L. Fritzley

The Crown sought an adult sentence for a young person convicted of second degree murder in the stabbing death of a 49-year-old man.

The young person was 16 years old at the time of the offence.

The court considered whether a youth sentence would be of sufficient length to hold the young person accountable for his offending behaviour under section 72 of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

The court found that despite the seriousness of the offence, the young person's age, troubled background, lack of prior violence, genuine remorse, and substantial rehabilitation progress while in custody over three years supported a youth sentence rather than an adult sentence.

A young person pleaded guilty to second-degree murder arising from events on March 29, 2010.

The Crown sought to introduce two statements made by the accused to police—one during transport to the detachment and one at the detachment—for use in sentencing and in a psychiatric assessment ordered under section 34 of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

The defence challenged the admissibility of both statements under section 146 of the YCJA, which provides enhanced procedural protections for statements made by young persons to persons in authority.

The court conducted a voir dire to determine whether the statements complied with section 146 requirements.