A CALL FOR COMPASSION
Court hears from victim’s sister
If Adam St. Denis-Katz were alive, he would want the man who caused his death to get a sentence that would help him become a positive member of society, his sister told a packed Saskatoon Queen’s Bench courtroom.
“Sometimes, wisdom comes to us from the most unique places,” Justice Allisen Rothery said, momentarily breaking down after sentencing Blair Christopher French to 20.6 months time served followed by three years of probation.
French, 30, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, admitting that when he threw St. Denis-Katz during a drunken street fight, the man’s head hit the cement and resulted in the head injury that ultimately killed him.
Defence lawyer Chris Lavier had requested the time served sentence, which he called “remarkable” considering manslaughter sentences are generally between four and 12 years.
“It seemed like there was a great deal of compassion from the deceased’s family to Mr. French and his family and I definitely think it had a role to play in the sentencing decision,” Lavier said outside court.
Hannah St. Denis-Katz said her brother was sensitive and compassionate — traits that would have made him an amazing social worker.
But before he could graduate, St. Denis-Katz died from a brain injury sustained during a consensual fight with French on March 30, 2016, court heard during French’s sentencing hearing on Thursday.
Although it’s not known how the brawl started, the agreed facts are that both men exchanged punches outside an Avenue O south apartment where they had been drinking. French fell to the ground, got up and threw St. Denis-Katz in what could be considered a defensive move, Lavier said.
French continued to beat the victim for a short time after he hit his head, then carried St. Denis-Katz inside the apartment without getting him medical attention, prosecutor Christy Pannell told court.
She said she struggled to find other Saskatchewan cases with similar circumstances to draw upon for sentencing. The Crown said seven-year sentences were handed down in cases where one stab caused a person’s death.
There’s an important distinction between an unintentional killing during a consensual street fight and an “almost murder” knife attack, Lavier said, arguing that French’s moral blameworthiness is on the low end of the manslaughter scale.
Lavier said French is devastated by what happened and hasn’t had a sip of alcohol since St. Denis-Katz died. French gently swayed in the prisoner’s box, visibly pained as he intently listened to the victim impact statements read in court.
The accused and victim were both described as gentle souls who have experienced family tragedies. They also share strong father-son relationships, Lavier noted. French told court it’s what makes him want to become a better person. For St. Denis-Katz’s family, it was a bond cut horrendously short.
Hannah’s last memory of her brother is of him wrestling with his three-year-old son, who she said was “obsessed” with his dad.
Now, her heart breaks when she hears her nephew say “I am disappointed that Papa is gone.”
There was a great deal of compassion from the deceased’s family to Mr. French.