Digest: R v Ahpay, 2018 SKQB 147

DateMay 18, 2018

Reported as: 2018 SKQB 147

Docket Number: QB17539 , CRM 316/16 JCS

Court: Court of Queen's Bench

Date: 2018-05-18

Judges:

  • Danyliuk

Subjects:

  • Criminal Law � Murder � Attempted Murder � Sentencing
  • Criminal Law � Sentencing � Aboriginal Offender

Digest: The accused was charged with attempted murder contrary to s. 239(1) of the Criminal Code and 14 counts related to firearms offences contrary to ss. 95(1)(a) and (b), 109 and 117.01(1), 88, 86 and 90 of the Code. The accused was found guilty of all counts but for two of the firearms charges and one of the remaining firearm charges was stayed (see: 2017 SKQB 352). The accused, a drug addict, a drug dealer and a member of a gang, had taken a loaded sawed-off 12 gauge shotgun with him on the day in question as he intended to sell drugs. As he walked by a house on Saskatoon�s west side, he showed off his gun to some men gathered outside a house. These men may have been members of a rival street gang and they pursued the accused and began shooting at him. He returned fire and hit the victim twice. The other men ran off and the accused pursued the victim who abandoned his sawed-off rifle and sought shelter in the backyard of a residence. The accused followed him and shot him at close range in the face. The victim was badly injured but survived. The accused fled the scene, pausing to grab the victim�s rifle. He was later found by the police and arrested. The accused was 30 years old at the time he committed the offences. His background was provided by a report prepared by an adjudicator of the accused�s compensation claim for having attended a residential school. As a small child, he lived with his parents, both of whom had problems with substance abuse. His father physically abused him. At either age five or seven he was sent to residential school and while there, he was sexually abused by an employee. The accused said the sexual abuse and violation of trust fundamentally altered his existence. He no longer trusted people in authority, didn�t pay attention to teachers and was unable to learn right from wrong. The adjudicator accepted that as a result of the sexual abuse, the accused suffered from insomnia, anxiety, fear of being alone, lack of trust, problems with authority figures, difficulty with interpersonal relationships, anger, aggressiveness and significant substance abuse problems. The accused began drinking and using marijuana while in residential school. The author of the Pre-Sentence Report (PSR) noted that the accused said he had experienced racism every day. His employment history was minimal and he estimated that he was fired from the majority of his jobs for substance abuse and resistance to authority. The accused became involved in criminal activities as a youth and committed many offences, most of them involving theft under $5,000 and failures to appear or to comply with court orders. His criminal record as an adult was lengthy. Although robbery and failure to comply with orders remained his common offences, the accused�s record showed an increase in more serious and violent crimes. The PSR indicted that the accused was in the 98th percentile of risk to re-offend and posed a high risk to the public. The accused had...

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