Gabriel Poundmaker has been sentenced to a 30-month jail sentence in connection to the high speed chase and police standoff incidents that took place during January.
Poundmaker appeared in provincial court in North Battleford Wednesday before Judge David Kaiser.
The most serious charges stemmed from the incident Jan. 14 in which Poundmaker led police on a high-speed chase through the streets of North Battleford. He received 24 months, concurrent, on the charges of flight from police and of assaulting a police officer with a weapon (imitation firearm).
He also received six months for possession of a weapon dangerous to the public and possessing a weapon while prohibited, in connection to the police standoff incident from Jan. 22. He also receives one month concurrent from a breach charge.
Poundmaker was credited with 116 days remand time calculated on a 1.5-to-1 basis.
In addition Poundmaker was assessed a $700 victim’s surcharge and a lifetime firearms prohibition. He was already under a 10-year firearms prohibition. No DNA order was made as one was already been provided by a previous conviction.
The recommendation from the judge is for Poundmaker to serve his time in Quebec, where he has family connections and where it is believed he has the best chance for rehabilitation. A number of family members from Poundmaker First Nation were in court Wednesday as well.
The sentence proposed in resulted from a joint submission from the Crown and defence, the only difference being the Crown’s submission that remand time be credited at 1-to-1 instead of at 1.5. A presentence report and also a psychological report had been submitted as well. The 30-month sentence is in the lower end of the range for these types of offences. The early guilty plea and prompt resolution of the case without a trial were cited by counsel as among the mitigating factors.
Just before sentence was imposed by Kaiser, Poundmaker offered an apology.
“[I] would like to apologize for my actions,” he said. “I was on all kinds of drugs and stuff and was not in the right state of mind.”
Poundmaker also expressed his hope to “start my healing process.”
In imposing sentence Judge Kaiser singled out the Jan. 14 incident in particular as “extremely serious.”
Poundmaker’s actions “put the lives of many people at risk and in particular children,” the judge said.
As for the standoff incident Jan. 22 he noted the impact and stress on the police, and the potential for a much worse outcome to the tense situation.
“This would have been sad indeed if one of these officers shot and killed Mr. Poundmaker,” said Kaiser.
The sentencing brings a conclusion to a case that rocked North Battleford residents during the month of January. According to the facts outlined in court, police attempted to initiate a vehicle stop of a black Dodge Charger near Fisher’s Drugs on 100th Street on the afternoon of Jan. 14.
Instead, Poundmaker, who had just been released from jail, took off in the vehicle and led police on a high-speed chase through several streets in North Battleford, with speeds of 100 km/h. It was reported earlier that witnesses had seen Poundmaker point a gun at officers.
Ultimately police had to call off the chase as it became too dangerous, and the vehicle fled the city.
Jan. 22, another serious incident involving Poundmaker took place on 111th Street in front of an apartment building. A standoff developed between Poundmaker and members of the RCMP who were at the scene. The situation prompted a lockdown at the nearby St. Mary School.
According to facts outlined in court by the Crown, Poundmaker had threatened to kill himself and had put the gun he was holding into his mouth. Police were on the scene and negotiated for some five hours to persuade Poundmaker to put down the gun, and eventually he did surrender and was taken into custody.
