Godfrey described Reena Virk as a quiet 14-year-old girl from a strict Jehovah’s Witness family. She was murdered on November 14, 1997, after leaving home for a Friday night gathering with friends near Shoreline School. When the police arrived, the group moved to Craigflower Bridge.
There, things turned violent. Reena was accused of stealing a notebook and spreading rumors about a girl named Josephine. A group of six girls and one boy, all between 14 and 16, attacked her. They beat her, even burning her with a cigarette.
Some of the onlookers left, but two girls followed Reena when she tried to escape. Her body was found eight days later in a nearby gorge. The autopsy revealed she had drowned, but her injuries were severe enough to have caused her death.
Rumors about Reena’s disappearance had already spread before her body was found. Some teens talked about what happened, leading the police to investigate. On November 21, the 16-year-old boy, Warren Glowatski, was arrested for Reena’s murder. Seven girls were also arrested, including Kelly Ellard, who was nicknamed Killer Kelly by the media.
What happened to those who killed Reena Virk?
Ellard was seen as the most violent among those who attacked Reena Virk. She even bragged about holding Reena’s head underwater while smoking a cigarette. Because of this, even though she was only 15, she was tried as an adult.
Glowatski was seen as fitting the image of a criminal because he lived in a trailer park and came from a troubled family. Even though he didn’t know Reena before, he kicked her aggressively under the bridge.
The next day, he asked his girlfriend, Syreeta, to clean the blood from his pants. Syreeta said Glowatski was questioned for hours without his parents or a lawyer.
Rebecca Godfrey became interested in the case when she heard about it while finishing her novel, The Torn Skirt, which also involves teenage girls in a crime. She wanted to know if there were any similarities between her book and real-life events.
In 1998, trials began. Three girls admitted to causing harm, and three were charged with more severe assault. Their sentences ranged from 60 days to one year in jail.
Glowatski and Ellard were both convicted of second-degree murder, with Glowatski receiving a seven-year sentence without parole and Ellard getting five years.
Godfrey believed Ellard received lighter treatment because she appeared to be from a respectable family, while the girls of color charged with assault were treated poorly in court.
