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Man sentenced to three years on weapons charge

A 41-year old man with a drug trafficking record will serve a three year sentence for possession of a Ruger SR22 semi-automatic rifle.
court verdict

A 41-year old man with a drug trafficking record will serve a three year sentence for possession of a Ruger SR22 semi-automatic rifle.

The court heard on Thursday that Michael Tweedy was stopped by police in Tte Jaune Cache after appearing to drive erratically. After he failed to identify himself, police assumed Tweedy to have been intoxicated and conducted a search of his vehicle for ID. Police found the SR22 rifle in his vehicle, as well as an SKS rifle, along with high capacity magazines and a small amount of narcotics. Tweedy had a record of possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking in Alberta, where he had previously served time.

Crown prosecutor Jeff Macdonald said that the sentence was lenient due to the fact that Tweedy had sustained a brain injury after an altercation sustained while serving in Alberta. He had been assaulted and beaten severely on Nov. 19, 2016 in the Edmonton remand centre.

Defense lawyer Richard Kaiser said that Tweedy had little capacity to remember events and that he had often to explain details to him several times. Tweedy was deemed by prosecution to be of little danger to society due to the fact that he could not create new memories in the short-term.

"He is essentially a walking human version of the cartoon character Dory," Macdonald told the court.

Tweedy offered an apology to the court, saying simply that he was "sorry for the life I've lived."

Judge Ronald Tindale added a lifetime prohibition from possession of firearms to Tweedy's sentence.