Convicted drug dealer handed 90-day term

Kelowna man sentenced on trafficking charges after selling crack cocaine to undercover police officer

A Kelowna man charged with selling drugs to an undercover police officer has been sentenced to 90 days in jail.

Leroy Martin Jack, 39, was charged with two counts of trafficking drugs, three counts of possession of a controlled substance and three breaches.

On Feb. 9, 2018, an officer saw Jack standing with a group of people in an alley at Pandosy Street and Leon Avenue in downtown Kelowna.

Jack, who was holding a crack pipe, was arrested and found to be in possession of 0.1 grams of crack cocaine in his left hand and 0.4 grams of crack cocaine in his pocket. He was released on a promise to appear. On Feb. 24, Kelowna RCMP were conducting an undercover operation downtown, targeting drug trafficking.

An undercover officer initiated a conversation with Jack on Leon Avenue at 9:55 a.m. and asked if he could buy a 20 rock, referring to 0.2 grams of crack cocaine for $20.

“Mr. Jack pulled out a prescription bottle from his backpack and poured crack cocaine into the officer’s right hand,” federal Crown prosecutor Matthew Canzer said in court Tuesday. “The officer asked for a little bit more, and Mr. Jack poured out one more rock.” The officer then gave Jack $20. “Because it was an undercover operation, Mr. Jack was not arrested at that time,” said Canzer.

On March 13, 2018, an officer saw Jack standing with a group of people on Leon Avenue at 8:05 p.m.

The officer arrested Jack for selling drugs to the undercover police officer the month before.

In a search following his arrest, Jack was found in possession of a pill bottle containing 2.2 grams of crack cocaine and four small baggies containing 1.4 grams of crystal methamphetamine.

He was released the next day on recognizance.

One of the terms of his release was that he was not to possess or consume any drugs or alcohol.

On July 17, 2018, a Mountie saw Jack sitting on the grass at the Queensway bus loop next to City Hall at 4:40 p.m. with a half-empty can of beer between his legs. Jack was arrested. Jack pleaded guilty to the offences and was in court Tuesday for sentencing.

He had a previous drug-trafficking conviction from 2016, for which he received a 50day jail sentence.

“We have circumstances that show a pattern that likely shows Mr. Jack is struggling with addiction,” said Canzer.

The Crown suggested a 75-day jail sentence on the trafficking charges, followed by seven days each for both possession incidents and 10 days for the breach, for a total of 99 days.

Defence lawyer Victor Janicki called Jack’s situation a tragic one.

“He’s basically killing himself with alcohol and drugs,” Janicki said in court. “There’s nothing I can say to minimize what he did.”

Janicki called the Crown’s submission a fair one and said Jack needed to get some kind of treatment.

Judge Lisa Wyatt sentenced Jack to 75 days in jail for trafficking drugs, followed by seven days in jail for the Feb. 9 drug possession offence and seven days in jail for the March 13 possession of drugs. She also sentenced him to one day in jail for breaching the abstention-from-alcohol clause, for a total of 90 days.

“Ten days is excessive given that you are an alcoholic,” Wyatt said, referring to the Crown’s submission for sentencing on the breach.

With credit for time served, Jack has 87 new days to spend in jail.

Wyatt also placed Jack on a one-year probation, with the main intention being to get him into a residential treatment program.

She waived the victim fine surcharge, saying that would create pressures on him to come up with the money.