Crown asks for 14 years in manslaughter case

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This article was published 16/11/2023 (1029 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A 61-year-old Ninette woman who was strangled to death should not be defined by how she died, family members of Catherine Mass told a King’s Bench courtroom Wednesday morning.

“She was an integral elder family member and a mentor,” Catherine’s sister told the court, reading her victim impact statement aloud and placing a photo of Catherine on the podium.

“She was my eternal inspiration, from her advice and etiquette to her intellectual point of view and her accomplished artistic talents.”

Four family members read their victim impact statements as part of the Crown’s submissions in the sentencing hearing for Nicholas Mass, Catherine Mass’s now 24-year-old son, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of his mother.

Nicholas was originally charged with second-degree murder and pleaded not guilty, but halfway through a trial in September, he pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter.

The Crown and defence were far apart in their recommended sentence, with the Crown asking for 14 years behind bars, and defence asking for four to six years.

Catherine’s body was found by Killarney RCMP wrapped in a tarp in the basement of her Ninette home on March 12, 2021. During the judge-alone trial, evidence was presented through the testimonies of seven witnesses, including a pathologist who testified that Catherine died by strangulation and an RCMP officer who testified that at the scene he found disposable gloves and disposable used wipes, which were stained red, in the kitchen garbage. The court also heard audio recordings from Catherine’s phone of argumentative exchanges between her and Nicholas.

Ultimately, the Crown accepted a guilty plea of manslaughter as there was not sufficient evidence to prove intent for the second-degree murder charge. In Canada, second-degree murder requires the Crown to prove intent to kill or cause death, whereas manslaughter is a killing that lacks the intent to commit murder.

Family members told the court about the emotional, psychological, and physical impact they have suffered because of losing Catherine and the daily trauma of learning the details of Catherine’s death at the trial.

“I can’t escape this heavy wet blanket of grief and shock and outrage,” Catherine’s niece told the court.

Crown attorney Rich Lonstrup’s sentence submissions made reference to the effects of trauma articulated by Catherine’s family members and focused on the brutality of Catherine’s death and her vulnerability.

“It’s a special kind of grief when the danger, the harm, was right there in plain sight for all to see, something that everyone knew,” he said.

Lonstrup said that during the pandemic, Catherine took her son in and gave him a place to stay in her house. The relationship between Catherine and her son was contentious and she began to live in fear in her own home, making attempts to apply for a protection order against her son and documenting her interactions with him.

“What we know is that the person that she was afraid of, the person she wanted legally kept away from her house, is the person who took her life. The mode of death here is frightening and extremely violent,” Lonstrup said, asking that Nicholas be sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Nicholas’s defence lawyer, Saul Simmonds, told the court that Catherine’s death was a result of a “perfect storm” of multiple factors. He provided background to his client’s life, including a childhood that involved Child and Family Services, abuse and neglect, and isolation in adulthood.

The defence lawyer’s submissions focused on Nicholas’s significant mental health issues and his use of hallucinogenic drugs, which contributed to a psychosis that impacted his perception of reality.

Simmonds also said that systems such as police and mental health care failed, as police did not remove Nicholas from the house, and after a stay in a psychiatric facility he still returned to Catherine’s home.

He also said that Catherine’s family did not show up to assist or provide any support during this time. Simmonds noted that his client has no prior criminal record, and that Nicholas had not shown any violence toward his mother before this event.

He asked the court for a sentence in the range of four to six years, which takes into account the time that Nicholas has already served in jail while on remand.

During his opportunity to speak to the court, Nicholas said that his relationship with his mother was not positive and asked the judge for clemency.

“We often clashed, her expressing her disapproval of my lifestyle choice and me expressing my feelings of abandonment and the love and care that I felt she had expressed towards me in my life,” Nicholas said, adding that he has spent his time in custody reflecting on his life.

Judge Elliot Leven decided to take time in making his decision and to reserve it for a later date. Nicholas’s matter will next appear before the court on Dec. 11, when a date for Leven to give his decision will be scheduled.

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