Despite an “abysmal” record and an “enduring commitment” to a criminal lifestyle, a Kamloops drug dealer has been granted day parole a year and a half into his nearly six-year prison sentence.
Jeffrey Kerr Milne, 54, to four counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking.
Milne was driving a car on Westsyde Road on Sept. 14, 2020, when the vehicle left the roadway and struck a light pole and a fence. When police arrived at the scene, they searched his backpack and found 64 grams of meth, 30 grams of fentanyl and 12 grams of cocaine, as well as $5,000 in cash, empty baggies and a digital scale.
Five months later, on Feb. 17, 2021, Milne was arrested again after Mounties found him in the bathroom of a fast food restaurant in Sahali. When police searched his backpack, they found 65 grams of meth, 56 grams of fentanyl and 50 grams of cocaine, as well as $3,110 in cash and a baton.
The combined value of the drugs seized during the two arrests was $17,500.
Milne was sentenced to five years in prison and given credit for 11 months time served.
Following a hearing earlier this month, the Parole Board of Canada granted Milne day parole based largely on his good behaviour while in prison since his sentencing.
“Since arriving in the federal system, your institutional behaviour has been good,” the board said in a written decision.
“You have successfully resisted the temptation to associate with negative peers and to use drugs, you successfully completed recommended programming with good reports of performance and you managed to improve upon your correctional plan ratings.”
That has not always been the case for Milne, who was busted with drugs while behind bars as recently as 2021. PBC officials described his history of complying with conditions in the community as “abysmal.”
“Your criminal history demonstrates criminal commitment and versatility, and an enduring commitment to drug-related offences, negative associates and non-compliance with the conditions of community supervision,” the decision states.
Milne is scheduled to become eligible for full parole sometime this month.
