THUNDER BAY - Brayden Bushby, who was to be sentenced in early May after being convicted of manslaughter for the 2017 death of Barbara Kentner, will remain out of custody for at least one more month as the sentencing hearing has been delayed due to COVID-19.
A case conference was held on Friday between Justice Helen Pierce, Crown prosecutor Trevor Jukes, and defense counsel George Joseph and Ryan Green.
“You will recall when we were last in court I indicated I reserve the right to further adjourn this proceeding depending on the state of the pandemic,” Justice Pierce said.
“I am concerned as well about the rate of infection in the local community. We continue to lose people to the virus. It’s very serious. While I appreciate counsel’s offers to be present, I really think there is not such urgency about the sentencing hearing that it should go forward on May 4 as we originally planned.”
Bushby was found guilty of manslaughter last December for throwing a metal trailer hitch from a moving vehicle that struck Kentner, an Indigenous woman from Wabigoon Lake Ojibway First Nation, in the abdomen on the night of Jan. 29, 2017. Kentner passed away from her injuries five months later. She was 34-years-old.
The four-day trial took place last November and sentencing submissions were presented on Feb. 17. During submissions, the Crown called for a custodial sentence of between eight and 12 years, while defense counsel asked for the shortest possible sentence of four years.
Sentencing was originally set to take place on May 4 but due to the number of COVID-19 cases in the community, the date has been pushed back June 7 at 10 a.m. There were discussions about having Bushby and his defense counsel attend in person, while others could observe the proceedings virtually.
It was agreed that in-person court proceedings require court staff to be present and family members of both Bushby and Kentner may want to attend the hearing.
“I’ve reached out to Bushby and taken his temperature on the issue,” Green said. “He is not opposed to an adjournment. He thought it would be prudent, as do I for the next month or two, given the state.”
Bushby remains out on bail conditions set in November 2017.
“Bushby is not in custody. He will be getting custody as well all know based on the submission of the defense and the Crown,” Jukes said. “The situation in Thunder Bay is better than it was a couple of months ago, but the reality is we are all being encouraged to stay home.”
