A Watson Lake man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter was sentenced to four years in prison this morning.

Michael Stewart, 47, was before the court for the beating death of John Lucas on Nov. 11, 2004.

Territorial judge Heino Lilles sentenced Stewart to six years in a federal penitentiary.

However, Stewart has been in Whitehorse Correctional Centre (WCC) for a year. He was given credit of two days for every day he spent in jail, which reduces the outstanding time to four years.

Stewart was originally charged with murder after the death in Watson Lake.

While the details of that night are still not clear, Lilles summarized the events for the court this morning.

He said Stewart and Lucas were 'drinking buddies' and were both drunk the night of the killing.

At about 7 p.m. on Nov. 10, Lucas passed out in Stewart's home.

Stewart was later driven home by a friend.

Sometime between the late hours of Nov. 10 and the early hours of Nov. 11, there was an altercation between Stewart and Lucas in the house, after which Stewart passed out or fell asleep, the judge said.

When Stewart woke up, he found Lucas on the floor and tried to resuscitate him.

Stewart phoned his brother Leo, who came over to the house and found Stewart performing cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on Lucas.

Leo also tried to resuscitate Lucas without success, Lilles told the court, before phoning the hospital at around 2:40 a.m.

When emergency services personnel arrived shortly afterward, they said blood found at the scene was dried and cracked. Lucas had likely been dead for about an hour, court heard.

Bloody footprints, matching Stewart's boots, were found throughout the house. There were also blood smears on beer cans and a vodka bottle.

This suggests Stewart drank more after beating Lucas, Lilles said.

Lucas died from 'punches, kicks and stomps' to his head and torso according to Laurel Gray, a Vancouver-based forensic pathologist.

His injuries appeared to be fresh, according to the report, and some seemed to be scuffs and stomps from footwear.

Lucas' high level of intoxication likely made him less able to to withstand his head injuries, Lilles said, quoting the report.

Lucas had a blood alcohol nearly five times higher than the legal limit to drive when he died.

At the beginning of the hearing this morning, Lucas' mother spoke to the court, fighting against tears throughout.

'It is really sad for me to be here�-. I miss him so much that I still cry today,' she said.

'I'm sorry about crying in front of you people but I still hurt. I go to his grave every day.'

She said a sentence of seven years, which was on the high end of the Crown's suggestion, was not enough.

The Crown asked for a sentence of five to seven years, while the defence asked for a range of four to six.

Stewart has a lengthy criminal record dating back to his teenage years, with 51 convictions since he was 16 years old. Thirteen of these convictions involved violence, Lilles said.

Stewart's parents drank heavily and were known in the community to be very violent, the judge said.

Stewart 'grew up in this extremely dysfunctional setting,' Lilles told the court, and has been drinking heavily since the age of 14.

While Stewart said he will likely never drink again, he also said he doesn't need treatment or counselling, Lilles said.

'He is both naive and wrong on this point,' the judge said.

In order to be rehabilitated, Stewart 'desperately needs treatment,' he said.

Although Stewart has spent about a year in WCC, he has received no treatment for drug or alcohol abuse. This is partially due to the fact that he was a 'model prisoner' at the jail, described as the 'quietest, most co-operative' inmate.

As a result, he was sometimes overlooked, according to documents filed in court, and no one ever suggested he should attend counselling.

According to Stewart, he didn't think he could attend programs because his offence was still before the court.

Stewart is rated a high risk to reoffend violently, partially due to drug and alcohol abuse.

'I regret that he wasted a year of his life,' Lilles said, adding that it could have been put toward rehabilitation.