Man who killed Barbara Kentner in Thunder Bay granted full parole

The man convicted in 2021 in the death of Barbara Kentner in Thunder Bay has been granted full parole.  The decision by a parole board panel to release Brayden Bushby is effective immediately, according to Parole Board of Canada documents obtained by APTN News. Bushby was convicted of manslaughter for throwing a trailer hitch that fatally injured Kentner, 34, of Wabigoon First Nation. Kentner was walking down a Thunder Bay street with her sister when Bushby threw the hitch from a moving vehicle.  She died July 4, 2017, six months after being hit in the abdomen by the hitch. Bushby’s initial sentence of seven years and 11 months started June 7, 2021, and included a 10-year weapons prohibition. The attack appeared to be, in part, racially motivated. It came to light in court that Bushby yelled either “I got one” or “I hit one” after he threw the hitch. He was arrested “several” days later after three people in the car came forward to police. According to the documents on its decision following a review panel, “the Board determines a release on full parole now will not pose undue risk and the release will contribute to the protection of society by facilitating your reintegration back into society as a law-abiding citizen…” Bushby had previously been granted day parole in 2023. In 2024, it was revoked due to Bushby being in breach of several conditions. He was found in possession of contraband including a vape pen and juice and a knife fashioned into a screwdriver during a search in April 2023. He had also consumed alcohol and associated with a woman known to police and involved in the drug subculture. Perhaps more concerning were his “attitude and use of symbols,” the board noted. Bushby obtained a tattoo of a Confederate flag, which the parole board said is “widely considered a racist symbol. His explanation for the tattoo was not found credible by staff.” Bushby was also “identified as an instigator” in cutting a swastika into the lawn where he was residing, leading to a temporary transfer back to medium security. “To add insult to injury, while in custody and in the community, you continued to demonstrate attitudes indicative of being racist and [of]arrogance,” the board said. While the Parole Board said those concerns were balanced against later improvements, they were significant factors in the board’s risk assessment and the conditions now imposed on his full release, which include not consuming, purchasing or possessing alcohol or non-prescribed drugs, not entering drinking establishments and following a treatment plan for substance use, his attitude, mental health and emotion management. He’s also ordered not to associate with individuals involved in criminal activity or substance abuse or the victim’s immediate family and he must also report all relationships and changes to his parole supervisor. The colonial violence against our people continues. Thinking about Barbara’s family and community today.#BarbaraKentner#JusticeDeniedhttps://t.co/62jCUwvmC0 — Alvin Fiddler (@gcfiddler) August 18, 2026 Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said the Parole Board’s decision “is devastating news for Barbara Kentner’s family, the community of Wabigoon Lake Ojibway First Nation, and the entire Thunder Bay community.” “Barbara was greatly loved and is greatly missed. We are extremely disappointed to learn that her attacker has been granted full parole and that parole officials have deemed him suitable for reintegration into society. This feels like a profound injustice,” Fiddler said in an emailed statement. Fiddler said that the judge at Bushby’s sentencing sent a “strong message of deterrence. Justice (Helen M.) Pierce recognized the dehumanizing nature of his attack and its ripple effect in the community and beyond. The granting of full parole has entirely undermined that important message.” “We reject the Board’s conclusion that releasing Bushby on full parole will not pose undue risk to society. Anyone with even the most basic understanding of the racism and violence being perpetrated on Indigenous people in Thunder Bay should be able to determine that he remains a risk. Granting him parole sends a dangerous and misguided message,” Fiddler said. Bushby said he plans to reside in a family home in another province and has confirmed employment and financial stability and the Board “is satisfied that risk is manageable and release will aid reintegration.” The Board documents do not say which province Bushby will be residing in. Continue Reading