Whitehorse Daily Star

Image title

Photo by Whitehorse Star

Michael Nehass

Lawyer queries whether moving Nehass was an option

A sentencing hearing for Michael Nehass continued in territorial court yesterday with testimony from a jail manager.

By Rhiannon Russell on March 26, 2015

A sentencing hearing for Michael Nehass continued in territorial court yesterday with testimony from a jail manager.

Nehass has pleaded guilty to five charges laid during his time in pre-trial custody at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre (WCC), including attempting to escape, spitting on and threatening guards and causing thousands of dollars’ damage to the segregation unit.

The 31-year-old was arrested in December 2011 on charges out of Watson Lake. He has been in custody since, awaiting trial. Nehass will stand trial on these charges in May in Yukon Supreme Court.

As part of the sentencing hearing, Judge Donald Luther will consider how much credit Nehass should receive for the time he’s been in jail since the June 2013 incident in which he smashed windows in the segregation unit, broke into a utility room and climbed into the ceiling.

Crown prosecutor Eric Marcoux has said he will be seeking one-to-one credit, meaning for every day Nehass spent in pre-trial custody, he’d be given a reduction of one day from his sentence.

Under the Criminal Code, a judge may determine that more credit, up to 1 1/2 days for every day served, is appropriate – a decision that could involve examining the conditions of an inmate’s confinement.

In Nehass’ case, a jail report filed in court last month showed he’s been kept in either the secure living or segregation units – removed from the general inmate population – since May 2013.

This was because he became unmanageable in the regular cells, the report stated. He got into several fights with other inmates, it noted.

Karen Shannon, manager of integrated offender management and the report’s author, testified yesterday about Nehass’ incarceration.

Three documents she compiled detail Nehass’ stay at WCC. They were filed in court yesterday, but Luther said he will determine this afternoon the extent to which media may publish them.

Both Nehass and his former lawyer, Bibhas Vaze, who is assisting in the proceedings as amicus curiae, or friend of the court, cross-examined Shannon yesterday.

Vaze asked her whether moving Nehass to another jail was an option, given, as her previous report stated, he was too difficult to manage anywhere but in the Whitehorse jail’s more restrictive units.

Shannon said it was her understanding that this isn’t possible for inmates in pre-trial custody because they have to be available in Whitehorse for court appearances.

But did she know of a statute or regulation prohibiting transfers? Vaze questioned.

Shannon said she did not.

The hearing continued today, and will likely stretch to a third day in April, after which it’s expected Luther will hand down a sentence.

Comments (2)

Up 11 Down 2

Rorex1983 on Mar 27, 2015 at 3:53 pm

In my personal opinion Nehass should get less than 1-1 credit. It seems to me that you should get that when your an okay inmate, 1 to 1.5 when your a model inmate. Nehass is the exact opposite so 1 to 0.5 seems more suitable.

I also think its hilarious that this poor lawyer has to act as Friend to the Court because his client believes he is out to get him.
The only thing out to get Nehass is Nehass.

Up 12 Down 6

Honesty on Mar 26, 2015 at 9:26 pm

I think it's funny that the News, the Star, and CBC all use this picture of Mr. Nehass when they want people to feel sorry for him... but use the RCMP's "mug shot" whenever they want people to feel like he's the bad guy.

Sensationalism, folks. That's the name of the game.

Add your comments or reply via Twitter @whitehorsestar

In order to encourage thoughtful and responsible discussion, website comments will not be visible until a moderator approves them. Please add comments judiciously and refrain from maligning any individual or institution. Read about our user comment and privacy policies.

Your name and email address are required before your comment is posted. Otherwise, your comment will not be posted.