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The sentencing hearing for a teen who lit her classmate on fire at Evan Hardy Collegiate a year and a half ago is scheduled to happen Thursday.
Both the teen who lit her classmate on fire and the victim can’t be named under the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act. At the time, the perpetrator was 14 and the victim was 15. Both are 16 years old now.
The case dates back to Sept. 5, 2024, on the second day of school that fall.
The teen brought a water bottle to school that was filled with gasoline. When the lunch bell rang and the hallway filled with students, the teen poured the gas over the victim’s head and lit it on fire.
The girl suffered burns to 40 per cent of her body and spent months in hospital, but survived.
A teacher who jumped in to smother the flames was also burned.
In December, the teen pleaded guilty to attempted murder of the victim and unlawfully causing bodily harm to the teacher.
Sentencing was adjourned until Thursday at Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench so a psychological assessment and pre-sentence report could be prepared as part of the sentence proposal that will be made to Justice Krista Zerr.
The Crown and defence said in December they anticipate recommending an Intensive Rehabilitation and Custody Supervision (IRCS) order. It’s a specialized sentence available under the Youth Criminal Justice Act for serious crimes.
On a charge of attempted murder, the maximum IRCS sentence allowable is three years from the date of sentencing, consisting of a period of custody followed by community supervision.
The teen who lit her classmate on fire has been in custody since her arrest in September 2024.
In December, Zerr said it was likely that the sentencing hearing could take most of a day to complete, as a “large number” of victim impact statements are expected to be read in court.
After the teen pleaded guilty, a family member read a prepared statement written by the girl’s parents.
“The horror of what has happened will never disappear,” she said. “Our daughter will always wear the evidence of these crimes.”
Agreed statement of facts
Crown prosecutor Ainsley Furlonger read a 40-minute agreed statement of facts into the record in December.
Court heard the victim had befriended the perpetrator the year before, but ended the friendship due to constant texting. After that, the perpetrator began threatening her and another friend.
The victim described the school break in 2024 as a “summer of harassment,” including threats to make her life “a living hell.”
She and her friend talked to their parents, and they went to police and school officials with their concerns.
The parents of two 15-year-old girls at Evan Hardy Collegiate in Saskatoon say they went to police and the school multiple times between June and August 2024 with concerns about escalating online threats from the student now accused of setting one of the girls on fire in a school hallway.
The school developed a safety plan that included bag checks for the teen offender, and patting her down for weapons before school. The bag checks, however, did not include inspecting the contents of the teen’s black, metal water bottle.
On Sept. 5, 2024, the teen arrived at school for second period, but was late for class so didn’t go in, and instead walked around in the hallways with a teacher.
During the third period, the teen was still in the hallways with a staff member but her behaviour was troubling, and staff decided to call the teen’s family to come and pick her up.
When the lunch bell rang, the staff members could tell “something was happening,” but did not anticipate what did happen. The teen barged through them and poured the contents of her water bottle over the victim’s head, then pulled out a lighter and lit it on fire.
A 15-year-old who was set on fire at Evan Hardy Collegiate describes the harrowing experience.
“The voices told me to do it,” the teen offender told police after the attack.
The victim was airlifted to the burn unit in Edmonton, where she stayed for six weeks. Then she stayed at Royal University Hospital until shortly before Christmas 2024.
She suffered significant scarring to her face, arms, torso and hands and has required multiple surgeries.
She shared her story with CBC in March 2025, talking about the long, hard work of the physical recovery and her determination to continue playing guitar, despite the difficulties caused by her injuries.
Her parents also questioned how police and the school handled the warnings leading up to the attack.
This story will be updated to share what happens in court on Thursday.
After the sentencing submissions, Justice Zerr may be ready to give her decision the same day, or she might adjourn to another date so she can consider the case.
