Court update: Sentences given in murder and manslaughter cases

Nineteen-year-old Commanduer from Clairmont was shot and killed in a rural area near Woking in June of 2020.

Court had heard during Letourneau’s trial from another man serving a life sentence; Simon De Lima, that Letourneau had told De Lima to come over to a house where a group of people had gathered and told De Lima how to carry out the shooting. It was revealed that Letourneau had received a call from De Lima saying it had been done. De Lima had already pleaded guilty to a charge of first degree murder.

De Lima fired six shots at Commandeur after the two men, plus another man stopped after driving around for a time in Commandeur’s truck.

The other man; Justin Bishop, is serving a five-and-a-half-year manslaughter sentence. Melissa Healey was given a two-year sentence for unlawful confinement. Both pleaded guilty.

An agreed statement of facts from Bishop’s proceeding says Commandeur had angered Letourneau and Healey by reporting his truck stolen after some people at the gathering had taken it, supposedly to give a ride back to a hotel to some other people.

Bishop also said Commandeur had been bound and had packing tape over his mouth at the house in Clairmont where the gathering had taken place.

Seven year manslaughter sentence for Grande Prairie woman after death near Peace River

Alberta Justice says a Grande Prairie woman charged after a 2018 death near Peace River has been given a seven year jail sentence.

Paige Eileen Burkinshaw was given the sentence September 5, in Peace River court after earlier being found guilty of charges that included manslaughter/use of a firearm, and robbery with a firearm.

She was given 239 days credit for time already spent in custody.

Burkinshaw was charged after the May 17, 2017, death of 20-year-old Lawrence Robert Butt.

His body was found in a burned-out trailer along Reno Road East.

In December, Kyle Dubroy-Clement was given a 78-month jail sentence after being found guilty of robbery with violence, accessory to murder, and break and enter – not a dwelling house. He was found not guilty of manslaughter.

In 2019, Blake Murphy of Grande Prairie was given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 10 years after pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree murder.

Two other people had previously pleaded guilty to accessory charges and were handed short jail sentences.

Life sentence for man charged after the death of a teenage girl

Alberta Justice says the man charged after the death of a 15-year-old girl from the Little Red River Cree Nation has been given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.

Jason Alec Tallcree was sentenced September 1 in Peace River court. He had been found guilty of murder, sexual interference, and interfere with a dead body in April.

Tallcree was charged after the 2020 death of Roderica Ribbonleg.

She was last seen July 5, 2020, near John D’or Prairie and was reported missing July 11, 2020.

Her body was later found in a forested area near Fort Vermilion. An autopsy confirmed her identity.

At the time, Fort Vermilion RCMP thanked the people of the Little Red River Cree Nation, including John D’Or Prairie, Fox Lake, and Garden River for their help during the search for Roderica.

by EverythingGP staff

Court update: Sentences given in murder and manslaughter cases

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