Justice for Tori Stafford, Rafferty found guilty
Justice has been served for Tori Stafford.
Michael Raffery was found guilty of first degree murder, kidnapping and sexual assault of the 8-year-old girl, as the jury brought their decision forward late Friday evening in London.
Rafferty will automatically serve life in prison, and victim impact statements will be read during his sentencing tomorrow.
Reports are saying that Rafferty is set to appeal all three guilty verdictsl.
A candlelight vigil is set to be held in Woodstock in honour of the little girl.
Ever since news broke back in April of 2009, the entire case has touched the hearts of Canadians, and right here in Chatham-Kent.
Back when the case was a missing person investigation, Wallaceburg resident Patrick Wilbur created an Editorial Cartoon dedicated to the the missing 8-year-old girl.
When the case was shifted into a murder investigation, when Rafferty and Terri-Lynne McClintic were brought into custody, Chatham-Kent residents sounded off about what they thought of the case. Check out the video here.
The case had more of a local angle as well, as at one point while Rafferty was in custody, in October of 2009, he was transported to the Chatham jail.
The reasoning for the move was never officially disclosed by the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, but he did appear in Woodstock court via video from the Chatham location.
For a full recount of the Rafferty trial, check out the coverage from the London Free Press here.
Let us know your thoughts in a comment below.
mar
May 14, 2012 at 5:16 pm
the lawyer will milk the system like they all do. Tori will rest in peace now because the parasites involved with her demise will be in crowbar hotel and lets hope they arent protected in there as Little Tori never had a chance to get to 9 years old and had to fight for her life, so why should those 2 get special treatment?. The ones who make movies about this kind of thing should be locked up with them. im still searching for an answers like why wasnt Tori picked up by parents from school?, a girl from the west is still missing and i know what happened to her but theres still missing posters out there and shes still listed as missing. i did the right thing and told the authorities the info but i didnt get anywhere and the person working whos privy to this info who told me is still at her job but the little girl is still not found.. what more can a person do as all help was offered but nothing was done to get her back.. in relation to Tori and her family im glad Rodney has made a difference in Toris name so child find will take things alot more seriously in the future.. if a childs missing for any length of time get out and look for her as time is NOT on your side in these cases. i met my child every day at school even when i was working i found a way to be there so quit with the excuses.. your kids come first over anything. as far as oxy i think the people who invented it should be in prison. rest in peace Tori your safe now away from all the bad people in this world..
Margaret Sikora
May 28, 2012 at 12:54 am
Mar is way of center, how can this person even think this, let alone say this..it is like you are blaming Tories family for not being there to walk her home, if you had read the whole story you would know that this was the first time this little angel walked home by herself..don’t you dare put any blame on anyone, don’t you think her parents are not sleeping every night, blaming themselves for what happened to this precious little girl..you need to shut your mouth…and just pray that her parents will someday have a peaceful day..shame on you for your comments..shame on you…hope it never comes back to bite you in your but….your comments made me literally sick to my stomach….
Margaret Sikora
May 28, 2012 at 12:58 am
and another thing Mar, there are wonderful lawyers out there, I am sure they will not milk the system dry….your thoughts and writes are so sick, you have lots of problems, I wonder why you hate so much and are so determined to say horrible things about people that love this little girl and the lawyers that brought her killers to justice..get a grip and take a long hard look in the mirror I really think there is something wrong with your mind and thoughts..you should be just praying for Tories family to find peace someday, which I don;t know if they ever will……shame on you again
Linda
May 14, 2012 at 5:32 pm
I am so sorry for Tori and her family. Although this is justice, you can never bring her back.
LL Heston
May 14, 2012 at 7:41 pm
My heart goes out to Tori’s family and friends. What a horrific way to lose a child. This is one case where the death penalty should be the punishment. Why should these two poor excuses for human beings be allowed to live and maybe even be set free sometime down the road?
Would they do this type of sick crime again? We can’t know. There is too much child murder anymore and since the punishment doesn’t fit the crime, it needs to be changed. We need the death penalty in Canada!
mar
May 15, 2012 at 5:28 am
i believe law enforcement did everything possible to try to find Tori within there means and it hurt them to discover her reamains the way they did. i would never want to be given that task as a job. it must haunt the ones involved. Tori was an innocent girl taken for no reason and all thats left is people wondering why and changing the game pan so this cant happen again but why now? when we all knew what was out there? the parasites allowed to roam the streets? lets change the penalitys for these crimes, come on its the 21st century our kids need our protection. Tori is gone because people dropped the ball.. no kid should be allowed to leave school unless accompanied by a parent or guardian of that child.. how hard is that?. im not happy about the way things are done to protect kids and its not acceptable to wait for people to form commitees to figure it out.. its simple in my mind.. if your a parent with kids in school pic them up or have a friend with i.d or relative with i.d pick them up before they are permitted to leave the school grounds.. is this too much to ask? or will it cost millions?.. im sick of the lame excuses that i hear daily on lets past the buck.. take your own resonsibility for yourself and do whats right for a change and your kids will be home safe where they belong. ive followed this story for 3 stinkin years BUT ask yourself this.. how many more are out there creepin on your own kids??… scary isnt it?? WAKE UP.. cause its obvious that others arent going to do it for you..i am sure of one thing that if anyone harmed my daughter they wouldnt make it to court let alone jail and thats a promise ill forever keep.. thats my personal justice and if im held accountable for that then so be it..its my job to protect my little girl no matter what or who is in my way.. PERIOD.id actualy go as far as get locked up just so i can get to the person who hurt her.
blather
May 15, 2012 at 2:14 pm
I’ve followed this trial daily, and am shaken by how easy it is for a couple of sickos to carry out such a horrendous crime.
While there is a lot to say about this thing, one point that seems to stand out is the apparent rampant use of drugs in S.W. Ontario! The two sickos, Tori’s mom, how many others?
I belong to a group favoring “Tori’s Law”. Capital punishment for these two, and any others confirmed guilty. Check out Charles Adler on Corus Entertainment radio stations across the country.
Ex-liberal
May 15, 2012 at 5:45 pm
I’m glad that the family can somewhat move on now. But I still think the sentence is insufficient. I agree with blather… capitol punishment should be re-instated in Canada for cases such as these.
Pg
May 16, 2012 at 3:02 am
Cases like this always are difficult as the lives of the innocent are hardest to lose. In this case is there really any justice really? No words, or punishments with ever be enough. Her family can no longer be the same. With that being said, I’m not comfortable with Capitol punishment. There have been too many corrupt investigations, too many innocent people killed. You can’t be wrong in these things. I don’t believe in an “eye for an eye”. Please don’t confuse me as a sympathizer though. I truly feel he’s guilty of everything and will have a miserable time in prison. Our justice system is far from perfect but it still needs to be given space to play itself out.
Pg
May 18, 2012 at 8:22 pm
FYI, since I wrote this there was a case in Texas where they realized they had killed an innocent man.
mar
May 28, 2012 at 4:54 am
Dear Margaret, i wasnt pointing fingers i was stating a fact that if your not doing anything then pick your kids up from school.. or make arrangements for someone to do it for you.ive followed this from the very beginning and prayed that Tori was found alive.. for the record i HATE drug addicts PERIOD ..and i could care less how you think or feel you have a dirty mouth.