Man with violent past has changed, defence argues

Defence lawyer Marianna Jasper told the court Mitchell William Moise’s childhood, adolescence and, in fact, his entire life amounted to a “perfect storm” that led to his becoming the subject of a dangerous offender hearing.

But, she argued, the clouds of that storm have parted, resulting in a greatly decreased — or even eliminated — risk to the public.

Jasper said Moise, now 39, fell under the weight of a horrific childhood and subsequently accrued a violent and lengthy criminal record. During his life, he has landed before the court for offences that included shooting his uncle in the face and shooting a rival gang member, resulting in the loss of the man’s leg.

The tipping point for the Crown came in 2007 when, while on statutory release at a British Columbia halfway house, Moise assaulted a then-romantic partner before heading back to Saskatchewan with a 17-year-old girl. Once back in his hometown of Lestock, Moise ended up slamming the girl’s face into a post and breaking her jaw.

Moise has been in custody since, and has spent the past decade moving through the dangerous offender (DO) hearing process. An initial hearing concluded in 2012 with a DO designation and a resulting indeterminate sentence.

Moise successfully appealed, which resulted in a rehearing of the matter at Regina Court of Queen’s Bench.

The current hearing has been before the court on and off since February 2016, and had almost reached its conclusion when, in August 2016, Moise found himself facing an aggravated assault charge in relation to an incident at the Regina Provincial Correctional Centre.

It’s alleged Moise assaulted another inmate, although Jasper argued that incident should not be taken into consideration when Justice Lana Krogan is deciding sentence. Jasper suggested there is a potential self-defence argument to be made in that case — which is still before the court — given her client claims to have been responding to rising tensions and threats within the institution.

If that incident is off the table, the judge is left with the remainder of Moise’s violent past to consider, and Jasper argued any risk Moise once posed is manageable or even at an end. In making that claim, Jasper pointed to a forensic psychiatrist’s most recent of three reports on Moise, which the defence lawyer referred to as the most “supportive” she has seen.

Jasper noted the doctor concluded Moise has taken in all he can from prison programming and stands to benefit instead from transitional and community-based programming aimed at his reintegration into society. Jasper added Moise has a good release plan that could continue to address his risk factors and stressed that he is a changed man.

Crown prosecutor Kelly Kaip will make her closing argument next week. After that, Krogan is expected to reserve decision in the case.