Weekends in jail for man guilty of weapons charges

A Medicine Hat man who pled guilty Wednesday to having a firearm and weapons in his possession when he wasn’t supposed to was sentenced to serve 45 days on weekends.

“It’s a significant reduction considering what could have been,” said Judge Gordon Krinke to 34-year-old Ryan Cooke. “But I am impressed as well ... You’re getting your life back on track, and that speaks well for you.”

Cooke pled guilty to a weapons breach, possessing a firearm without a licence and breaching an order that prohibited him from having firearms. This 10-year prohibition order stems back to a 2014 guilty plea and 30-month sentence for trafficking cocaine.

In December 2016, police executed a search warrant at Cooke’s residence, and found a Remington 12-gauge stored in the closet, for which he did not have a licence.

When arrested, police found Cooke in possession of a knife, and a ring that appeared usable as a weapon.

Crown and defence noted that it was Cooke’s girlfriend who had brought the gun into the residence, although he was aware of it being there.

Cooke is taking responsibility for the gun being on the premise, said defence counsel Lyndon Heidinger, explaining that the girlfriend had the gun due to safety concerns she had.

This reason for having the firearm is different than many cases where the possession is for “nefarious” reasons, Heidinger said, in explaining some of the reasoning behind the lower sentence reached in the joint submission by defence and Crown.

As well, proof was submitted to the court on how Clarke has been attending school, has part-time employment, has extensive support from his family, and is continually working to address his issues with addictions.

Alongside the 45-day sentence, there will be a sixmonth probation term, while the firearms ban has been extended from 10 to 20 years.