Lesser trafficking sentence justified - judge
Though court expressed concerns about lenient prison term for Fredericton drug dealer, Judge Scott Brittain acknowledged weaknesses in case merited compromise
A Fredericton judge said while he was initially reluctant to accept a joint recommendation on a lenient sentence for a repeat drug dealer, problems with the Crown’s case justified a shorter prison term.
A sentencing hearing was held last month for Christopher James Arbeau, 45, of Brookside Drive, on charges of possessing meth and hydromorphone for the purpose of trafficking and possessing the proceeds of crime Jan. 19, 2021; and to possessing meth for the purpose of trafficking and possessing the proceeds of crime again Sept. 29, 2021.
He admitted to those charges earlier this year, as well as to unrelated counts of stealing almost $1,000 worth of merchandise from the Atlantic Superstore on Smythe Street and failing to attend court for his scheduled sentencing date.
During the Oct. 12 sentencing hearing, Crown prosecutor Wesley McIntosh and defence lawyer Edward Derrah offered a joint recommendation on sentencing: 2½ years in prison.
But Judge Scott Brittain reserved his decision on sentence at that time, expressing concern that it was too lenient a sentence for repeat drug trafficker, especially one with a prior conviction for possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking.
Arbeau was back before Brittain on Friday, appearing by video from the Saint John Regional Correctional Centre.
Weaknesses in Crown’s case
“I’m accepting the joint recommendation,” the judge said at the outset of Friday’s proceedings.
He said case law notes that sentencing judges should only reject a joint recommendation when the proposed sentence is out of synch with sanctions imposed in similar cases that it would be unfit and would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.
“Suffice it to say, it’s a high threshold to reject a joint recommendation,” the judge said.
“In this instance, I had some misgivings, at least on its face, about the recommendation made.”
Higher courts have directed judges to treat drug-trafficking crimes - especially those involving hard drugs - seriously, Brittain said, especially in light of the damage the illicit substances do to the lives of those addicted to them.
But there’s also the issue of the greater damage done to the community at large, he said, as addiction can give rise to crime to feed habits.
While the proposed 2½-year term is on the low end, Brittain said, it’s not outside an established range of sentences for such crimes.
One of the reasons given for the agreed-upon prison term, the judge said, was the fact that the Crown’s case had vulnerabilities.
Available to the defence were potential challenges to the searches conducted to secure the evidence against Arbeau, he said.
Furthermore, Brittain noted, some of the charges were approaching the legal deadline by which they were to be resolved, and it’s possible the defence could have asked for them to be stayed due to a violation of Arbeau’s right to a speedy trial.
Sentencing judges are required to take into account the quid pro quo nature of agreements between Crown and defence lawyers in such circumstances, he said.
“If those weaknesses weren’t represent, Mr. Arbeau would be looking at significant more time on this,” the judge said.
Offender is ‘addict trafficker’
He noted an aggravating factor in Arbeau’s case was his past criminal record including a conviction for a similar possession crime, but his guilty pleas - even though they came on the day he was scheduled to stand trial - were a mitigating factor in his favour.
“The fact is that Mr. Arbeau is a low-level street dealer,” Brittain said, describing the offender as “an addict trafficker,” someone who sells drugs to feed his own desperate habit.
The judge said Arbeau has had long-standing substance-abuse issues as well as a past gambling addiction, and he noted his family has been hurt by drugs beyond his own problems.
“His brother died of an overdose in 2008,” Brittain said of Arbeau.
He imposed the 30-month prison term, plus another 45 days for Arbeau’s failure to attend court for his original sentencing hearing. However, Brittain also ordered the sentence to be reduced by 77 days to account for the time the offender has spent on remand since his arrest this fall
The judge also ordered Arbeau to submit a DNA sample for inclusion in a criminal database and prohibited him from possessing firearms and other weapons for 10 years following his sentence.
The drug charges against Arbeau arose after members with the Fredericton Police Force’s drug section observed Arbeau engage in drug transactions on two occasions in 2021.
He was seen in a car Jan. 19, 2021, selling drugs to a man he met in the parking lot of St. Mary’s Supermarket.
He was arrested at that time but released on conditions, only to be seen selling crystal meth again Sept. 29, 2021, outside the River Stone Recovery Centre, a downtown addictions treatment facility.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.