Fort Smith man convicted of murder receives youth sentence of 7 years

A Fort Smith, N.W.T., man who, when he was 17, shot and killed Jordan Tourangeau, has been sentenced to seven years for second-degree murder under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

That's the maximum sentence allowed under the act. It was a joint recommendation by the Crown and his defence lawyer, and was accepted in Fort Smith court Wednesday by Chief Justice Shannon Smallwood.

The man cannot be identified as he was a youth at the time of the crime.

He will spend four years in prison, followed by three years under conditional supervision in Fort Smith.

More than 20 people submitted victim and community impact statements describing the impacts of his actions and how their community had been scarred by what happened on March 3, 2022.

The man pleaded guilty in December to murder. Facts read into court at that time stated he had been drinking with family and friends that night, when he broke into a garage and stole a shotgun.

After breaking into a second garage, he shot Tourangeau, who was inside.

Over the course of the night, he broke into a government building where he stole firearms, ammunition and vehicle keys. He also fired shots at a home where children were present.

The events prompted police to issue a shelter-in-place order that lasted for a day.

The man was eventually arrested after a three-day manhunt.