By Keith Lacey
Justice Guy Mahaffy told a repeat drug offender giving him an intermittent sentence to be served on weekends would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.
And then he warned the accused, Stephen Depatie, 20, that if his father and a young female acquaintance voiced further disapproval of his ruling, he'd have them placed under arrest.
Mahaffy ruled Thursday he wouldn't concede to a joint submission presented by defence counsel Andrew Buttazzoni and federal Crown prosecutor Pierre Bradley for a three-month intermittent sentence for Depatie during a sentencing hearing on marijuana drug-trafficking charges.
The Sudbury man was convicted several weeks ago and a pre-sentence report before sentencing Thursday. Court heard police raided Depatie's residence in the spring of 2000 and found 138 grams of marijuana and $3,900 in cash. Police also found an unloaded shotgun under a bed. Depatie had a 1999 conviction for drug possession.
Buttazzoni told the court Depatie has made efforts to return to school and he?s remorseful for his actions and wants to continue his studies.
Giving his client an intermittent sentence would punish him, yet allow for his rehabilitation, said Buttazzoni.
Bradley said the Crown was originally seeking a four to six-month jail sentence, but considering defence counsel submissions and all the circumstances of the case, agreed to a 90-day intermittent sentence.
However, Mahaffy said he couldn?t agree citing Depatie being caught twice selling drugs to an undercover officer within a two-week time period last April.
The amount of drugs and money recovered by police indicates Depatie was operating a large-scale drug trafficking operation, said Mahaffy.
The courts were very lenient to Depatie when he was convicted of drug possession two years ago, but this accused obviously didn't get the message and tried to make easy money by selling large amounts of illegal drugs, most likely to many young people, said Mahaffy.
The veteran judge said he didn't believe submissions Depatie claimed half the money seized by police were childhood savings.
Mahaffy also didn't believe believe Depatie's assertions he only dealt the drugs to close friends.
Dealing this amount of drugs cries out for a harsh jail sentence and not a slap on the wrist of 90 days on weekends, said Mahaffy.
Besides sentencing Depatie to six months behind bars, Mahaffy prohibited him from owning or possessing any prohibited weapon or firearm for 10 years and ordered the $3,900 seized by police to be turned over the Crown's office.
After sentence was imposed, Depatie's father and a young woman voiced their discontent with Mahaffy's decision.
The young woman yelled out, "You don't get that much for murder."
At this point, Mahaffy told both of them he wouldn't take any further action if they remained quiet and allowed court proceedings to continue.
However, if they insisted on voicing their disapproval, he told both he would have them charged with contempt of court.
Both immediately stood up without uttering any further comments and left the courtroom.
