2 Moncton men sentenced for role in teen's 2022 shooting death
Two Moncton men were sentenced Thursday to five years behind bars for their roles in the 2022 shooting death of a Moncton teenager, though they will actually serve less than two years.
Nicholas McAvoy, 26, and Hayden Leblanc, 20, were sentenced after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
They were among six people charged after the April 25, 2022, death of 18-year-old Joedin Lloyd Leger.
Court of King's Bench Justice Jean-Paul Ouellette said a life was taken prematurely, which upended the lives of Leger's family and friends.
"This should remain on your conscience and follow you all of your life," Ouellette said to McAvoy and Leblanc as he issued their sentences.
Joedin Leger was 18 when he was shot and killrf in Moncton on April 25, 2022. (Albert County Funeral Home)
Ouellette accepted the sentence jointly recommended by Crown prosecutors and defence lawyers for the two men.
McAvoy was sentenced to five years. He was credited 1.5 days for each of the 772 days in custody since his arrest, leaving 667 days left to serve.
Leblanc was sentenced to five years and two months. He was also credited 1.5 days for each of the 779 days in custody since his arrest. That means he will have 716 days left to serve.
Leblanc's sentence was different because of his level of involvement in the crime.
Details cannot be reported
The details of what the two men admit cannot be reported because of a publication ban. Ouellette imposed the ban to protect the upcoming jury trial of two other men charged in connection with Leger's death.
Ouellette imposed the sentence after hearing victim impact statements from Leger's girlfriend and family members.
Family describes loss
Chantal Boudreau, Leger's girlfriend, said her life has been shattered.
"After your sentences are done, you get to go home to your family and live the rest of your lives," she said of Leblanc and McAvoy, who sat watching her from the prisoner's box.
She struggled to read her statement that described seeing Leger dying.
"That morning I didn't just lose the person I love, our dreams died with him," Boudreau said.
Leger's mother, Dawnita Hanson, read her victim impact statement as well as another written by Leger's father, Rodney Leger.
"You don't know me, I don't know you. You're a stranger and you've broken my heart," Hanson said.
Hanson described nightmares and feeling guilty because she wasn't there as her son died.
"I wasn't there to keep him safe and hold him so that he knows he's not alone," she said.
After lawyers outlined the recommended sentence, both Leblanc and McAvoy stood and addressed Leger's family in the courtroom.
McAvoy said nothing he could say could bring their son back and that he will have to live with his actions that day.
"I'm sorry for your loss," Leblanc said.
