10 years for savage slaying

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This article was published 14/08/2010 (5933 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A killer who used knives and beer bottles during her frenzied, bloody attack claims she was molested by the victim.

The brutal killing of Sheldon (Bobby) Ducharme began with the killer instructing her five-year-old son to fetch her a knife — it only ended when her sister pulled her off of the motionless victim.

"What Mr. Ducharme suffered was a prolonged, excessive assault. What might be described as overkill," Crown attorney Jim Ross said yesterday as Judge John Combs sentenced 22-year-old Meagan Lee Young to 10 years in prison.

Ducharme, 43, was killed at his Gamblers First Nation home on Jan. 22, 2008.

Ducharme lived with his common-law partner, Lisa Marie Ledoux, and her sister, Young, was staying with the couple at the time.

Ross told court that Ledoux and Young had shared a couple of cases of beer in the hours leading up to the early-morning killing.

Young was grossly intoxicated after drinking about 18 beers. She’d also smoked marijuana, taken about 10 Tylenol 3 pills and four sleeping pills.

Young claimed Ducharme had groped her earlier that week and tried to grab her again just before the attack.

Young flew into a rage and instructed her five-year-old son to fetch her a knife.

It’s an order the boy followed before Ledoux locked him in another room.

Screaming, "I hate you, you’ll never hurt anybody again," Young launched a vicious assault in which she stabbed and beat Ducharme over and over again.

Ducharme, a thin man with a bad knee, was found in a pool of blood in the kitchen.

Originally committed to stand trial for second-degree murder before a judge and jury, Young’s plea to manslaughter in June and yesterday’s sentence was the result of a plea bargain.

Defence lawyer Bob Harrison said his client turned to a life of alcohol and drugs after being sexually abused by a relative as a child.

Also the victim of domestic assault, Young was filled with anger and, believing Ducharme had touched her inappropriately, she went into a frenzy.

Sobbing, Young apologized to Ducharme’s family in court yesterday: "I just want you to know that I’m really sorry for causing your family so much pain."

Following sentencing, the victim’s brother, Kenny Ducharme, said he believed Young was sincere but he’s not ready to forgive.

"Not for a while, not until I heal myself — probably down the road," he said.

While the sentence goes some way to closure, Kenny said the family is still upset that Ducharme was so badly mutilated the funeral director wouldn’t allow relatives to see his body to say goodbye.

Ducharme, who worked as a carpenter at the Gamblers First Nation, leaves behind three grown children.

Ledoux, who sided with her sister during the argument that led to the slaying, admits she punched Ducharme as the attack began.

In March, she pleaded guilty to assault and received a one-year suspended sentence with alcohol counselling.

The Gamblers First Nation is about 125 km northwest of Brandon.

 

Sidebar:

» Editor’s Note: This story contains graphic elements that may be upsetting to some readers.

During court, Crown attorney Jim Ross detailed the horrific injuries suffered by Sheldon (Bobby) Ducharme.

Ross said that in her rage the killer, Meagan Lee Young, repeatedly beat and stabbed Ducharme.

Three knives, their handles broken off and their blades bent or broken, were found near his body along with broken beer bottles.

When one knife broke during the attack, Young picked up another. When that knife broke too, she picked up yet another.

When that third knife gave out, she armed herself with a bottle and beat the victim with it until it crumbled.

Ducharme also had multiple blunt force injuries and police found a dented cooking pan near his body.

In total, there were 107 deep cuts or stab wounds to the victim’s head and face, with another 38 to his back and forearms suffered when he tried to protect himself.

His pants had been pulled down and there were nine wounds that showed his genitalia had been struck with sharp objects.

Ducharme died from blood loss and blunt-force head trauma and yet another injury suggests he was also choked.

At some point, Young poured iced tea or pop over Ducharme’s body.

Police arrived to find Ducharme lying face-up in a pool of blood.

Blood was also splattered on the walls, the fridge and cupboards and Young, also covered in blood, was found near the scene.