Fort Resolution man gets life without parole for 11 years for second-degree murder

Chad Tyler Beck was handed a life sentence with no chance of parole for 11 years in N.W.T. Supreme Court Thursday.

The 33-year-old Beck had been found guilty of second-degree murder this past May for killing Cameron Sayine with an axe in Fort Resolution in July 2018.

In delivering her decision, Justice Shannon Smallwood said she took into consideration several factors, including Beck's background and his alcohol addiction.

She said Beck showed remorse by cooperating with police, but she called the violence against Sayine "extreme and horrific."

His past two convictions were minor and did not suggest he would be capable of murder, she said.

Family and community impact

Smallwood also considered the victim's family, who listened to the judge's sentencing over the phone, and how the loss had impacted them. 

"No sentence or words can make up for the loss of a family member," Smallwood said.

She added that Sayine was more than a provider, that he wasn't the bully he was made out to be and that he was a valued family member. 

Smallwood said the impact of Sayine's death had a profound effect on his family's lives. She said some members of the family had difficulty getting over his death. 

"It broke my heart when my son died. I've been drinking everyday and I cry every night. I pray for my son," wrote Sayine's father, Raymond Giroux, in his victim impact statement, which was read out in court the previous day.

Smallwood also recognized Sayine's murder had an impact in Fort Resolution, which was expressed in Sayine's grandfather, Robert's, victim impact statement. In it, he wrote that drugs and alcohol were a problem in the community and that his grandson's murder had created a rift between people in the community.

Decision

Smallwood said considering all the factors, the sentence needed to be in excess of the minimum and sentenced Beck to 11 years with no chance of parole.

Second-degree murder carries an automatic sentence of life in prison with no parole for a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of 25 years.

The Crown had argued for 13 years while the defence had argued for the minimum 10 years.

Smallwood also ordered a 10-year firearm prohibition for Beck.

The judge also endorsed a request that Beck made as he awaits a transfer to a federal facility, to not be placed in segregation and instead be kept in the general population because of his anxiety.