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Eight-year sentence given in Grande Prairie manslaughter case

Apr 13, 2018 | 6:07 PM

One of the four people charged after the 2015 death of Adrian Snider has been given an eight-year jail sentence in Grande Prairie Court of Queen’s Bench.
 
Dominic Decque had earlier pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter after originally being charged with murder. He will be given 54-months credit for time already spent in custody.
 
Another man charged with murder in the case, Tommy Paul, has also pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is due in Edmonton Court of Queen’s Bench Wednesday.
 
Grande Prairie Court heard Friday that Decque, Paul, and Snider were part of a crew that worked for a drug and prostitution ring.
 
Decque and Paul were told to deal with Snider after the latter was suspected of stealing $11,500 and a gun from the ring.
 
In March of 2015, Snider was attacked in a home they all shared, handcuffed, and beaten with a pipe. He also had a sock stuffed in his mouth.  His body was found in a rural area near Grande Prairie about six weeks later.
 
The Crown had argued for a 10-year sentence, given the violent nature of the crime, that weapons were used, that Snider was struck in the head and Decque’s role in the attack. The Medical Examiner’s Office determined Snider had been struck in the head with a blunt instrument at least five times.
 
The defence countered that there was no intent to cause death, that Decque was remorseful and that he had pleaded guilty and was anxious to resolve the matter. The defence also cited the fact that the report from the Medical Examiner also identified choking or a drug overdose as possible causes of death.
 
In the end, the judge imposed the eight-year term, citing the guilty plea and the fact that would save court resources and mean witnesses would not have to testify. Justice B.A. Browne said she was satisfied Decque was a follower as determined in one of two reports compiled before sentencing. She also recommended Decque take a trade program while in prison and take whatever other programs might be available. She also sent her sympathies to Snider’s family and at one point said: “there is only sadness in the court today.”
 
Two others charged in the case still have pending court dates.
 
Dominic’s brother Patrick Decque is due back in court on June 11 on manslaughter and accessory to murder charges. There had been a trial set for June, but that will not take place. 
 
Courtney McQuinn, who is facing a charge of accessory to murder, is to have a preliminary hearing in August.