Michelle K. Fuerst

Shiloh Pettipas-Lizak pleaded guilty to pointing a firearm at his girlfriend.

The court considered aggravating factors, including the domestic context, the presence of children, the sustained nature of the threat, and the victim's lasting psychological harm, alongside mitigating factors such as the offender's genuine remorse, significant rehabilitative efforts over six years, stable employment, sobriety, and reconnection with his children.

The court found that a conditional sentence was appropriate given the unique circumstances, including the judicial error that led to separate sentencing proceedings.

A conditional sentence of 21 months was imposed, with house arrest for the first seven months, followed by a curfew, along with other conditions, a lifetime section 109 order, and a DNA order.

This is a sentencing decision for a serious domestic assault.

The offender, Kostantinos Tountzios, pleaded guilty to assaulting his common-law spouse, causing significant injuries including a fractured arm and concussion.

The court considered aggravating factors such as the prolonged and vicious nature of the assault, the breach of trust, and the prevention of calling 911.

Mitigating factors included the guilty plea, genuine remorse, and lack of prior criminal record.

The court emphasized denunciation and general deterrence as primary objectives, alongside specific deterrence and rehabilitation, noting the offender's alcohol abuse as an explanation for his behaviour, not a mitigating factor.

A joint submission was accepted.

Jason William Heffernan pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing death after an incident in a shopping plaza parking lot where the victim, Corby Stott, was struck and killed.

Stott was attempting to direct traffic when a confrontation ensued, leading to Heffernan driving his vehicle with Stott on the hood, accelerating to a speed that caused Stott to fall and sustain fatal head trauma.

The court considered the principles of denunciation, general deterrence, and rehabilitation.

Aggravating factors included the verbal confrontation, aggressive driving, driving with the victim on the hood, failure to stop immediately, and the significant impact on the victim's family.

Mitigating factors included the guilty plea, expressed remorse, calling 911, remaining at the scene, the offence being out of character, and strong family support.

The court emphasized the high moral blameworthiness despite the absence of intent to kill.

The court delivered reasons for sentence for the offence of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

The sentence was based on a joint submission, reflecting the offender's first-offender status but also the large quantity of cocaine (over four kilograms).

The court accepted the joint submission, imposing an eight-year penitentiary sentence, reduced by 21 months for pre-sentence custody and restrictive bail conditions, resulting in 75 months to be served.

Ancillary orders included a DNA order, a 10-year section 109(2)(a) order, a lifetime section 109(2)(b) order, and a forfeiture order with a fine in lieu of forfeiture of $99,999, payable by September 20, 2027, with an 18-month consecutive jail term in default.

The accused, charged with drug trafficking offences, brought a Charter s. 8 application alleging that police officers staged a break-in at his residence and made an anonymous call to trigger a warrantless entry, leading to the discovery of drugs and cash.

The defence relied on voice identification evidence to argue that the lead investigator made the anonymous call.

The court evaluated expert voice comparison evidence, the status of the ongoing police investigation, and the officers' whereabouts.

The court concluded on a balance of probabilities that the police did not stage the break-in or make the anonymous call, and that the warrantless entry by responding officers was justified.

The application was dismissed.

Ganesh Persaud pleaded guilty to second-degree murder of his estranged wife, Bodwatie Persaud, who he brutally murdered due to jealous suspicions.

Crown and defence jointly submitted a sentence of life imprisonment with no parole eligibility for 12 years.

The court accepted the joint submission, finding the increased parole ineligibility period warranted given the brutal nature of the domestic murder, breach of trust, and aggravating factors, balanced against the offender's age, health, lack of criminal record, and early guilty plea.

The offender, Julia Schulz, pleaded guilty to one count of fraud over $5,000, having defrauded her employer of over $330,000 through 187 forged cheques over eight months.

This was her third fraud conviction, with previous conditional sentences.

The Crown sought a jail term of six months less a day, while the self-represented offender requested a conditional sentence.

The court considered aggravating factors including breach of trust, repeated conduct, large amount, impact on a small business, minimal restitution, and prior convictions.

Mitigating factors included a guilty plea, remorse, being a dedicated mother, and current employment.

General and specific deterrence were paramount.

While a longer sentence was justifiable, the court reduced the jail term to six months less a day, followed by two years of probation, and a restitution order of $312,827.61, to mitigate severe immigration consequences for the permanent resident offender.

Wesley Guzylak pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for the stabbing death of his romantic partner, Cotie Weekley, after she ended their relationship.

The murder occurred after Guzylak broke into Weekley's home and waited for her, then stabbed her multiple times in front of her seven-year-old daughter.

The Crown and defence jointly submitted a sentence of life imprisonment with no parole eligibility for 14 years and 9 months, which the court accepted.

The court considered aggravating factors including planning, breach of trust, the horrific nature of the attack, the offender's violent history, and the profound trauma inflicted on the victim's daughter.

Mitigating factors included the guilty plea, which spared the child from testifying, and the offender's difficult childhood and efforts towards rehabilitation.

The accused brought an application to strike his guilty plea, arguing it was not fully informed and voluntary because he did not believe he had any other option but to plead guilty.

The Crown consented to the application.

After hearing brief testimony from the accused, the court found that the accused did not subjectively fully understand his options.

The court struck the guilty plea and adjourned the matter to set a trial date, noting the accused's waiver of his section 11(b) Charter rights for the period from the plea to the conclusion of the trial.

The accused pleaded guilty to aggravated assault after stabbing a convenience store clerk 17 times while under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

The unprovoked attack left the victim with a permanent disability in his hand.

The court accepted a joint submission, sentencing the accused to 3.5 years in custody, less 18 months of pre-sentence custody credit, leaving 2 years to be served in the penitentiary.

The offender pleaded guilty to two counts of trafficking in fentanyl and two counts of using a forged document.

She participated in a scheme where she used fraudulent prescriptions to obtain fentanyl patches from a pharmacy, which she then gave to a co-conspirator for financial gain.

The court considered the extreme danger of fentanyl, the offender's role as a low-level participant, her guilty plea, and her status as a first-time offender.

The court sentenced the offender to 26 months in jail concurrent on all counts, emphasizing denunciation and deterrence.

The accused pleaded guilty to offences related to a nighttime home invasion where he and an accomplice were masked and armed with a handgun.

The accused had a lengthy criminal record and was in breach of multiple court orders.

The court accepted a joint submission, sentencing the accused to six years in the penitentiary concurrent on several counts, plus 345 days of pre-trial custody credited as time served on another count, along with a DNA order and a lifetime weapons prohibition.

The accused pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder for the stabbing deaths of two women with whom he had been romantically involved.

The court imposed the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment with no parole eligibility for 25 years for each count, to be served concurrently.

The court also imposed a lifetime weapons prohibition, a DNA order, and a no-communication order with the victims' families.

The accused pleaded guilty to production of cannabis resin and arson by negligence after a butane extraction laboratory he operated in a residential basement caused an explosion.

The explosion destroyed the house, severely damaged two neighbouring homes, and caused serious burn injuries to the accused.

The court accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defence, sentencing the accused to a global term of three years' imprisonment, reduced to two years and one month after credit for pre-sentence custody and strict bail conditions.

The accused, a 22-year-old Indigenous first offender, pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm against a young Indigenous woman while both were highly intoxicated.

The Crown sought a six-month custodial sentence, while the defence sought a suspended sentence.

Applying Gladue principles and considering the accused's significant rehabilitative efforts, community support, and the systemic factors outlined in his Gladue report, the court concluded that a custodial sentence was not necessary.

The court imposed a suspended sentence with three years of probation.

The accused, a personal support worker, pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual assault against vulnerable, severely disabled residents of a group home.

The offences came to light only after the accused voluntarily confessed to the police.

Accepting a joint submission, the court sentenced the accused to seven years' imprisonment, reduced to four years net after applying enhanced credit for pre-sentence custody, noting the egregious breach of trust balanced against the mitigating factors of the voluntary confession and guilty pleas.

Jayme Syring pleaded guilty to four counts of impaired care or control causing bodily harm and one count of failing to stop at the scene of an accident.

The offences stemmed from a single-vehicle rollover where Syring, impaired by alcohol, injured his common-law spouse and her three young children, who were not properly secured, and then fled the scene.

The court considered aggravating factors including the serious nature of the offences, the abandonment of injured victims, Syring's lengthy criminal record, and his substance abuse issues.

Mitigating factors included his guilty plea, remorse, and initial steps towards addressing his addiction.

The court emphasized denunciation and deterrence as primary sentencing objectives for drinking and driving offences causing bodily harm.

A penitentiary sentence of two years and two months was imposed after credit for pre-sentence custody, along with a three-year driving prohibition and a DNA order.

Marcus Berger pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to traffic in cocaine.

The Crown sought a penitentiary sentence of four to five years, while the defence requested three years.

The court considered aggravating factors, including the large quantity of cocaine and the commercial nature of the activity, alongside significant mitigating factors.

These mitigating factors included Berger's guilty plea, his status as a first offender, his serious drug addiction at the time of the offence, and his impressive rehabilitative efforts since his arrest, including achieving sobriety, re-establishing family relationships, and building a successful business.

The court also noted that Berger pleaded guilty despite a breach of his Charter rights that would have weakened the Crown's case at trial.

The judge exercised discretion to impose a sentence below the Crown's requested range due to these unique circumstances.

The offender pleaded guilty to second degree murder after choking the 62-year-old victim and slashing her throat in her home.

The victim had befriended the offender and loaned him money to support his drug addiction.

The Crown and defence jointly submitted a parole ineligibility period of 17 to 20 years.

The court weighed the brutal nature of the killing, the gross breach of trust, and the offender's callous post-offence conduct against his guilty plea and lack of prior violent record.

The court sentenced the offender to life imprisonment with no eligibility for parole for 18 years.

The offender pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder and dismemberment of his business partner following a dispute over a $1.3 million debt.

The Crown and defence jointly submitted a sentence of life imprisonment with no parole eligibility for 14 years for the murder, and 5 years concurrent for the indignity to a human body.

The court accepted the joint submission, noting the horrific nature of the crime, the offender's lack of a prior record, and his guilty plea.