Karla Leanne Homolka, born May 4, 1970, in Mississauga, Ontario, is one one of Canada’s most notorious serial killers. One villainous part of the infamous killer couple known as “The Ken and Barbie Killers” or “The Schoolgirl Killers“, alongside her then-husband, Paul Bernardo.
In the early 1990s they were responsible for the abduction, rape, and murder of at least three young women, including Karla Homolka’s 15-year old sister Tammy Homolka. The couple videotaped their assaults, revealing the full extent of their depravity.
The case shocked Canada due to the extreme brutality of the crimes. It outraged the world due to Homolka’s initial portrayal as a coerced accomplice, who secured an overly lenient plea deal, despite later evidence proving her active and enthusiastic participation.
NAME: Karla Leanne Homolka : Changed name to Leanne Teale – Now goes by Leanne Bordelais.
ALIAS: The Ken and Barbie Killers, The Schoolgirl Killers (Monikers for killer couple with then-husband Paul Bernardo)
DOB: May 4, 1970
COUNTRY: Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
VICTIMS: 3 (Murdered)
ACTIVE: 1990–1992
ARREST: Charged May 18 – freed on bail.
SENTENCE: 12 years in prison
RELEASED: July 4, 2005
IMPRISONED AT: Previously imprisoned at the Ste-Anne-des-Plaines prison, Quebec
PARTNER: Current husband: Thierry Bordelais 2005- | Previous husband: Paul Bernardo 1991-1994
Where is Karla Homolka now?
SENTENCE: 12 years in prison
Karla Homolka is currently a free women, she was released from Ste-Anne-des-Plaines prison, Quebec, July 4, 2005 after serving her 12 year sentence for manslaughter.
Shortly after being freed from jail in 2005 she got re-married to Thierry Bordelais (her lawyer’s brother), they share three children together, two boys and a girl. They reportedly fell in love when she was still pending sentencing.
- Jul 4, 2005 Released from prison – now a free woman.
- Jun 9, 2006 Lost legal battle to change her name to Emily Chiara Tremblay.
- Jun 3, 2017 Barred from supervising kindergarten students after public outcry.
Jul 4, 2005 Released from prison – now a free woman
Karla Homolka gave an exclusive interview to SRC, just hours after her release from jail. Homolka confirmed that she intends to live in Quebec, “I want to re-start my life in French” – saying she has a support system in Quebec and expects to be given an easier time. Some more of her interesting comments below: [1]
- “I don’t want to be hounded and I don’t want people to think that I am a dangerous person who’s going to do something to their children”
- “She was only a follower and didn’t initiate the killings of two Ontario schoolgirls and her own sister.”
- “Nervous and anxious to be out of jail for the first time in 12 years”
Jul 9, 2006 Lost legal battle to change name
Lost a legal battle to change her name to Emily Chiara Tremblay – one of the most common in Quebec.[2]
Apr, 2016 Said to be living in Châteauguay
Parents at Centennial Park Elementary School in Châteauguay, received a response from the school principal, Joanne Daviau; “Our community is dealing with a difficult situation and many of you have questions and concerns. Please be assured that your children are safe when they are at school.” Châteauguay police would not comment on Homolka’s residency.[3]
Jun 3, 2017 Barred from volunteering at school
Told she can no longer volunteer at her Childrens primary school in Montreal. She had been helping supervise kindergarten students at Greaves Adventist Academy. After a public outcry, the school announced it had changed its policy on volunteers to “exclude anyone with a criminal record”.[4]
Crimes Committed
Murder of her sister: Tammy Homolka
One of the most disturbing crimes committed by Homolka was the murder of her 15-year-old sister, Tammy, in December 1990. Homolka and Bernardo drugged Tammy with halothane, an anesthetic stolen from Homolka’s workplace, before sexually assaulting her.[5]
Tammy choked on her vomit and died, the couple initially framed her death as an accidental overdose. Homolka later admitted to assisting Bernardo in the assault, though she claimed coercion.
The murders of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French
Homolka and Bernardo kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and murdered two teenage girls: 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy and 15-year-old Kristen French.
Kristen French: In April, 1992, Bernardo, with the assistance of Homolka, kidnapped Kristen French from a church parking lot. Homolka played a key role in luring French by engaging her in conversation before Bernardo forced her into their car.[5] After raping, torturing and killing her, they left her body naked in a ditch, her hair cut off.
Leslie Mahaffy: In June 14, 1991, Bernardo kidnapped 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy from outside her house. With the help of Homolka, he rapes and murders her. Holmoko admitted to helping restrain her during the assault and participating in dismembering her body.
The later discovery of videotapes depicting each of the assaults confirmed Homolka’s direct involvement, disproving her initial claims of being a victim of Bernardo’s dominance. She was in fact a willing and enthusiastic participant in each of the murders.
Capture & Investigation
The investigation into Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo began after the disappearance of 15-year-old Kristen French in April 1992. French was abducted in broad daylight in St. Catharines, Ontario, and her case bore similarities to the earlier disappearance of 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy in June 1991. [5] Police initially struggled to connect the cases, but witness descriptions of a suspicious couple near French’s abduction site eventually led them to consider Bernardo as a suspect. Homolka, however, remained under the radar at this stage.
A major breakthrough came in early 1993 when forensic evidence linked Bernardo to the “Scarborough Rapist” attacks, a series of sexual assaults in the Toronto area between 1987 and 1990. DNA testing, then a relatively new investigative tool, connected him to the crimes, prompting police to intensify their scrutiny.
Homolka’s role in the crimes began to unravel, facing growing pressure, she decided to confess to the couple’s crimes, in May 1993, she struck a plea deal with prosecutors, agreeing to testify against Bernardo in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Karla Homolka’s controversial plea deal
Karla Homolka’s plea deal remains one of the most controversial legal agreements in Canadian criminal history. In May 1993, Homolka struck a deal with Crown prosecutors where she pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in exchange for a 12-year prison sentence and an agreement to testify against her then-husband Paul Bernardo.
This deal was negotiated before authorities discovered videotapes that would later prove Homolka’s enthusiastic participation in the crimes, leading to widespread criticism that justice had not been served. At the time, prosecutors believed they needed Homolka’s testimony to secure Bernardo’s conviction, as forensic evidence alone was considered insufficient [5]. The plea deal was approved by Justice Francis Kovacs, who described Homolka as a “passive instrument” of Bernardo’s will – a characterization that would later prove grossly inaccurate.
The missing video tapes expose Karla Homolka
The investigation took a dramatic turn in September 1994, when police recovered the videotapes depicting the couple’s crimes in horrifying detail. These tapes, recorded by Bernardo and Homolka themselves, showed Homolka actively participating in the assaults on Mahaffy, French, and her sister, Tammy. [5] The footage contradicted her claims of being a coerced victim and revealed her as a willing accomplice. However, because her plea deal had already been finalized, prosecutors were unable to revise her sentence. [6]
Interestingly, Ken Murray (Bernardo’s lawyer) had retrieved the incriminating videotapes from their home in May 1993, apparently hidden above a ceiling light fixture in the upstairs bathroom – police had failed to find them. Murray kept the videos in his possession for 16 months. Then in early September 1994, he quit as Bernardo’s lawyer and handed the videos over to his successor, John Rosen. Rosen turned the videos over to police later that month. [6]
Ken Murray would late face trial for obstruction of justice for not revealing the tapes. He was found not guilty and acquitted of all charges, “I’m just as relieved for everyone involved that it’s now over,” said Murray. “Now, hopefully, everyone can get on with their lives.” [7]
The tapes became a key piece of evidence in Bernardo’s trial, leading to his conviction in 1995 for multiple counts of murder, rape, and kidnapping.
Trial & Conviction
The July 6, 1993 sentencing hearing of Karla Homolka before Justice Francis Kovacs in St. Catharines, Ontario, represented a critical moment in one of Canada’s most notorious criminal cases. The proceeding, which lasted just 90 minutes, saw Homolka plead guilty to two counts of manslaughter for her role in the deaths of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French. [5]
Crown Attorney Ray Houlahan presented an agreed statement of facts that portrayed Homolka as a battered wife who participated in the crimes under the psychological domination of Paul Bernardo, stating she had been “subjected to a reign of terror” throughout their relationship.
Psychological reports submitted to the court characterized Homolka as suffering from battered woman syndrome and Stockholm syndrome, with defense attorney George Walker arguing his client had been “totally under the control of Paul Bernardo”. [5]
The hearing revealed disturbing new details about Homolka’s involvement, including how she helped restrain 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy during her assault and participated in dismembering the victim’s body. However, the full extent of Homolka’s culpability remained unknown at the time, as the incriminating videotapes documenting her active participation in the crimes had not yet been discovered by investigators.
Justice Kovacs ultimately accepted the joint plea submission, sentencing Homolka to two concurrent 12-year terms.
Victims’ families expressed outrage at the proceedings, with Debbie Mahaffy, Leslie’s mother, calling the plea deal “a travesty of justice”. The Crown defended the agreement as necessary to secure Homolka’s testimony against Bernardo, with prosecutor Houlahan telling the court “without Mrs. Bernardo’s cooperation, there was a serious risk Mr. Bernardo might escape conviction”.
Conviction
- Two counts of manslaughter
Sentence:
- Two concurrent 12-year terms.
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REFERENCES / CITATIONS:
- CBC: ‘I think it’s time I talk,’ says Homolka – July 5, 2005
- CCRC: Homolka loses bid to change name – June 9, 2006
- CBC: Quebec school board reassures parents after reports of Karla Homolka living among them – April 21, 2016
- BBC: Child-killer Karla Homolka volunteered at Montreal school – June 3, 2017
- Pron, N. (1995). Lethal Marriage: The Unspeakable Crimes of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka
- CBC: Key events in the Bernardo/Homolka case – June 17, 2010
- CBC: Court finds Bernardo lawyer not guilty – June 14, 2000
- Burnside, S., & Cairns, A. (1995). Deadly Innocence: The True Story of Paul Bernardo, Karla Homolka, and the Schoolgirl Murders.
- Williams, S. (1998). Invisible Darkness: The Strange Case of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka.
BOOKs about Karla Homolka
Invisible Darkness: The Strange Case Of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka
Perfect for fans of Making a Murderer and The People v. O. J. Simpson, Invisible Darkness is the story of one of the more bizarre cases in recent memory—killings so sensational that they prompted the Canadian government, in the interests of justice, to silence its national press and to lock foreign journalists out of the court…
Lethal Marriage: The Unspeakable Crimes of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka
The sensational trials of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka for abduction, rape, manslaughter and murder caused widespread controversy, as did the twelve-year sentence Homolka received as part of her deal with government lawyers. Yet, even though the publication ban on the case has been lifted, there is much the Canadian public still has not been told…
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka: The Horrific True Story Behind Canada’s Ken and Barbie Killers
This graphic account of convicted killers, Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka, shows that in some relationships, neither party is the “better half.” Both halves of this Canadian couple add up to one evil story…
TV Shows & Docs feat Karla Homolka
Ken and Barbie Killers: The Lost Murder Tapes
Glamorous couple Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka fall in love and marry, but they become the most notorious killers in Canadian history after murdering three schoolgirls.
TV Mini Series / Documentary | 2021 | 4 episodes
Snapped: Killer Couples – S3.E9 – Karla Homolka & Paul Bernardo
A couple’s mutual passion for sex and torture destroys the lives of everyone they encounter.
TV Series / Documentary | 2013>
OXYGEN
Born to kill? – S5.E12 – Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka: The Schoolgirl Killers
Authors, attorneys, psychologists and a former detective recall the perfect “Barbie and Ken” couple who secretly scoured Toronto for underage virgins to victimize.
TV Series / Documentary | 2011
Murder Made Me Famous – S6.E5 – Ken & Barbie Killers
Paul Bernardo commits a 5-year spree of highly publicized sexual assaults, tortures, and murders with his wife, Karla Homolka in the Toronto area in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
TV Series / Documentary | 2015
REELZ
Twisted – S5.E4 – The School Girl Killers
TWISTED takes an in-depth look at some of the world’s most prolific serial killers through first-hand accounts and testaments of the people who knew them best.
TV Series / Documentary | 2010 >
Very Scary People – S4.E1/E2 – The Ken and Barbie Killers: (2 PARTS)
From 1987-1992, Ontario authorities join the FBI’s hunt for the monster responsible for s horrific crime spree. / A tip points to an unlikely suspect – a blonde, blue eyed accountant who lives with his wife in the suburbs.
TV Series / Documentary | 2019 >
YOUTUBE
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MORE ARTICLES ABOUT Karla Homolka
A selection of interesting articles about Karla Homolka, sourced and curated from around the web:
Child-killer Karla Homolka volunteered at Montreal school
BBC | Jun 3, 2017
Convicted teen killer Karla Homolka volunteering at Montreal elementary school
Toronto Star | Author: Staff | May 31, 2017
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka Case
The Canadian Encyclopedia | Author: Edward Butts | Jun 21, 2016
