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Lethbridge man handed 4-year sentence for 2015 beating death

Oct 13, 2017 | 2:14 PM

LETHBRIDGE – A 40-year-old Lethbridge man was handed a four-year sentence Friday morning (Oct. 13), for the 2015 beating death of 47-year-old Gifford George Good Dagger.

However, James Gregory Gurney will only serve a fraction of that time, as a result of time spent in pre-trial custody. With a credit of time-and-a-half for what he has already served, Gurney only has 359 days left on his sentence.

He pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter in July of this year, and the sentence was the result of a joint submission by the Crown and defence.

Gurney admitted that on the night of Aug. 31, 2015, he was intoxicated and got into a fight with Good Dagger. He told staff at Quest Support Services – where both he and victim were living at the time – that it was over inappropriate remarks made by Good Dagger regarding female staff at Quest. He stated that at one point he snapped, repeatedly punching Good Dagger, and then kneeing and kicking him in the body and head.

Good Dagger was eventually found on the ground in an alleyway by two Quest staff members, and was transported to the Chinook Regional Hospital where he later died.

The Crown noted that it’s not clear how the altercation started, but that it was outside the scope of a consensual fight or self-defence on the part of Gurney.

An autopsy showed Good Dagger sustained brain injury, multiple rib fractures and soft tissue hemorrhages.

Sentencing decision

During the sentencing hearing, Crown prosecutor Vaughan Hartigan, stated that Gurney suffers from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, a condition that he acknowledged generally results in poor impulse control, and one which he given before he was born.

It was also noted that while Gurney has a lengthy criminal record, it was for relatively small offences, with no real violence in his past.

 

Defence lawyer Greg White

 

Defence lawyer, Greg White, went on to say that the incident in which Good Dagger was killed was “awash in alcohol.” He added that Quest workers had frequently seen Gurney while he was intoxicated, but that it was out of character for him to be violent.

“They were having a drinking party, they were friends. And, as we know, sometimes when there’s lots of alcohol involved, people don’t act rationally, and unfortunately, this situation ended in tragic, tragic consequences,” said White.

White said Gurney’s grandparents were residential school survivors, his mother had substance abuse problems and he was removed from his home at a young age and put into the foster system, saying Gurney was, “raised almost to become an alcoholic.

“All we can do now is pick up the pieces,” White concluded.

He also read a short statement that Gurney had written for Good Dagger’s family, in which he said he will forever be sorry for what he did.

Before agreeing to the joint submission presented to him, Judge Derek Redman went over the incident in question, saying, “The tragedy did not begin then, nor did it end then.”

He discussed the Gladue report prepared for Gurney – which assess an offenders Aboriginal background and how it may have played a part in their actions – saying the event was connected to the “tragedy suffered by First Nations people throughout History.”

In regard to Gurney’s diagnoses of suffering from FASD, Redman said, “He has a limited ability to plan, to deliberate, to see the consequences of his actions.”

Having said that, Redman noted that it was still important to send a message of denunciation and deterrence to the community, by imposing the four-year sentence.

The impact on Good Dagger’s family

As part of sentencing, members of Good Dagger’s family were able to submit or read victim impact statements to the court.

“I miss my brother a lot. It took me months to get over seeing [Gifford] when I close my eyes when I go to bed,” said his sister, Joyce Bird, who then delivered a message directly to Gurney. “I forgive you for what you did to my brother.”

 

Good Dagger’s sister, Tanya Black Plume

 

Outside the courthouse, another sister, Tanya Black Plume, spoke to the media.

“There is, I guess, relief that this chapter is done, like, we aren’t going to be coming to court anymore,” she stated. “But, I’m not satisfied with the outcome, I wish the time served was longer. But, I guess there’s nothing I can do about it, but just accept it.

“It’s very hard on me. Like, we were all close with our brother, but it’s very hard on me… There’s not a day that goes by [that] I don’t think of him, and I wish he was here. I wish the kids still had their uncle,” continued Black Plume.

“I know my other sister said she forgives him and that, and I think it’ll take some time for me to actually get there.”