Man given conditional term, told to pay restitution

A 22-year-old man from Pelly Crossing received a six-month conditional sentence and eight months' probation in addition to time served Tuesday after pleading guilty to six offences, including break and enter, theft and mischief.

A 22-year-old man from Pelly Crossing received a six-month conditional sentence and eight months’ probation in addition to time served Tuesday after pleading guilty to six offences, including break and enter, theft and mischief.

Desmond McGinty, who is a member of the Selkirk First Nation, was also ordered by the territorial court to pay $2,700 restitution.

McGinty was charged with break and enter, mischief, and possession of property obtained by crime following an incident in Pelly Crossing on July 12, 2007.

The RCMP were notified of an intruder at the Selkirk First Nation Cultural Centre at approximately 4:30 a.m. that day, Crown counsel Melissa Atkinson told the court.

Upon attending the scene, officers saw McGinty leaving the centre with several artifacts, including a birch bark canoe and a traditional baby rattle.

He was intoxicated at the time, she added, and was arrested at the scene.

Several custom-made glass display cases and a window were broken during the incident, said Atkinson, and a stolen Toshiba laptop was not recovered.

The total amount for the damages is $2,700, she said.

Defence counsel Gord Coffin said that although McGinty has little memory of the events in question, he does not dispute the allegations.

McGinty was released on a recognizance the same day, said Atkinson, but failed to appear for a disposition in February 2008.

McGinty incurred further charges on March 20, 2008, when he allegedly violated his recognizance by consuming alcohol and using a firearm, court heard.

McGinty fired several shots in the air in Pelly Crossing that day, court heard. Upon his arrest, police officers learned that McGinty was intoxicated and in possession of two loaded firearms for which he did not possess a licence.

The firearms were also stolen property, police learned.

McGinty was charged with breach of recognizance and unauthorized possession of a firearm and remanded into custody.

McGinty has a “very limited criminal record,“ Atkinson noted in her submission. She asked for a conditional sentence that would help McGinty reintegrate back into his community.

“He has a tough road ahead of him,“ Atkinson said in regards to McGinty’s return to Pelly Crossing after being in custody for almost four months.

The community was “quite shocked” to learn that a member of its own first nation had broken into the cultural centre, she said.

Coffin said in his submission to Judge John Faulkner that McGinty “recognizes he has a difficulty with alcohol. He has spent a significant chunk of time in (the Whitehorse Correctional Centre) and has gotten the point.“

Coffin also asked for a conditional sentence in his submission.

Coffin added that McGinty has not been able to access appropriate programming while incarcerated because he was serving remand time instead of an actual sentence.

Faulkner adjourned the case overnight to consider the appropriateness of a conditional sentence.

On reconvening Tuesday, Faulkner said he had concerns about McGinty’s ability to adhere to the strict conditions of a conditional sentence, to appear in court as scheduled, and to keep the peace within his community.

Despite these concerns, Faulkner did not dispute counsel’s submissions and ordered the six-month conditional sentence.

“It will be clear soon whether my skepticism or counsel’s optimism is more warranted,“ he concluded.

“It’s very sad when a first nation member trashes such a place,“ Faulkner said in his decision, in reference to the cultural centre in Pelly Crossing.

Faulkner also noted that using a firearm while intoxicated presents a severe threat to any community.

Faulkner ordered McGinty to apologize to the Selkirk First Nation for his actions. He also imposed a 10-year firearms prohibition.