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* • A i, 4. IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
IN THE MATTER OF; HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN, VS FRANK EDWARD BOUCHER.
iii'I' ORAL REASONS FOR JUDGMENT A transcript of the Oral Reasons for Judgment of Morrow J. given on the 13th day of November, A.D. 1975.
Appearances: T. Boyd, Esq., appearing on behalf of the Crown. L. Lane, appearing on behalf of the Defence
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1 THE COURT: I will give my general remarks on sentencing 2 first, then I will take each specific charge. 3 Mr. Boucher, I have often said that in my 4 experience, and that embraces now over fifteen years, 5 six as a lawyer here and almost ten as a judge, I have 6 often said that we have no criminals in the Northwest 7 Territories, but that we do have a great nuinber of 6 unfortunate people who probably are more appropriately 9 termed social misfits, people who for various causes — 10 one of the causes has been, I know, social breakdown 11 because of cultural change, the impact of a fast moving 12 economy and so on. I am not going to go into that. I 13 don't imagine that you are too concerned with it. 14 I as a judge have consistently believed in as 15 much as possible using the route of short sentences, 16 or suspended sentences, periods of probation, hoping 17 that people such as you would learn or assume a sense 18 of responsibility to get some assistance during your 19 term of incarceration, if that was the case, so that 20 when you got out you would be able to get work and 21 stay out of trouble. I still believe in that, but 22 I sometimes wonder just what is happening in 23 the Northwest Territories these days, because certainly 24 in the last year or so, certainly the last eight or 25 nine months, there has been a tremendous rash of what 26 I choose to call property offences and assaults. 27 Now, you are not involved in the violent aspect.
^^m Ts-m-r ~ -2- 116 1 the assault aspect, and that is to your credit. It is 2 also to your credit that you have pled guilty here today, 3 and that to me, as required by law, must be taken as 4 some indication of remorse, and some indication that 5 the rehabilitation process is taking place, but there 6 is a tremendous rash of property offences, and v;hile 7 you are not to be punished here today for what others 8 do, your case is symptomatic of what is happening in 9 places like Inuvik and Fort Simpson and Fort Smith and 10 in Yellowknife. There is far too little respect for 11 people's property. This idea of breaking into stores 12 smashing windows, breaking into peoples' houses, and so 13 on, it has got to stop. There is no need for it. We have 14 probably one of the best welfare states in the world, so 15 that if you are hungry or starving you don't have to 16 bre^k in and steal as they did a hundred years ago. 17 You can get welfare. I understand that there is a lot 18 of employment in Yellowknife, or at least it is one 19 of the better places. I'm not saying that you can always 20 get a job. Now it is to your credit that you did have 21 a, job for part of the summer, but as soon as you are 22 out of work and run out of money, for some reason or i !; 23 e^nother, it looks as though you start to break into 24 peoples' property and steal. 25 Now, the question is, what can the Court do? I 26 can't take everyone that comes before the Court and set 27 up a special system to see that they are looked after.
^rsm I W ^ ^ i ^ ^ ^ ^ -3- 117 1 and see that you have work and see that you keep out 2 of trouble. I have to work within the law as it is 3 laid down within the provisions of the Criminal Code 4 and as it is set up in the Correctional System. 5 in the last few years the Government 6 has set up a subordinate institution at Hay River 7 and at Frobisher Bay, which is supposed to be of some 8 assistance in giving you a chance to work and learn. 9 I hope the system is working. My own research, and 10 I have gone through these institutions, it is encouraging. 11 I don't think that I was fooled when I was there. I 12 think, it was a genuine effort that I observed in these 13 institutions, and I hope that if someone such as you [* :h? 14 is put into the Yellowknife Correctional Centre here in 15 Yellowknife, with a recommendation from the Court that 16 you be allowed to work, that^you get a chance to work. 17 I hope that they carry out these recommendations. If 18 they don't and it is brought to my attention, then I 19 think, we should do something about it. 20 Now, I can't just say that you can go free here today. 2X You have had a lot of chances, and you know it yourself. 22 Your own lawyer, who has done the best she can for you, 23 admits that, and you must admit it if you are sensible. 24 At the same time I don't think I am disposed to give you 25 a long sentence either, but I want to warn you that unless 26 you start to grow up and show some respect for other 27 peoples* property and start to show some respect for the ^W
•"^SM mmm -4-SvO 118 1 law pretty soon, people like myself are going to lose 2 patience and figure you are hopeless and then we will 3 start putting you away for the period that the law 4 permits just so that you are no longer a nuisance to 5 society. 6 Now, I hope that you appreciate v/hat I am saying 7 to you. I don't want to have to do that. If I have 8 to I will. 9 Now, th^t is what I have to say with respect to the 10 first charge, the breaking and entering, and the last 11 one, the one with respect to the stolen goods, the 12 possession of stolen goods. 13 Now, I have a few remarks that I am going to 14 address to you about the two charges, the one failing 15 to report to the R.C.M.P. and the one failing to appear 16 for your trial. 17 A short time after I became a judge here I wrote 18 a judgment called The Queen versus Moses, and I laid 19 down in that judgment the principles of granting bail, 20 as it was then called. Now we call it an undertaking 21 to appear. The principles that I laid down and which 22 followed the principles that had been followed for 23 years by my predecessor the late Justice Sissons were, 24 that in the Northwest Territories, as much as possible, 25 people should be allowed out on bail, because we respected, 26 as a Court, the principle that people are presumed to be 27 innocent until they are convicted, or until thev are
^ -5-119 1 proven guilty, and unless they show signs of disappearing 2 and.not being ready for trial, they be automatically 3 allowed bail. 4 I have noticed in the last year, in 1975, I have 5 had to adjourn more cases, and from what I have heard 6 it is the same in the Magistrates' Court. I have 7 had to adjourn more cases in 1975 than in the previous 8 eight years as a judge. Now, that is symtomatic of 9 something. It is a matter of common knowledge in the 10 local newspapers that the Government of Canada, which 11 passed the Bail Reform Act a few years ago, bringing 12 in the undertaking to appear system, that is automatic 13 bail, and I like to kid myself and say they copied the m^ 14 Northwest Territories there, that they brought in our practice 15 Now there is talk of changing it. Every time a person 16 such as you breaks your promise to the Court to appear, 17 and to behave while you are out, you make it more 18 inevitable that the time will come when you will not be 19 allowed out on bail. You are cutting your own throat, 20 if I may use the phrase. This week already I have had 21 two other cases of this kind. Last week I had one. 22 At Inuvik I had to put over two cases twice on circuit. 23 Twice I have had to adjourn cases at Fort Good Hope, and 24 in all of these cases the Crown has gone to the trouble 25 of assembling witnesses, private citizens have been put 26 out because they have had to turn up. 27 Now, again, I am not punishing you for what everyone -M
-iWSi ^^mm^ ^ i ^ ^ l ^ M H XG -6- 120 1 else did, but I want you to understand as a human being 2 that if you expect the Court to continually allow you 3 out if you are charged with an offence and pending 4 trial, you have got to respect your promise to the Court. 5 Now, the reason that the police or the Magistrate, or 6 whoever it was that accepted your undertaking originally 7 and required you to report to the police was so that 8 they would know where you were. The fact that you didn't 9 turn up for your trial is some indication that they 10 were right in that, in asking you to report so that 11 they would know where you were. I hope you understand 12 what I am saying. 13 I think I can safely say that ninety-five percent 14 of the people that come in front of me as a judge, in 15 the nine years that I have been a judge, have said 16 that they have an alcohol problem. Well, I don't 17 consider an alcohol problem as an excuse. It may be 18 symptomatic of something. There is no use saying that 19 you can go out and get drunk and therefore that relieves 20 you of your responsibilities. 21 Now, would you stand up, I am going to sentence you. 22 Speaking first, and at this moment I am Supreme Court, 23 with respect to the first charge, which is file 136 8, the 24 charge under Section 306(1)(b) of the Criminal Code, I 25 am sentencing you to six months in the Yellowknife 26 Institute, with a recommendation that if you so request 27 that you be sent to the Hay River branch for whatever
s^Fsm -7- 121 1 period they see fit, and with the further recommendation 2 that if you request it that you be given — that 3 you be sent to the Henwood Institution for treatment and 4 education in respect to the abuse of alcohol, and I 5 also recommend that if you indicate you are willing to 6 that every effort be made to let you work on a day 7 basis while you are vmdergoing this sentence, so that 8 perhaps you will be able to continue when you get out 9 without getting back into trouble. Now, I think that 10 that is about as far as I can go. 11 New-, "^rning next, and I am now sitting as a 12 magistrate. With respect to file 1214-75, that is 13 the first one under Section 133(3)(a), I am sentencing 14 you to fifteen days consecutive to the previous. With 15 respect to the first one, file 1215-75, that is the 16 other- ane-r the one where you are charged of breach of 17 your tindertaking. Section 133(2) (a), thirty days 18 consecutive, and v/ith respect to the last one, that is 19 the possession of the stolen goods. Section 312 (1)(a), 20 I am sentencing you to one month consecutive. 21 Now, there will be a direction that any of the 22 articles, including the thirty-seven dollars and som.e 23 cents will be released to the police to be returned to 24 the proper owners. Have we missed anything? 25 MISS LANE: I don't believe so. My Lord. 26 MR. BOYD: No, sir. 27 THE COURT: Now, I hope, Mr. Boucher, I think I have been •4 c-