WESTLOCK — A Barrhead man with a long criminal history in both Westlock and Barrhead was recently given "one last chance" to stay on the straight and narrow after he told the judge he has cleaned up his act for the benefit of his wife and children.
At Westlock Court of Justice on May 22, Curtis Powder pleaded guilty to a single charge of flight from a peace officer. A second charge of operating a motor vehicle while prohibited was withdrawn.
Justice Gordon D. Putnam sentenced Powder to time served — he had spent the equivalent of 108 days in jail — and an eight-month conditional sentence order (CSO).
Powder will be under house arrest for the first half of the CSO and will have to abide by a curfew of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the second half. He must also follow a number of conditions, such as possessing no weapons, consuming no alcohol or drugs and attending any assessment, counselling or treatment as directed by probation.
A three-year driving prohibition was also imposed.
Aside from the driving prohibition, this sentence was not in line with the Crown's recommendation for a full eight months in jail. However, Putnam acknowledged that the CSO was probably a more onerous sentence, given the time Powder had already spent in custody.
However, Putnam said this judgment would allow Powder to serve his sentence in the community, where he appeared to be doing quite well, and to help him maintain his sobriety.
“I do believe sincerely that you are remorseful," said Putnam, who also took into account Powder's status as an Indigenous person and his family's history with residential schools.
After the sentence was passed down, Powder thanked the judge, adding, "You've given me a second chance at life."
Facts of the case
Crown prosecutor Brett Grierson said that on Jan. 20, 2024, an RCMP officer observed a dark blue pickup leaving the Westlock Inn Liquor Store parking lot. The truck changed lanes while travelling along Highway 18 but did not signal while doing so.
The officer initiated emergency lights in an attempt to initiate a traffic stop, but the truck did not pull over. The officer then turned on his sirens, said Grierson, noting that it was a clear night with good visibility.
The truck (driven by Powder) then made a left turn on 106th Avenue and slowed down, drifting to the right side of the road. However, it suddenly took off at a high rate of speed, and the officer ceased his pursuit because he didn't want to endanger civilians or other motorists.
Grierson said that while Powder's guilty plea was mitigating, his criminal record was "quite aggravating." He pointed out that Powder had a 2013 charge for flight from police, a 2016 charge for resisting arrest, an unlawfully at large charge from 2018, a resisting arrest charge from 2019 and a final 2020 conviction for obstruction. Many of these convictions resulted in jail time.
“There are many, many other convictions," Grierson said. "This is an individual who is very familiar with this courtroom and very familiar with court time."
Grierson said an eight-month jail sentence would strike the right balance between the mitigating nature of his guilty plea and "the very aggravating factor" of his criminal record.
Defence lawyer Christopher Chelala noted that Powder is from the Buffalo Lake First Nation. His grandparents were placed in residential schools where they suffered severely, and his parents also suffered drug and alcohol abuse; notably, his mother was 13 years old when he was born.
Powder himself struggled for years with drug and alcohol issues and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).
However, he has managed to remain clean for the last three years and is taking care of three children.
On the day of this offence, Powder had been with some other individuals who became intoxicated and were unable to drive.
“After realizing that they were drinking, he got behind the wheel ... knowing that he shouldn’t have drove," Chelala said, noting that Powder did not have a driver's licence and it wasn't his vehicle.
Chelala recommended that the judge sentence Powder to time served plus a conditional sentence order of six to eight months. He specifically requested conditions relating to treatment for drug and alcohol abuse, as it was believed that counselling and treatment would "significantly" help Powder maintain his sobriety.
When asked if he wished to speak, Powder told the judge about how he had let addictions get the best of him for most of his life.
“I finally found something ... worth living for, changing my life for, and that’s my children. I strive to be there every moment I can be with them," he said, crediting his wife for sticking by him and helping him to turn things around.
Powder admitted that for a long time, he would be in court every few months or so facing a new criminal charge, but he is no longer getting in trouble regularly and people are now surprised and happy to meet him.
He also said what he had done was wrong, noting that he had been offered a ride by the other individuals but they began drinking before they had even left town.
After speaking for more than five minutes, Putnam eventually asked Powder to slow down and take a breath. "I've been doing this for a while, and I've never had anybody say that much to me before," he added.
The judge acknowledged Powder's long criminal record but noted there seemed to be a change in his behaviour around 2020 or so. He also accepted Powder's explanation that it was a bad idea to interact with the other individuals in the truck.
He also took into account the Gladue factors in the case, pointing out that Canada still has a long way to go in terms of lowering the incarceration rates among Indigenous people.
He encouraged Powder to make a connection with his Indigenous roots, adding, "That culture has a lot of really important ideas and concepts about how to be in the world. I think that’s of benefit to you."
