KAWARTHA LAKES-“We have to learn to forgive because Jennifer would have forgiven him,she was that kind of person” Marion McKnight told Kawartha 411 after the sentencing of the man who murdered her friend.
62 year old Jennifer Platt was found dead in the hallway of her home in Lindsay on March 22, 2016. Killed by a man she tried to help.
In her sentencing the judge described her as a kind, generous and extremely trusting person. Platt was a widow who lived alone and was hearing impaired. In their victim impact statements her family and friends described her as a kind, caring and compassionate woman who worked with church groups in her community. Her siblings said the murder has left them with “an emptiness everyday that will never be filled again.”
McKnight says she and Platt shared a bond. “She was a dear friend because we were both deaf so we had a lot in common. She was teaching us how to do sign language,” McKnight remarked through her tears. “She was that kind of person, she would help anybody and everybody. She was trying to help Rob, I can’t understand why he would do what he did.”
The life of Rob Jarvis was in stark contrast to that of Jennifer Platt. In 1993 he was seriously injured in a motorcycle crash and was prescribed opiates. He became addicted and in 2010 lost his home. The court heard he lived a transient lifestyle and was homeless at times. He needed money for drugs and to look after his elderly father.
Platt walked dogs for her neighbours in order to make some extra money and make ends meet. She met Jarvis in December 2015 while out for a walk and he offered to do some work on her home. The judge said that work was never done and instead Jarvis borrowed money from Platt. Over the next few months Platt loaned Jarvis almost $3000, none of which was ever repaid.
In March Platt began asking Jarvis to repay her the money he owed. He made various excuses and texted her, pretending to be other people, making even more excuses.
On the morning of March 19th Jarvis, then 48 years old, showed up, unannounced, at Platt’s home saying he wanted to discuss the money he owed her. When Platt became upset he grabbed her and started choking her. After Platt passed out Jarvis went to the kitchen and retrieved a large serrated knife and slashed her throat. He then removed her jewellery, took her car and drove straight to the pawn shop, where he sold the jewellery for $350.
Jarvis was convicted of second degree murder after pleading guilty.
A conviction for second degree murder comes with an automatic life sentence but eligibility for parole is determined by the judge. That decision was handed down in a Lindsay courtroom this morning.
Justice Michelle Fuerst looked at a number of aggravating factors in sentencing Jarvis. She said this was a brutal killing and Jarvis actions were deliberate and devoid of any empathy for Platt. She took into consideration the fact that Platt was killed in her own home, “the one place she was entitled to be safe”, she was vulnerable given the discrepancy in size between the two and the fact that Jarvis had a long standing drug addiction that he failed to address. She also looked at his conduct after the killing,calling it “cold and callous”.
There were several mitigating factors that Justice Fuerst examined as well. Before the murder Jarvis had only a couple of minor brushes with the law, he had no crimes of violence and he plead guilty to the crime, saving the family a lengthy trial. Fuerst said Jarvis also expressed remorse for his crime and admitted he took advantage of a kind woman.
Jarvis was facing from 10 to 25 years before he would be eligible for parole. He was sentenced to 18 years in jail without the eligibility for parole, an order to submit DNA and a non communication order.
“I’m glad justice has been served,” McKnight said. “Enjoy your life because you never know from day to day.”
