Whitehorse Daily Star

Crown, defence agree on long-term offender status for Cornell

Crown and defence lawyers agreed today on a sentence for Christopher Cornell,

By Rhiannon Russell on October 29, 2014

Crown and defence lawyers agreed today on a sentence for Christopher Cornell, the Whitehorse man found guilty by a jury last year of a slew of serious charges, including robbery and attempted murder of two peace officers.

They also agreed and that he be designated a long-term offender.

The sentencing hearing for 32-year-old Cornell began 40 minutes late in Yukon Supreme Court this morning as Crown prosecutor Keith Parkkari and defence lawyer David Tarnow had further discussions, leading to the joint submission of an 11 1/2-year global sentence for Cornell’s eight convictions.

This means his sentence for each charge would be served concurrently.

On Sept. 26, 2011, he and then-girlfriend Jessica Johnson broke into Madley’s General Store in Haines Junction, assaulted the custodian with bear spray and attempted to make off with the store’s safe, which they removed with a pallet jack.

They abandoned the effort when RCMP Cpl. Kim MacKellar and conservation officer Shane Oakley arrived on scene.

Cornell and Johnson fled down the Alaska Highway in a stolen vehicle, firing a high-powered rifle at the RCMP crew cab pursuing them.

After a three-week trial last fall, a jury found Cornell guilty of two counts of attempted murder of peace officers; using a firearm while escaping from a robbery; using violence and bear spray to commit robbery; shooting at a marked RCMP vehicle, knowing someone was in it; aggravated assault by wounding MacKellar; using bear spray to assault the store’s custodian; and using violence against the custodian while stealing a safe from the store.

Parkkari has requested a long-term offender designation, which Tarnow said his client concedes to. But they disagree on how long the supervision term that accompanies that designation should be.

Long-term offender status is given to people convicted of a “serious personal injury offence” who are likely to reoffend. It can result in up to 10 years of supervision after release from custody.

Parkkari is seeking the maximum, while Cornell is looking for a shorter supervision period.

Parkkari and Tarnow proposed 11 1/2 years for each count of attempted murder, to be served concurrently; four years concurrent for robbery; and five years concurrent for aggravated assault against MacKellar.

Sentences for the remaining charges, which the lawyers had not yet determined, would be served concurrently, they agreed.

As part of the joint submission, Cornell would receive enhanced credit – 1 1/2 days for every day served in custody – due to “improved behaviour” and time spent in segregation during the 27 months and 21 days he’s been at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre so far.

That means he’d already have served about 3 1/2 years of the proposed 11 1/2-year sentence.

Cornell was found guilty in January of this year of possessing stolen vehicles, damaging them, and evading police in an incident that occurred before the Haines Junction robbery and chase.

The sentence handed down this week should be consecutive to the 14 months he’s currently serving for those offences, Parkkari said.

He has a week or so left on that sentence.

For her role in the September 2011 crime spree, Johnson was sentenced to 39 1/2 months in December of last year.

She pleaded guilty to robbery, wounding a police officer and firing at the two peace officers while fleeing arrest.

Wearing glasses and a track suit this morning, Cornell occasionally leaned over to whisper to his lawyer throughout the brief proceedings, which are set to continue tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.

Forensic psychiatrist Dr. Shabehram Lohrasbe is set to testify then about an assessment he completed of Cornell.

Supreme Court Justice Leigh Gower is presiding over the sentencing hearing.

Comments (2)

Up 8 Down 0

Atom on Oct 31, 2014 at 2:24 pm

11 1/2 years for all that!?.......they should at least shoot at him every once in a while over his brief stint just to make him a bit aware of what he has done....loser x loser=Cornel...he'll be back in front of a judge in 8 years for another ridiculous spree.

Up 23 Down 0

up north on Oct 29, 2014 at 9:35 pm

11.5 years for trying to kill peace officers ---- way to send a message. Give me a break.

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