Ten years. That’s the amount of prison time 39-year-old Malakal Tuel has been sentenced to for his role in the 2019 shooting of John Thomas Papequash outside a downtown Whitehorse bar. Considering time already served, Tuel is anticipated to remain behind bars for four more years.
Chief Justice Suzanne Duncan handed down the sentence on Nov. 29.
In February of this year, Tuel was found guilty in the Yukon Supreme Court of nine of 13 charges he faced, including discharging a firearm with the intent to wound, aggravated assault, and charges related to drug trafficking, possession of a prohibited firearm, and the proceeds of crime.
Duncan also concluded that Tuel was responsible for firing the bullet through Papequash’s head but that his actions did not amount to attempted murder.
“After reviewing and considering all of the evidence — and absence of evidence, in this case, I concluded it established beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Tuel shot Mr. Papequash on Dec. 1, 2019,” Duncan told the courtroom.
At an earlier sentencing hearing, the Crown had requested that Tuel receive 10 and a half years in prison, less time served, while the defence had asked for time served and two years of probation.
Before reading Tuel’s sentence, Duncan recapped the details of the case. She said that Papequash was shot in the head at close range on Dec. 1, 2019, outside 202 bar in downtown Whitehorse. She said the attack caused massive brain trauma and that bullet fragments were found in his brain.
He survived the attack, but his brush with death has dramatically altered his life.
The chief justice also recounted the contents of victim impact statements submitted by Papequash, Papequash’s mother and sister, and the mother of Papequash’s youngest daughter. Only the statement from Papequash’s sister was read in court.
While discussing the impact statements, Duncan shared that Papequash is 40 years old and lives with his mother, who must drive him to appointments because he can no longer operate a motor vehicle. The court heard that he tires easily, has lost strength in the left side of his body and his short-term memory has been negatively impacted.
Papequash cannot work after the attack, and his career goal of working in land-based tourism has been shelved. He’s also lost his ability to co-parent.
Duncan told the court that she carefully reviewed relevant background information related to Tuel’s life, including his recollections of his time as a child soldier in what is now South Sudan and his experiences with racism in Canada after being admitted to the country as a refugee.
Tuel’s time as a child combatant and his experiences with racism were considered by the chief justice as mitigating factors for sentencing, along with his participation in programming at Whitehorse Correctional Centre, such as the five-week substance-use treatment program.
Among the aggravating factors Duncan considered when sentencing Tuel were the severity of his attack and its impact on the victim, the fact he discharged a firearm in a public place, that he was subject to a lifetime prohibition on firearms ownership and his prior criminal record, which included weapons charges.
Before reading the sentence, Duncan allowed Tuel to address the court. He apologized to his victim’s family, offering his “deepest sympathies,” and asked for forgiveness for his actions.
“I know an apology is not going to take back the situation, but nonetheless, I can ask for their forgiveness in the future […] There is nothing I could say to take back what happened, but nonetheless, my sympathies go to them,” Tuel said.
In addition to the time he’ll be serving behind bars, Duncan also noted in her sentence that Tuel would be subject to a mandatory prohibition of firearms and subject to a DNA order.
Contact Matthew Bossons at matthew.bossons@yukon-news.com