Woman gets prison for attempted robbery

A woman who tried to force a man, possibly at gunpoint, to pay a debt owed to her mother, has been sentenced to two years in a federal penitentiary.

Danielle Ouellette, 29, was sentenced Friday in Lethbridge provincial court after she pleaded guilty to one count of attempted robbery. She also pleaded guilty to charges of fleeing from police and was sentenced to another six months behind bars.

Court was told Ouellette’s mother and a man were involved in a business venture, from which the man owed a signicant amount of money to Ouellette’s mother. The woman complained to her daughter, and Ouellette went to the man’s house last August with what appeared to be a handgun and demanded payment.

The man told her the matter was between her mother and himself, and wasn’t any of her business. Ouellette repeatedly banged on the door and attempted to get inside the residence, but eventually ran away.

A gun was never found, Crown Prosecutor Clayton Giles pointed out.

Barely a month earlier, on June 27, Ouellette was seen by police driving a car with a loose licence plate. The officer did a check on the plate but the number didn’t provide any information about the vehicle. The officer activated his emergency lights to initiate a traffic stop, but Ouellette continued to drive away, gradually picking up speed until she made a hard turn, struck a curb and spun out. She panicked and took off on foot, but was found several hours later.

Ouellette also pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to comply with release conditions and one count of possession of stolen property, for which two more months were added to her sentence.

She was prohibited from consuming any intoxicating substances, and had been ordered by the court to live at her sister’s home and obey a curfew 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

However, she left her sister’s house and drove away in her mother’s vehicle without permission. Giles said she drove to her drug dealer’s residence "and got very, very high."

Lethbridge lawyer Scott Hadford said Ouellette may have several mental health issues, including bipolar disorder, personality disorder and anxiety. She also drinks and uses various drugs, but is particularly addicted to crack cocaine. She also accepts responsibility for her behaviour, Scott added.

"I’m very sorry for my actions," Ouellette said by CCTV from the Lethbridge Correctional Centre.

Although sentenced to a total of 32 months in prison, she was given credit for more than six months spent in pre-trial custody, leaving two years and 48 days remaining on her sentence.

She must also submit a sample of her DNA for the National DNA Databank, and she is prohibited from possessing weapons for the rest of her life.

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