House arrest for unlawfully being in dwelling

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This article was published 13/09/2023 (1106 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Sandy Bay man who was found sleeping on the couch of a Brandon family home, with rounds of ammunition in his pocket, was sentenced to two months of house arrest in court on Monday.

Dustin Thomas pleaded guilty to being unlawfully in a dwelling house as well as possessing ammunition contrary to a court order. Both the Crown and the judge agreed on a house arrest sentence for Thomas, which would have him serving his sentence at home in Sandy Bay.

Crown attorney Sarah Kok read the evidence for the charges in court.

On Sept. 30, 2022, around 6 a.m., a Brandon woman woke up in her Caribou Way home to get ready for work. When she walked downstairs, she saw a man she didn’t know sleeping on the living room couch. The man seemed to have gotten into the home through an unlocked door.

She called for her husband, and the two asked the man to leave. When the man didn’t leave, they called police.

When police officers arrived at the home, they advised the man that he was being charged with break and enter, and they found 10 rounds of .22-calibre ammunition in the pocket of his sweater.

Kok said that the charge was downgraded from break and enter to unlawfully in a dwelling because there was no break in, as the door had been left unlocked.

However, Judge John Combs asked the Crown about why the charge against Thomas was laid as unlawfully in a dwelling house instead of a break-in to a home when the Criminal Code does not require the door to be locked for someone to be charged with break and enter.

Kok said that police officers consulted with their staff sergeants about the circumstances and ultimately, a decision was made by police to charge Thomas with being unlawfully in a dwelling house.

“I think that someone should have a chat with the police about their understanding of what a break and enter is,” Combs said.

In Canada, forced entry or theft is not required for someone to be charged with break and enter. Anyone found guilty of breaking into a home with the intent to commit a crime can face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The offence of being unlawfully in a dwelling is like break and enter, since it’s the crime of being in someone’s home without their permission, but without the intent to commit another crime.

The maximum prison sentence for being found unlawfully in a dwelling as an indictable offence is 10 years, while the sentence for a summary conviction is a term not exceeding six months.

Thomas’ defence lawyer, Crystal Antila, told the court that her client is a member of Sandy Bay First Nation and has struggled with addictions issues. She said that substance use was at play during her client’s offending that day last year, as he had been intoxicated and didn’t know which or whose home he was entering into to sleep.

Antila said that Thomas has been able to attend addictions treatment at Aurora Recovery Centre in Gimli and is committed to maintaining his sobriety going forward.

Thomas, who appeared in court by video from Milner Ridge Correctional Centre, apologized and acknowledged that he should not have been in the Brandon couple’s home.

Ultimately, Combs endorsed the recommended house arrest sentence because of the charge that the police determined to lay as well as the comment from Thomas’ lawyer that his intention for being in the house was uncertain.

Still, he reminded Thomas that he was lucky to get the sentence he was receiving today because the offence could garner a lengthy period of custody.

“You’re dodging a bit of a bullet today with this recommendation,” Combs said.

Thomas was also handed a lifetime firearms prohibition.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com

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