An addiction to cocaine and methamphetamine is what Ryan Lee Desjarlais claims to be the root cause of his crimes.
Desjarlais appeared in the Bonnyville Provincial Courthouse from the Fort Saskatchewan Correctional Centre via CCTV on Tuesday, Sept. 17.
The 37-year-old First Nations male pleaded guilty to failing to appear in court, possessing meth, assault with a weapon, two counts of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, two counts of breaching his conditions, possession of stolen property over $5,000, and two counts of uttering threats.
On July 21, 2018, Desjarlais was charged with possessing meth after he was pulled over by an MD of Bonnyville peace officer. At the time, Desjarlais was a suspended driver and he was arrested. During a search, officers located a container with about .8-grams of meth.
He failed to attend a June 12, 2019 court appearance in relation to this charge.
Honourable Judge Kathleen Williams sentenced Desjarlais to pay $750 in fines as a result of this offence.
Earlier this year, on July 1, Lac La Biche RCMP responded to a call at roughly 7 p.m. about a man walking around an apartment building causing problems.
According to a witness, Desjarlais had been harassing tenants as they were headed in and out of the building.
This included one woman, who knew the suspect, that had been sitting in her car on the phone when Desjarlais approached the driver's-side window, wrapped his fist in his jacket, and began punching it repeatedly.
While he did this, the victim said, he was yelling and told her she and "all of you are rats and you're going to die."
A few days later, on July 6, Lac La Biche RCMP were once again called about Desjarlais bothering residents. This time, the complainant said, he was at their house with a baseball bat, walking around and stating he wouldn't leave until he found his ATV.
When approached by the homeowner, Desjarlais lifted the bat as if to strike the person, and said he would keep coming back until he found his ATV.
At about 5:40 a.m. on July 14, police responded to a complaint coming from the Spruce Lake Campground located in Beaver Lake.
Desjarlais was at the campground with a baseball bat threatening to kill everyone, He had shown up on an ATV and started yelling, causing a scene, and throwing items into the campfire.
In order to calm him down, witnesses offered him some alcohol, and were able to take the bat from Desjarlais.
Lac La Biche RCMP found Desjarlais hiding in the bushes intoxicated by drugs and alcohol.
The ATV that Desjarlais had arrived on had been reported stolen by the manager of the campground.
St. Paul's chief Crown prosecutor Jordan Kerr was seeking six months in jail, a sample of his DNA for the Canadian national databank, and a lifetime weapons prohibition.
Kerr said the aggravating factors are the verbal threats he made, especially the physical act of pounding on the car window while yelling at a woman.
"That would be a very traumatizing experience," he noted.
Acting duty counsel, Dylan Straus, said Desjarlais struggles with a drug addiction, and has been involved with "the wrong circle of friends."
His suggested sentence was 120 days in custody and 12 months of probation, so Desjarlais could attend treatment and counselling.
Honourable Judge Kathleen Williams agreed with defence that 120 days in jail, probation, a weapons prohibition, and a DNA sample were a suitable sentence.
With 101 days in pre-trial custody already behind him, Desjarlais had less than a month to serve.
Rather than pay the $750 in fines, Desjarlais opted to spend additional time in custody.
Once released, he will start serving his one-year probation order with conditions to keep the peace, be of good behaviour, remain in Alberta, attend a 28-day treatment program, participate in any counselling as recommended by probation, have no contact with any of the victims of his threats, and not consume any drugs or alcohol.
Desjarlais adjourned additional and unrelated matters to Lac La Biche court for Sept. 30.
