KILLER’S FATE IN JUDGE’S HANDS
A teen, who killed four and wounded seven in La Loche in 2016, will learn in February whether he’ll be sentenced as an adult or youth.
More than two years after a teen committed a mass shooting in La Loche, a judge is expected to visit the northern community to give her decision on whether he should be sentenced as a youth or an adult.
At the conclusion of Friday’s closing arguments in Meadow Lake provincial court, Judge Janet McIvor set her sentencing decision for Feb. 23, 2018, in La Loche.
On Jan. 22, 2016, the teen, who was just days away from his 18th birthday, killed brothers Dayne and Drayden Fontaine at a home before going to school and killing teacher’s aide Marie Janvier and teacher Adam Wood and injuring seven others. He cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act — but that will change if he is sentenced as an adult.
Crown prosecutor Pouria Tabrizi-Reardigan argued the seriousness of the offence and circumstances of the offender justify an adult sentence of life imprisonment. A youth sentence carries a maximum term of six years in custody and four years of community supervision.
“It would be reckless to assume (rehabilitation) would be accomplished within the time limits of a youth sentence,” Tabrizi-Reardigan said, adding that only an adult sentence can ensure the long-term protection of the public.
The shooter’s severe intellectual and cognitive problems, as diagnosed by psychiatrists, led to his frustration with school and ultimately his decision to “shoot it up,” defence lawyer Aaron Fox argued.
“Could he deal with those problems in the way an adult would be able to deal with them? We say no,” Fox said outside court.
The shooter pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder.
Fox painted a picture of a teen who fell through the cracks of the education system and was described by many as a “black sheep, a lost soul ... a loner.”
He was also a quiet person who struggled to communicate and had no history of violence, Fox noted.
Tabrizi-Reardigan said the shooter hid his violent side well. He argued there is no direct connection between the teen’s diagnoses and his desire to commit a mass shooting.
The “sheer scale of violence” points to “serious psychological issues,” but experts have no explanation for the teen’s violent impulses, Tabrizi-Reardigan said.
The Crown also argued that the shooting was meticulously planned, pointing to evidence that the teen had been reading about mass shootings and researching guns and ammunition.
He also talked to a friend about shooting up the school months before doing it, and Google searched “What does it feel like to kill someone,” court heard during the hearing, which began in May.
Arguing for a youth sentence, Fox said the shooter also lacked the ability to foresee consequences. The Crown disagreed, saying he demonstrated that knowledge after the shootings when he decided not to commit suicide because he knew it would hurt his mother, and when he chose not to fight police because he knew he was outnumbered.
The defence requested a Gladue report, which explores the backgrounds of Indigenous offenders when sentencing. The report noted a psychiatrist and psychologist diagnosed the shooter as having fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).
Crown prosecutor Scott Bartlett argued those findings were based on conflicting information about how much, if any, alcohol the teen’s mother consumed while pregnant.
In the end, La Loche Mayor Robert St. Pierre said the teen deserves an adult sentence for the devastation he caused to his victims and the community.
“No matter what the outcome is, there’s not going to be happy people. For us to move forward, we need to come to terms with whatever that decision is.”
No matter what the outcome is, there’s not going to be happy people. For us to move forward, we need to come to terms with whatever that decision is.