Fentanyl, cocaine bust attracts 6-year sentence | News

A Halifax man who was caught with large quantities of fentanyl and cocaine in his apartment has been handed a six-year sentence.

Jason Erroll White, 40, was sentenced recently in Halifax provincial court on two charges of possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking and one of breaching probation.

Judge Bill Digby imposed concurrent sentences of six years for the fentanyl, four years for the cocaine and 90 days for breaching probation.

The judge deducted 1,002 days as remand credit, leaving White with a net sentence of 38.5 months.

Digby rejected the Crown’s argument for consecutive sentences that would have added up to 13 years and three months.

“These offences occurred at the same time at the same place,” the judge said.

“I think the criteria for concurrent sentences are quite clearly met in this case.”

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times stronger than morphine. Street fentanyl is sold as a powder or a pill or is mixed with drugs such as heroin or cocaine, often resulting in accidental overdoses.

Police executed a search warrant at White’s apartment on Pinegrove Drive on Feb. 15, 2017, and seized 2,084 furanyl fentanyl pills, 101 grams of cocaine powder, about 82 grams of crack cocaine and $12,145 in cash.

Most of the fentanyl pills were found in bags in a bedroom closet. The pills were green and were labelled 80 on one side and CDN on the other.

An expert report tendered at White’s trial said the pills had a street value of between $41,680 and $83,360, depending on how they would have been sold.

The cocaine and crack would have fetched as much as $18,000, the court was told.

White is the first person in Halifax Regional Municiplity to be sentenced for possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking. A man in the Truro area was caught with 195 fentanyl pills in a 2016 bust.

White came before the court with a lengthy criminal record going back to 1997 that includes convictions for manslaughter, drug trafficking, aggravated assault, assault, break and enter and uttering threats. He has served several federal prison sentences and was on probation at the time of the February 2017 drug raid.

In his submissions, Crown attorney Christian Girouard said the sentencing range for fentanyl is not yet as established as those for other drugs, “considering that it’s relatively new to the drug trade.”

“People who deal in fentanyl should receive the message that if you also deal in cocaine, you will be punished more harshly than the strictly standalone fentanyl dealer,” Girouard said in arguing for consecutive sentences.

Defence lawyer Trevor McGuigan agreed that a lengthy federal sentence was required to emphasize denunciation and deterrence but said the Crown’s recommendation would amount to an “unduly long and harsh sentence.”

“There’s just not any support in the case law we have in this country for the extreme, high number the Crown is recommending here,” McGuigan said.

“Five years is sufficient. That is what restraint is about in sentencing. … It should not be longer than what is necessary to accomplish those objectives of sentencing.”

A cultural assessment on White, who is African-Canadian, was prepared for the court’s consideration.

White’s parents separated when he was quite young, and he moved in with his grandparents in north-end Halifax.

The cultural assessment described the lack of a powerful role model or father figure in White’s life and the effect that has on African-Canadian boys, including increased risk of substance use, delinquency and anti-social peer relationships.

“Mr. White was a follower among his peer group,” McGuigan told the court. “He sought attention from older men who engaged in the criminal subculture.”

From the age of 12 to 16, White was in and out of trouble and suffered abuse while at the former Shelburne School for Boys.

McGuigan said his client would like to start a business, perhaps a restaurant, after he is released from prison.

“(The) report is in-depth and allows the court to better understand who this person is, what his life was like, what he’s experienced or not experienced that may have shaped his behaviour, and talks about the social factors that may have affected him and … the decisions that he’s made,” the lawyer said.

“Sentencing is not just about the crime. … Luckily, we’re able to take into account not just the act, but acknowledging the fact that crimes are not committed in isolation. … There are circumstances of a person’s life that influence the choices they make.”

In a letter to the court, White said two months after his latest arrest, he became a grandfather to “a beautiful little girl, and that really made me think about my life differently.”

He said his biggest fear is to die in prison.

“I got stabbed really bad in 2012 in the Atlantic Institution and my body hasn’t been the same since,” he said.

“It kills me to think I’ll be going back to jail for years to come. I need to be there for my kids and granddaughter so they don’t make the bad mistakes and choices that I made. I need to surround myself with positive people, places and things and if I do that, I know I’ll succeed in society, which is my goal in life.”

The judge said White was clearly involved in a mid-level trafficking venture rather than just a street-level operation.

“Given the information that I have, I’m certainly convinced beyond any doubt that this was not a one-man operation,” Digby said.

“What I don’t have is much information that would allow me to assess the moral culpability of Mr. White beyond his legal culpability. For example, I don’t know whether he was the brains behind this operation and the organizer, or was simply a worker minding the stash.”

Digby said fentanyl has wreaked havoc and caused many deaths in Western Canada.

“Fortunately for those of us in the East, the wave of fentanyl hasn’t reached us in the same degree,” he said. “Offences involving fentanyl are much rarer in Nova Scotia than they are, for example, in B.C. To some extent, that informs me that extremely lengthy sentences are not necessary.

“But because of the devastating nature of the drug, a very strong message needs to be sent to those who are tempted to engage in the possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking.

“Trafficking drugs by those not addicted to drugs is in a sense a calculation. It looks like easy money if you can avoid the risk, but at some point, most rational people, if the sentences are significant enough, will say the money isn’t worth the risk. By deterring those people, we achieve the over-arching principle of sentencing, which is the safety of the public.”

In addition to the prison sentence, the judge imposed a 10-year firearms prohibition.

“Mr. White, I think your intention to find another avenue for your energy is probably a wise idea with your record,” Digby said. “You really don’t want to come back here.”