A youth will serve a three-year out-of-custody sentence for the attempted murder of his sister in their Shelley-area home two years ago.
In reaching his decision, provincial court judge Michael Brecknell acknowledged the severity of the crime and the serious injuries the victim suffered, but also noted the youth admitted responsibility immediately after the Sept. 20, 2013 attack and pleaded guilty to the offence.
As well, the victim and the family have not asked for a term of imprisonment for the youth, Brecknell said in a reasons for judgment that refers to the youth and the victim only by their initials and does not provide their ages.
The terms of the sentence, issued on Sept. 23, carries several conditions including a requirement that he complete an intensive support and supervision program to the satisfaction of the youth worker. He is also prohibited from contacting his sister without agreement from his parents and her counsellor.
According to the summary of the events in the judgment, the youth had been angry at various people for several months but especially his father and to the point where he had thought seriously of stabbing him for some time. The night before the incident, the two got into an argument when the youth was prohibited from visiting his mother and half-brother.
The father, who is seperated from the youth's mother, prohibited the visit because the youth had not done his chores.
The next morning he was still angry at his father, but his father was not home, so he attacked his sister with a large chef's knife from the kitchen counter.
The sister, who is three years younger, first tried to escape by running into her bedroom but he pursued her.
However, she was able to escape the bedroom and ran outside where she flagged down a school bus.
The youth, meanwhile, called 911 and reported he tried to kill his sister and gave himself up without further incident when RCMP arrived.
The girl suffered a collapsed lung, long-term mobility damage to her left thumb and stab wounds to her back, arms, legs and face that have left permanent scarring.
The youth later said he got the idea to kill his father and sister from the movie Halloween, and had watched the killing sequence over and over.
After his arrest, he spent 34 days in the Prince George Youth Correctional Centre before he was released on bail and into the care of his mother.
Since his release, the youth's behaviour under community supervision has been described as excellent.
The same comment was applied to his attendance and participation in an intensive support and supervision program.
"(The youth) has accepted responsibility for and expressed remorse for his actions," Brecknell said.
"He had participated freely and fully with the resources provided to him since his arrest. He has cooperated fully in the preparation of the reports and assessments prepared to assist the court. He is already taking steps towards his rehabilitation."
