After weighing the sentencing principles with the Gladue factors of the offender, a 32-month term of imprisonment was imposed for the guilty plea of two offenses.

Indigenous Law Centre – CaseWatch Blog

The offender pled guilty to one count of sexual interference and one count of sexual assault under ss 151 and 271 of the Criminal Code. At the time of the first offence, the accused already had a criminal record with 38 convictions, and at the time of the second offence, he had committed an additional 14 offences, that included multiple assaults. The issue for the Court was to determine a proper sentence by taking into account all of the relevant purposes and principles of sentencing, including the circumstances of the offence and the circumstances of the offender.

The offender held Indigenous status and lived in a reserve community that has a legacy surrounding residential schools, intergenerational alcoholism, drug addiction, poverty, family violence, suicide, and unemployment. He attended residential school from grades eight to ten. He had a job but lost it for being late and not getting along with his supervisor, which he attributes to alcohol abuse. In his early twenties, the offender lost both of his parents to alcohol abuse and his brother later passed away from a hit and run motor vehicle accident.

Following s 718.2(e) of the Criminal Code, it was necessary for the sentencing judge to consider the above background factors which may have played a part in bringing the offender to the Court and the types of sentencing procedures and sanctions that may be appropriate because of the offender’s Indigenous heritage. The mitigating factors included the offender’s early guilty pleas, his support from his family and his community, and his Indigenous heritage. The aggravating factors included his criminal record, details surrounding the offences, and the offences’ impact on the victim, a vulnerable Indigenous female. Considering the aggravating and mitigating factors, the Court ordered a term of imprisonment for ten months for the first offence and 22 months for the second offence, for a total of 32 months of imprisonment less time served.