Dr. Jeffrey Abracen

The accused was convicted of manslaughter for the unprovoked stabbing death of his stepfather.

The accused suffers from severe schizophrenia and was likely in an acute psychotic state at the time of the offence.

The Crown sought an 8-year sentence, while the defence sought a sentence equivalent to 4 years and 3 months followed by probation.

The court weighed the gravity of the unprovoked attack against the mitigating factor of the accused's major mental illness.

The court sentenced the accused to 6 years' imprisonment, with credit for pre-trial custody, resulting in a further 33 months to serve, and recommended placement in a specific facility to ensure ongoing psychiatric treatment.

The offender pleaded guilty to possession, accessing, and making available child pornography, as well as breaching probation conditions from a prior child pornography conviction.

The Crown sought a penitentiary sentence of three to five years, while the defence sought a reformatory sentence of two years less a day.

The court considered the offender's history of childhood sexual abuse, his genuine remorse, and his positive progress in therapy.

Concluding that a reformatory sentence would best facilitate the offender's ongoing rehabilitation while satisfying the principles of denunciation and deterrence, the court imposed a sentence of two years less a day followed by three years of probation.