Weighing the sentencing principles of deterrence and denunciation with Gladue and other mitigating factors, the Indigenous accused is sentenced to 3 and a half years minus pretrial custody with 3 years of probation, for the manslaughter death of a friend at a party.

Indigenous Law Centre
Indigenous CaseWatch Blog

The accused hosted a cribbage game at his home in Cambridge Bay. Some of those present, including the accused, smoked cannabis throughout the evening but none were drinking alcohol. The victim sent a text message to the accused that he was drunk and wanted to go to the accused’s house to drink with him. After coming over, the victim drank and tried throughout the evening to convince the accused to drink with him, who eventually succumbed.

At one point the victim became aggressive with the accused and throughout the night, arguing was witnessed. In the early hours of the morning, the victim was discovered dead from a stab wound, and the accused passed out with no recollection of the offense.

By his guilty plea, the accused admitted responsibility for the stab wound that killed his friend, and that he acted in the heat of passion caused by the accused’s sudden, provocative, intoxicated and aggressive behaviour. He admitted to using excessive force and in those circumstances he is guilty of manslaughter and expressed remorse.

Section 718.1 requires that a sentence must be proportionate to the gravity of the offence and the degree of responsibility of the offender. Consideration was also given of potential Gladue factors of the unique systemic or background factors on the accused to help shed light on his level of moral blameworthiness. The accused is 45 years old, a husband and a father of three. He suffered through a very difficult childhood, as his parents were alcoholics who often chose excessive drinking over the welfare and safety of their son. There were times when he had to actually sleep outside in the cold. His criminal record of committing property offences were in context with a lack of supervision and the inability to count on three meals a day and a warm bed to sleep in.

Although rehabilitation is always important, this is a case where the primary goal of sentencing is deterrence and denunciation. The accused is sentenced to three and a half years in jail minus pretrial custody to be followed by three years of probation, along with a number of mandatory orders imposed.