Teenager gets jail sentence for fatal stabbing of Edmonton boy outside high school

An Edmonton teenager has admitted to stabbing a 16-year-old boy in a fatal group attack outside the victim's high school in 2022.

The young man, now 17, was 14 at the time of the assault. He was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months in jail, followed by 18 months of supervision.

The youth was charged with second-degree murder, but pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter.

His three-year sentence comes after a joint submission from the Crown and defence for an intensive rehabilitative custody and supervision order — a sentencing option for youth convicted of serious criminal offences who have a mental illness or psychological disorder.

The teen in court Tuesday is among a group of seven people who were charged in the killing. None of them can be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, which prohibits naming anyone accused or convicted of a crime who is younger than 18.

The name of the teen who was killed, as well as the school he attended, are also covered by a court-ordered publication ban.

According to agreed facts presented with the guilty plea in this case, the fatal attack on April 8, 2022, came after "two opposing groups of young persons" formed.

Despite back-and-forth attacks where the groups would target a lone member of the other side, no one was seriously injured in the months leading up to the killing.

Court of King's Bench Justice Lynn Michele Angotti said while the young man she sentenced is responsible for the victim's death, she noted the impact of "a cycle of violence between two groups." She said she can't explain the "senseless" attack.

"Violence that occurs anywhere is abhorrent, but this violence has shattered many people's sense of safety in the place where their children go to school," she said.

Fourth teen in group of seven to be sentenced

This is the fourth person to plead guilty in the case, but the only one who has admitted to causing one of the wounds that killed the Grade 10 student.

Another teen, who admitted to being part of the group attack but didn't stab or punch the victim, pleaded guilty to manslaughter last year.

A young man and young woman also pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to an assault with a weapon. Each admitted that they drove alleged assailants away from the scene, but didn't participate in the assault.

Victim impact statements were read aloud in court for the fourth time Tuesday, plus a series of community impact statements. Some were from people who said they never met the victim, but have been left with an overwhelming sense of fear about their own children's safety after hearing what happened to him.

"I play the video of [the teen] and his friends taunting my little cousin to death in my head daily," one of the victim's family members told the court.

"We hope that by sharing our pain you can understand the depth of our loss and the need for justice in the face of such senseless cruelty."

The teenager sat next to his defence lawyer in court on Tuesday as his father watched from the gallery. He declined an opportunity to address the court before he was sentenced.

"He understands the gravity of the offence, and as counsel, I can truly say that [he] is truly remorseful for his conduct," defence lawyer Cristian Manucci said.

The young man's treatment and supervision plan is designed to ensure he gains insight into his actions and learns how to handle situations differently in the future, Manucci said.

"This is a young person. We can't throw away the key. As so many people may want to, that's just not how it works. Rehabilitation is paramount here."

Teen admits to inflicting one stab wound

According to agreed facts presented in the case, on the morning of the attack, several teens met up at a gas station instead of going to school.

Split between two different cars, they drove to different locations together, while the victim received a message in a group chat on his phone "warning that members of the other side were out driving around that day."

The group picked up passengers at two high schools and visited a recreation centre. A different set of agreed facts, from the guilty plea of the teenager who admitted to driving one of the cars, says members of the group were "looking for someone to fight" at the rec centre, but didn't find anyone.

Eventually, the teens drove to the high school the victim attended, arriving in two separate cars at around 2:40 p.m.

The court heard that people in both cars pointed out the Grade 10 boy, with someone saying, "He's one of them!"

Five boys in total emerged from the two vehicles and pursued the victim, while some other young people stayed behind in both cars.

The teen sentenced Tuesday admitted to running after the victim, and the two "grappled" before the boy managed to push him away.

A different boy pursuing the victim had a field hockey stick, and two others shot pellet guns, according to the agreed facts. The court heard that one of the boys in the group caught up to the victim again, knocking him to the ground, while the group "converged … punching and shooting pellets."

At that point, according to the agreed facts, the victim was cut on the shoulder and stabbed in the chest. The document doesn't say who inflicted those injuries.

The teen sentenced Tuesday admitted that he caught up with the victim after he managed to run away a final time, stabbing him in the lower back. That injured his kidney, causing bleeding that "added significantly" to the overall blood loss that contributed to his death.

The boy collapsed on the ground and didn't get back up. The five boys who were among the group of teens that would later be charged returned to the cars and left.

The victim died in hospital a few days later, on April 15, 2022.

Court proceedings are still underway for three young men accused of participating in the attack.

A manslaughter trial for one teenager began last spring, but it was adjourned after his defence requested more details about the Crown's specific accusations, and both sides concluded they needed more time to consider evidence. Proceedings are expected to resume in March.

A trial for the final remaining two boys concluded late last year. A decision is expected in that case next week.