A Windsor man is appealing his attempted murder conviction for starting a fire which left a seven-year-old girl with critical burns to her hands and feet.
Kenneth Kormendy has filed his application in the Ontario Court of Appeal and is representing himself.
The 45-year-old was sentenced last month to 11 years in prison after being found guilty of attempted murder and arson following a house fire on Balfour Boulevard in October 2015. Court heard the house where he and his then girlfriend and two children lived-in when up in flames.
Following time already served in jail, Kormendy has seven years and 345 days remaining to serve in prison.
The fire sent then seven-year-old Isabel Rueda to hospital with critical burns to her hands, feet, torso and face covering 15 per cent of her body.
The girl’s mother, Sheri, also had burns to hands, her sister, barely a year old at the time, was unharmed.
Isabel’s father, Jose Reuda, issued a statement that was also critical of the sentence. It said “the justice system failed my daughter in the most outrageous and pitiful of ways.”
“Isabel's life sentence began two years ago as her house and sense of normalcy all burned down, whereas Mr. Kormendy will only have to serve a laughable portion of his 11 year stint before being eligible for release, his face unknown to the public , the shame and seriousness of his crimes buried under society's fleeting memory,” said Rueda.
Rueda adds he will seek remedy for the damages incurred by my daughter through the civil courts.
Assistant Crown Attorney Walter Costa told CTV Windsor after the sentence was handed down that he respectfully disagreed with it.
Kormendy has maintained his innocence during the entire court process.
