A man who led police on a series of high-speed chases from Hinton, Alta., to Tete Jaune Cache and then pointed a pellet gun at officers was sentenced to two years less a day in provincial jail on Wednesday.
Clive Michael Stretch, 49, of Saskatoon, pled guilty to three charges stemming from an incident on Feb. 13 which saw him evade police in multiple jurisdictions before getting arrested after an armed standoff on Highway 16. Crown counsel Geoffrey McDonald described the series of events as "a very energetic attempt at a suicide by cop or traffic."
Provincial court judge Dan Weatherly accepted a joint submission by the Crown and defence on the sentence, but added the maximum probationary period of three years because he wanted to ensure Stretch received the support he needed and to have supervision in place upon his release.
According to the agreed statement of facts presented in court, at 9 a.m. on Feb. 13, RCMP in Hinton, Alta., first received a call about an erratic driver in a BMW going westbound on the Trans-Canada Highway at a high rate of speed. After locating the vehicle on the highway, police tried to get the driver to stop but he continued traveling in excess of 160 km/h.
Eventually RCMP in Hinton gave up the chase, but alerted RCMP in Jasper, Alta., about the situation. Jasper police were also unsuccessful in getting the car to stop, but passed on the information to RCMP detachments in Valemount and McBride.
Once again the driver didn't slow down and Valemount officers trailed behind at what they considered a safe distance.
Eventually the driver pulled off to the side of the road in an open area of the highway near Tete Jaune Cache. With a police car parked about 75 to 100 metres away, Stretch exited the BMW with a towel and went to the trunk of the car and eventually emerged with an item which the RCMP officer on scene feared was a weapon.
Stretch used the blanket to cover the weapon and began to run toward the officer. As Stretch approached, the officer could see the barrel of a gun, which he initially identified as a hunting rifle.
According to McDonald, the officer was "terrified" that he could suffer "grievous bodily harm or death."
With the highway blocked in both directions, Stretch continued to approach the officers in a threatening manner. At one point, an officer even began his trigger sequence, but decided against shooting.
Eventually one of the officers was able to identify the firearm as a pellet gun that looked like a hunting rifle and Stretch was tackled to the ground shortly thereafter and arrested. After spending 24 hours in a psychiatric ward, Stretch has been in police custody ever since.
Stretch's lawyer told the court his client's troubles began when he started using cocaine two years ago and that Stretch was trying to get to his brother's home in the Lower Mainland to begin a detox program when things spiraled out of control.
Stretch told the court he was naive when he began using drugs and felt the penalty being imposed was "harsh."
He also said he was grateful the police officers didn't shoot him and have to live with that decision.
Among the other conditions to the sentence are a prohibition from drugs and alcohol unless prescribed by a physician, provision of a DNA sample, a 10-year firearms ban and a three-year driving ban.
When asked by Weatherly if he understood the sentence, Stretch replied, "that sounds super, sir."
