18-year-old sentenced to 5 years in prison for Hay River shooting, threatening woman with gun
CBC
An 18-year-old who shot a man in Hay River, N.W.T., was sentenced to just over five years in prison by deputy judge B.D. Henning in N.W.T. territorial court last week.
In a plea deal reached with the Crown prosecutor, Gaige Forrest admitted that on Dec. 10, 2021, he and the victim met on a street in Hay River to fight. Forrest pulled out a pistol and shot the man in his chest. According to an agreed statement of facts, the bullet went through the victim's hand before entering his chest.
The victim was medevaced to Edmonton and had to have part of his lung removed.
Forrest was arrested at the Hay River airport shortly after. Police found an unloaded firearm on him.
He was initially charged with attempted murder in connection with the shooting. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of discharging a firearm while being reckless to the life or safety of another person.
The shooting, first reported by Cabin Radio, occurred just two days after Forrest pointed the same pistol at a woman in Fort Resolution and threatened to harm her. Forrest admitted he got into an altercation with the woman's spouse. She broke it up and pushed him and another man out the door. But Forrest pushed his way back in, pointed the gun at her and threatened her.
At the same sentencing last week, Forrest also admitted that, on Jan. 22, while he was in the North Slave Correctional Centre after the shooting, he assaulted a deputy warden by spitting at him and throwing a roll of paper towels at him.
Forrest was sentenced to four and a half years for the shooting in Hay River, six months for pointing the gun at the woman in Fort Resolution, and one day of jail for assaulting the deputy warden.
With credit for the time he has already served, he has four years and 80 days left on his sentence.
Prominent northern leaders have been touting the Arctic economic and security corridor as a "nation-building" project that will bring economic benefits to the two territories it straddles, but others are split on how much good will come out of it.
When the federal government tabled its 2025 budget last month, it included a proposal that tax fraud experts say is long overdue — if also a belated acknowledgement that the Canada Revenue Agency has been repeatedly duped into paying out untold millions in bogus tax refunds to scammers.
Talking with an AI chatbot can successfully convince people to change their votes and could affect the outcome of future elections, according to a new study.
While some are writing wishlists for Santa Claus, a group of Newfoundland and Labrador youth are writing their wishlist for the provincial government.
A horse owner near Stewiacke, N.S., says the current shortage of hay in the province is putting pressure on her financially.
Victoria Volkanova was remembering Jewish resilience and courage by celebrating Hanukkah on Sunday.
Winnipeggers are still digging out from this past week’s winter wallop, but the wait for roadside assistance is almost over, according to the provincial motoring association.
When long-time journalist Cornelia Naylor picked up the first copy of her newly printed community newspaper this week, it wasn’t something she had ever expected to do.
The province's police watchdog is investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman in Toronto Sunday.
Toronto police say a collision involving several vehicles in the city's east-end left one driver in life-threatening condition Sunday.
A church service in Stratford, P.E.I., brought together Christmas traditions from across the globe on Sunday.
On an extremely cold day, many people would prefer to stay home, cozy up under a blanket, and put on the TV, radio, or a favourite podcast.
In an era of Ring doorbells and No Soliciting signs, breaking the evening silence of a suburban London street can sometimes feel like a radical act.