(Photo: Ballantyne leaving court following being sentenced)
31-year-old Francine Ballantyne from Pelican Narrows was set to have a five-day trial this week for the manslaughter of Doris Broussie but instead pleaded guilty at the Court of Kings Bench in Prince Albert today.
The court heard that surveillance footage showed Broussie and Ballantyne were outside of the Fuel Stop bar in Prince Albert in the early hours of August 5, 2021, when an altercation occurred.
Footage showed that Broussie was knocked to the ground outside of the bar and Ballantyne was repeatedly kicking and stomping on her head.
Not long after the altercation, 40-year-old Broussie was found badly injured meters away from the bar at the Shell gas station on the 3800 block of 2nd Avenue W.
Prince Albert EMS and police initially thought that Broussie had passed out due to intoxication and transported her to the Victoria Hospital. At the hospital, doctors discovered that Broussie was suffering from a brain bleed and transported her to the Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon; from there she was transferred one more time to St. Paul’s Hospital.
At St. Paul’s, doctors identified that Broussie had a massive brain bleed and placed her on life support. Shortly after, Broussie was declared brain dead and succumbed to her injuries just two days after the altercation.
(Photo: Doris Broussie, MacKenzieChapel.ca)
Broussie was originally from Black Lake but was living in Prince Albert at the time of her death. She leaves behind two children.
Ballantyne stated to the authorities that she didn’t know why she repeatedly kicked Broussie in the head.
In the past, Ballantyne had been charged with four violent offences, including two aggravated assault charges from 2012 and another assault charge from 2016.
In court today Ballantyne was seen throwing her hands up and covering her face; when asked to make a statement, she refused.
Through a joint submission, the Crown and defence suggested that Ballantyne receive a two-year sentence with some time spent in a rehabilitation facility such as a healing lodge.
After consideration, Justice R.S. Smith handed Ballantyne a four and a half year prison sentence along with a lifetime ban from being in possession of any weapons. With time and a half served in pre-trial custody, Ballantyne will have a total of two years left in prison.