Canadian Woman Who Aided in Sexual Assaults, Teen Deaths Going Free

June 30, 2005 — -- Karla Homolka, reviled as one of Canada's most infamous criminals, could walk free as early as today.

Homolka, now 35, has finished a 12-year sentence for her role in the sexual assaults and slayings of two pubescent girls in the early 1990s and is set to be released between June 30 and July 5. Under the plea bargain, Homolka was not charged in the death of her sister, 15-year-old Tammy, who died in 1990 after choking on her own vomit when she was drugged and raped by Homolka and her husband.

Many in Canada believed she deserved to spend the rest of her life behind bars, but in a rush to get her to testify, the Canadian justice system agreed to the plea deal and reduced her sentence.

Now that her release is imminent, many Canadians fear the "bloodless blonde" will strike again and are demanding further punishment. Legal experts say the case is closed and Homolka has a right to move on with her life. Regardless, the case still has people wondering if Homolka was her husband's pawn or a cold-blooded killer.

"This is one of the most well-known, horrible cases in Canada," said Anthony Doob, a criminology professor at the University of Toronto. "People believe she got away with murder, literally."

Meanwhile, Homolka -- who has legally changed her name to Karla Leanne Teale -- has said shefears for her life and has sought an injunction to prevent mediafrom covering her impending release from prison.

"I believe some people wish to do the public a favor by killingme," Homolka said Tuesday in an affidavit that accompanied theinjunction request.

Homolka said all she wants is to begin a new, but anonymous life.

"As far as I know, nothing has been done to safeguard mysecurity after my release from prison, and the thought of beingrelentlessly pursued, hunted down and followed when I won't haveany protection makes me fear for my life," she said in theaffidavit.

Seventeen-year-old Homolka felt bored with high school boys, so when she met Paul Bernardo, 23, in 1987, she was swept off her feet. He was tall, good-looking and worked for an accounting firm near Toronto. Bernardo's charm won over Homolka's parents and he started spending more time in their home in St. Catharine's, near Niagara Falls. Homolka became obsessed with her new boyfriend, believing he was her ticket out of her hometown. Her parents liked the calming effect Bernardo was having on their daughter as she began to shed her rebellious teenage attitude, according to the Toronto Star.