A Provincial Court judge in Prince George rejected a joint proposal to sentence a 23-year-old man to probation for being unlawfully in a house.
Jesse James Richardson pleaded guilty as charged to the Nov. 28, 2024 offence. Crown prosecutor Anna Novakovic told Judge Cassandra Malfair on May 21 that Richardson should receive a suspended sentence and 18 months probation.
Judges generally accept a joint sentencing proposal from Crown and defence lawyers, unless it is deemed likely to bring the administration of justice into disrepute or contrary to the public interest. Richardson was in the middle of a probation term when he committed the offence.
“I was expecting at least some type of house arrest or some type of term [to be proposed],” Malfair said, before adjourning the matter to May 28 to schedule time to additional Crown and defence submissions.
Court heard that RCMP officers found Richardson inside an empty house near Highway 16 and Orion Road after a report of an alarm at 12:41 a.m. on Nov. 28, 2024. The house was empty, except for cleaning supplies, because new owners were scheduled to take possession the next day. There was no report of damage or missing items.
Novakovic read from the owner’s informal statement that said Richardson triggered post-traumatic stress disorder.
“This break-in may have seemed like a minor incident to some, but for me, it was a devastating reminder of past trauma,” said the victim’s statement. “It robbed me of the sense of closure I was trying to build by selling that home. It shook the fragile peace that I've been working every day to rebuild.”
Richardson identifies as Metis on his mother’s side, has a Grade 12 education and has worked as a labourer. He has struggled with depression and anxiety.
But, Malfair noted Richardson was in court on June 6, 2024, less than six months before the offence. He was ordered to serve a year on probation after pleading guilty to possession of stolen property over $5,000, mischief, obstructing a peace officer and assaulting a peace officer.
“[The proposed sentence] is woefully inadequate of what would be required and, in terms of it having any deterrent or denunciatory effect, in my view, it has zero,” Malfair said.
