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Man sentenced for carrying ‘self-defence’ weapons

Apr 4, 2017 | 2:00 PM

A man who habitually carried weapons concealed on his person and pulled a knife while in RCMP cells, was given a year’s probation this morning by a Prince Albert judge.

Jeremy Morissette, 20, was charged with several weapons-related offenses in connection with two separate incidents in which he claimed to have been carrying weapons – a knife and a pellet gun – for self-defence.

In the first incident, court heard RCMP were called to a Mistawasis residence early in the morning of July 9, 2016 for reports of several intoxicated people who had become violent at a party. Morissette was found passed out by officers, Senior Crown Prosecutor Shawn Blackman told the court, and was so intoxicated he needed to be carried into the local detachment. He was given a “quick pat-down” before being lodged in a cell along with his cousin, who had been arrested during the same incident.

The situation was not over yet, Blackman said, as officers heard a scuffle inside the cell. When the cell was opened, Morissette was held down by his cousin and brandishing a knife which police believed he had concealed in his sock.

The second incident occurred Jan. 7, when Prince Albert Police were called to an 11th St. W. apartment for a complaint of an assault involving a knife. Officers spotted several suspects fleeing the building and one of them, later identified as Morissette, was carrying what appeared to be a long-barrelled rifle. Morissette dropped the weapon and attempted to flee, but was quickly arrested.

The rifle turned out to be a .177-calibre pellet rifle, Blackman said, and Morissette was discovered to once again have a knife concealed on his person.

Morissette’s lawyer Terra Lennox-Zepp said her client habitually carried the weapons after being the victim of multiple violent incidents.

“On more than one occasion he was assaulted,” Lennox-Zepp said. “He had these items for self-protection.”

Her client, Lennox-Zepp said, was not charged with any violent offenses, has no criminal record and is expected to complete his Grade 12 in the spring, having completed all the required credits.

Provincial Court Judge Hugh Harradence decided against imposing a jail sentence, but cautioned Morissette strongly against repeating the offenses.

“This gun business can lead nowhere good,” Harradence said. “You’ve got to stop carrying these weapons around.”

Harradence suspended Morissette’s sentence and issued 12 months of probation with conditions including a nightly curfew and personal counselling. He will not be permitted to possess any weapons during the probation period, and will be required to forfeit the knife and air rifle.

 

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews