THUNDER BAY - Justice Bruce Valente had some strong words for Jonathan Massicotte, who will be standing trial on a charge of second-degree murder later this year and has since breached his release order on two separate occasions.
“If you don’t get it by now, you just don’t get it,” Justice Valente said. “I think the time for apologizing has come to an end. The time for doing, that is complying with the orders, should be first and foremost in your mind.”
Massicotte, 25, appeared before Justice Valente via video from the Thunder Bay District Jail on Tuesday where he pleaded guilty to one count of operating a motor vehicle while impaired and one count of failing to comply with the conditions of a release order.
According to an agreed statement of facts, on March 6, 2022, police were dispatched to a laneway off May Street after a woman reported seeing a vehicle in a snow bank that was being driven by an individual she recognized to be Massicotte.
Knowing he was under conditions to remain in his home unless accompanied by a surety, the woman contacted police.
Police placed Massicotte under arrest and it was determined that he was intoxicated.
This was the second time Massicotte has pleaded guilty to breaching the conditions of his release order, with the first offence occurring in September 2021 when a member of the public observed an intoxicated man with a stroller on Oliver Road.
The man was located by police and identified as Massicotte. It was determined a one-month old child was in the stroller and the mother of the child was also located and found to be intoxicated.
Massicotte was first arrested in May 2019 and charged with first-degree murder and uttering threats for his alleged role in the 2014 death of 32-year-old William Wapoose.
Wapoose’s body was found in the Chapples Drive area in September 2014. Police made numerous pleas to the public seeking information on the murder, including offering a $50,000 award before an arrest was made.
A 22-year-old male was also arrested and charged with first-degree murder but cannot be named because he was a youth at the time of the offence. The charge has since been reduced to second-degree murder and he is expected to stand trial in October 2022.
The charge against Massicotte has also been reduced to second-degree murder and the charge of uttering threats has been withdrawn. Massicotte’s trial is scheduled to begin on May 13, 2022 with jury selection.
Massicotte was released on bail in June 2020 with conditions to remain in his residence at all times unless accompanied by a surety and abstain from the purchase, possession, or consumption of alcohol.
Defense counsel George Joseph and the Crown presented a joint submission for sentencing, with Joseph agreeing that the sentence on the charge of failure to comply with a release order should be a step up given that it was the second breach.
Justice Valente said the charge for which Massicotte was originally released on in June 2020 is very serious and breaching his release order a second time was a significant aggravating factor.
Ultimately, Justice Valente agreed with the joint submission and Massicotte was sentenced to 60 days in custody, with pre-sentence custody credited at 45 days, leaving him 15 more days to serve.
Massicotte will also be required to pay a $1,000 fine on the impaired driving charge and will be prohibited from driving for a period of one year.
