N.W.T. dealer in RCMP's Project Gloomiest sentenced to 1 year
A Yellowknife man who pleaded guilty to cocaine trafficking showed little emotion during his sentencing hearing on Monday, until the judge mentioned the man's son.
Andrew Rheaume, 26, was found with 11 grams of cocaine, digital scales and other items associated with drug trafficking when police raided his father's home, where Rheaume lived.
The search happened May 4, 2018 as part of the RCMP's Project Gloomiest, an investigation aimed at disrupting the local cocaine trade.
As she was sentencing Rheaume to a year in jail plus three months probation, Justice Karan Shaner noted Rheaume accepted responsibility for his crime.
That was not evident in a background report prepared for the sentencing. Rheaume told the report writer that he had pleaded guilty to avoid the possibility of getting a longer sentence if he went to trial. He also said he had no addictions issues.
At the start of the sentencing, Rheaume's lawyer, Baljinder Rattan, questioned him in open court about his guilty plea. Rattan had him confirm his guilty plea and that it is voluntary and that he understood the judge had the authority to sentence him to whatever time she felt was appropriate.
'I'm taking 100% responsibility'
"I'm taking 100 per cent responsibility," said Rheaume. "I'm pleading guilty."
Rattan also said her client had downplayed his alcohol and drug use to the probation officer who wrote the background report. People who deal drugs to feed their own addictions are treated as less morally blameworthy by the courts than those who sell strictly for profit.
Prosecutor Duane Praught called for a jail sentence of 18 months. He said three years is the starting point established for cocaine trafficking. But Praught said Rheaume deserved credit for his guilty plea, and said his lack of a criminal record and youth should also weigh in favour of a shorter sentence.
Time lost with young son
Justice Shaner said Rheaume's drug involvement has already cost him time with his six-year-old son, who is living with his mother in B.C. Shaner said Rheaume returned from B.C. while out on bail to be sentenced in March, but has been stuck here since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold.
At the mention of his son, Rheaume turned toward the wall next to the defence table and started wiping away tears.
Shaner noted that Rheaume, whose mother is Inuk, has not suffered the poverty, violence and neglect many Indigenous offenders experience as children.
"This does not change the fact that he is Indigenous or the court's obligation to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in prison," said the judge.
Shaner closed by saying she hoped Rheaume was ready to turn his life around.
"I'm going to take every program that they offer," responded Rheaume, who earlier said leaving Yellowknife is part of that effort. "As soon as I am released, I'm going to go back to Quebec where my mother lives."
