ATHABASCA – A local man will spend the next month behind bars and faces a substantial fine for breaching his conditional sentence order.
In Athabasca Court of Justice July 24, Patrick L’Heureux pleaded guilty to failing to comply with undertaking conditions, breaching a conditional sentencing order, and petty trespass, as part of an agreement between himself and Crown prosecutor Brett Grierson
In addition to a 30-day jail stay, L’Heureux will pay a $500 fine, and have an additional 15-day jail sentence on his record, which he will serve concurrently with the longer sentence.
Justice Jeffrey Morrison chose to have the additional 15-days be served at the same time as the first sentence instead of consecutively as Grierson had initially asked, but otherwise accepted the hastily constructed submission — L’Heureux had opted to represent himself after some frustrations arose between himself and his lawyer David Keyes, on a shoplifting charge.
L’Heureux, who works on a farm, said the initial sentencing order had been constructed around his responsibilities and had offered to write a letter of apology to the original judge.
“My criminal record speaks to a 15-year period between 25 and 40 where I was actively using and actively in the throes of addiction. From the age of 40 onwards, I was lucky enough to be one of the fortunate ones that can overcome it,” said L’Heureux. “Having said that, there are some other issues that flare up, that put me in a state of being defiant, sometimes towards something that is helpful to me.”
Once L’Heureux finishes his jail stay, his conditional sentence will resume. He’s also scheduled to be back in court Aug. 14 on a remaining charge of theft under $5,000.
The facts
Grierson told court that on March 27, 2023, L’Heureux received a conditional sentence in Edmonton.
On April 11, 2023, L’Heureux reviewed the order with his probation officer, saying that he understood it. Later, the probation officer was informed by an RCMP officer that on April 16, 2023, L’Heureux was found at the Colinton transfer station inside the perimeter with scrap metal in his possession and did not have the probation officer’s permission to be outside at that time.
According to Grierson, the breach of the undertaking occurred after L’Heureux had been released on March 2, 2023, and was supposed to stay at home between 8 p.m., and 6 a.m., as part of the undertaking. On March 4, a police officer found L’Heureux outside around 11:45 p.m. going through dumpsters near 52nd Street.
