A man who confessed to the 1997 stabbing death of a young Edmonton father was handed a four-year prison sentence Tuesday, after pleading guilty to manslaughter.
In March 2015, Darren Jason Young was charged with second-degree murder and possession of a prohibited weapon in connection with the May 17, 1997 killing of James Milliken, who was 23 at the time.
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In court the now-39-year-old Young was allowed to plead guilty to the lesser offence.
Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Terry Clackson accepted a joint submission by the Crown and the defence for the four-year sentence, but told Milliken’s family he understands “it is a bitter pill to swallow,” the Edmonton Journal reported.
In addition to the 48-month prison sentence, Young was also given a lifetime ban on owning firearms. Young was given 37-months credit for the time he has spent in pre-trial custody, leaving him with 11 months still to serve.
Edmonton police said Young was a suspect in the early days of the investigation, but there wasn’t enough evidence at the time to charge him.
On a Friday night in May 1997, Milliken and two friends were at the Beverly Crest Tavern at 118 Avenue and 34 Street. They left the bar around 1:30 a.m. Saturday and crossed the street to the Abbotsfield Mall parking lot, where they ran into another group of young men, allegedly members of the North Side Boys gang.
Court heard the two groups began yelling at each other and a melee ensued, according to Postmedia reporter Tony Blais.
Milliken took off his shirt in preparation for a fight and Young delivered a roundhouse kick to Milliken’s head, dropping him to the ground. As Milliken began to rise, Young, then 19, stabbed him in the chest with a butterfly knife he pulled from his pocket.
Milliken was treated by EMS and taken to the University of Alberta Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His sister was told by doctors that the knife went into Milliken’s heart, and he was dead before he hit the ground.
An arrest was made on the day of the attack, but the case fell apart at the preliminary hearing when a different person testified that they had committed the crime.
Police later determined that was a lie, but the case went cold until spring of 2014, when Young called police saying he had something to confess. A day later he admitted what he had done.
It took police a year to investigate the confession and firm up the information provided. On March 12, 2015, Young was arrested by Medicine Hat Police Service. He was said to be “very co-operative.”
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Young reportedly never got over killing Milliken, said defence lawyer Dino Bottos.
In 1997, James Milliken had a young son, and another son was on the way. In her victim impact statement, Tammy Milliken slammed Young for leaving her nephews without a dad.