Man sentenced to 30 months in prison for robbing 7-Eleven

Matthew Justin Farrell was off his meds when he robbed a 7-Eleven store nearly four months ago.

That didn’t save him from a prison sentence, but he did get a bit of a break when he pleaded guilty Tuesday in Lethbridge provincial court to one count of robbery.

Crown prosecutor Vaughan Hartigan told court Farrell had a mental assessment, which determined that at the time of the offence he was not suffering from a mental disorder that would exempt him from criminal responsibility.

But, Hartigan noted, Farrell was not taking his medication at the time which, while not an excuse, does explain his actions when about 6:30 a.m. Feb. 5 he entered the 7-Eleven store on Scenic Drive North, slammed a screwdriver onto the counter and demanded money. After the clerk handed him cash, he demanded cigarettes then left on foot.

Police caught up with him shortly afterward and recovered the cash and cigarettes.

Hartigan pointed out Farrell, 36, has previous criminal convictions, including a conviction for robbery for which he was sentenced to three years in prison. Hartigan suggested a lesser sentence is warranted for the latest robbery, given Farrell’s history of psychiatric issues and the difficulty he and his doctors were having finding him the right combination of drugs.

Defence lawyer Greg White told court his client is on AISH, Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped, because of his mental health problems, and at one time he was taking 20 pills a day to control his symptoms. After he got out of jail on the first robbery charge he was not put back on his medication and was doing well, until around Christmas last year.

“He was becoming manic at the time of this offence,” White said.

Judge Gregory Maxwell agreed to the joint submission for a prison sentence of two and a half years, but noted Farrell could have been sentenced to four or five years for a second robbery.

Farrell was given credit for the equivalent of six months spent in custody while he waited to deal with the charge, reducing to two years the time he has left to serve. He must also submit a sample of his DNA for the National DNA Databank, and he is prohibited from possessing firearms and other weapons for life.