Closing arguments were heard in a Regina court yesterday for an Aboriginal man who was deemed a dangerous offender and sentenced to an indefinite prison term.
His lawyer is attempting to have that designation overturned, saying his client does not fit the profile of someone who should be languishing in jail with no fixed release date.
Thirty-seven-year-old Chad Michael Ewenin has led a troubled life. Ewenin was the victim of physical and sexual abuse in residential schools, and was shuffled from foster home to foster home, where he was also physically and emotionally abused. He turned to drugs, alcohol and crime at an early age. He also amassed 54 convictions, including the near fatal stabbing of a Saskatoon cab driver 16 years ago.
His lawyer, Jeff Deagle, says Ewenin has changed:
“I strongly think that he actually can send a message to people in the community and other people and help them as a role model. So, I think not only does he have that in him, he has the ability to actually lead by an example.”
In 2009, Ewenin was deemed a dangerous offender for the robbery of a Regina gas station where he used a knife to threaten the staff. He was sentenced to an indefinite prison term.
That designation was appealed, and last May, the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal ordered a new hearing saying the trial judge did not properly consider the aspect of community supervision to manage the risk of Ewenin re-offending.
Deagle is asking that his client be given a fixed prison term of about three years, followed by 10 years of intense community supervision. Deagle says his client has been taking programming while in prison in an effort to better himself:
“He has demonstrated what he can do and his willingness to do it, so he has a track record that most people coming before the courts in these types of proceedings never have. Mr. Ewenin has certainly demonstrated that he is changing.”
Last month, Ewenin testified at the hearing. He recounted his life and the pain, isolation and loneliness he felt.
He told the court he is sorry for what he has done.
Ewenin was serving his sentence in BC, but is now being held at the Regina Correctional Centre pending the outcome of this hearing.
Judgment has been reserved to May 1.