Fresh out of prison for manslaughter, man utters violent threats, found with a weapon, gets six months

A man recently released from prison for manslaughter was sentenced Thursday to six months in jail for uttering threats and possessing a prohibited weapon.

James Gurney, 41, appeared in Medicine Hat Provincial Court via closed-circuit TV from the Calgary Remand Centre.

Gurney, who is Indigenous, had waived his right to a Gladue report, as his parents aren’t residential school survivors.

A Gladue report takes into account for sentencing an Indigenous offender’s upbringing, which is intended to address the disproportionate incarceration of aboriginal people in Canada’s justice system.

On Sept. 26, Gurney called police to the Hat Motel, saying he had a knife and was going to kill the landlord who had recently evicted him.

“I’m going to kill somebody ... Should I?” the Crown quoted from transcripts of the call.

“I’ve got a f-----g knife in my hand now ... Just me and the landlord.”

When police got to the motel, they confiscated Gurney’s knife.

They asked if he had any other weapons, to which he lied and said he didn’t. Police found a steak knife on him.

Although he was convicted of manslaughter in Lethbridge, the Crown noted that it didn’t involve a knife.

Gurney had been homeless since his release from that sentence in June, before being sent back to jail upon arrest for the Sept. 26 incident.

Since he’s been in jail for a month, Gurney will serve another 135 days.