Man who shot at sister and police sentenced to 10 years
A man who drunkenly smashed a beer bottle over his sister’s head during an argument, pulled out a gun when she threatened to call police and shot at her and tactical officers during a standoff in Saskatoon’s River Height’s neighbourhood has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Given a three-year credit for his time spent on remand, Kevin John Levandoski, 39, will have seven years left to serve for his crimes. The Crown asked for an 11-year sentence while the defence argued for nine years.
Justice Gary Meschishnick gave the offender four years for discharging a firearm with intent to endanger his sister’s life, and four years each on two counts of discharging a firearm at an officer with intent to avoid arrest.
The assault with the beer bottle warrants an additional two years, Meschishnick ruled, bringing the total sentence to 14 years. After applying the totality principal, used when consecutive sentences are considered excessive, the sentence was reduced to 10 years.
Meschishnick said he took Levandoski’s Gladue factors — aspects of an aboriginal person’s background that must be considered when sentencing — into account, namely the violent abuse he suffered at the hands of his father, including having a gun pointed at his head, and being molested by a neighbour.
Court heard Levandoski has severe depression and can’t sleep without being intoxicated. He attributed his mental health issues and the lack of sleep leading up to the offence to the violence he caused on Aug. 22, 2014.
However, Meschishnick said the sentence must also suit the serious, and separate, offences that endangered the lives of Levandoski’s family, the police officers and his entire neighbourhood.
Along with the Crown, he commended the “professional and astute manner” of the tactical support unit officers for not shooting back at Levandoski, who was enticing police to shoot and kill him.
“I think in the United States this would have had a different ending,” Crown prosecutor Gary Parker said during Monday’s sentencing hearing.