really sick.

Stacy Ross: Olson has been moved from prison to hospital in Quebec, and officials have told his victims' family members that he isn't expected to live out the month, saying the 71-year-old's cancer has spread throughout his body.

Dee Johnston: I was raised to believe that you don't wish ill of anyone. You don't hope somebody dies. And yet, my gut reaction is, yes, yes, yes, it's time.

Stacy Ross: After a controversial dollars-for-bodies deal sent Olson to prison in 1982, he has been anything but quiet. He has continued to apply for parole and has made headlines most recently for his battle to keep his federal pension. When he dies, Johnston feels perhaps justice will finally be served.

Dee Johnston: What goes around comes around.

Stacy Ross: Some family members of his victims say Olson's death will bring them closure. Johnston says, not for her.

Dee Johnston: I don't think anybody's going to have real peace. It's never going to happen.

Stacy Ross: Corrections Canada has not confirmed that Olson is ill, citing privacy concerns. [01:55: clip ends.] ---