The youth who stood by and watched as his friend murdered 16-year-old Hannah Leflar is one step closer to learning his fate.
Both the Crown and defence presented their closing arguments on Friday.
Defence lawyer Greg Wilson argued that when the teen came clean in his testimony on Wednesday and admitted he’d been lying, he finally showed some maturity and that he was remorseful.
The defence also argued the youth was immature for his age, asking if a mature adult would text someone the day after the murder to say a video game should be made out of what he did.
Wilson said in other cases, youth who were sentenced as an adult either did the actual killing, were a driving force behind it or had significant criminal history. That wasn’t the case with this youth, Wilson said.
Crown prosecutor Chris White said the teen perjured himself on the stand over and over.
The teen lied to everyone about almost everything and only came clean when confronted with dozens of lies, White said.
“The teen had no reason to murder Hannah, he just wanted to. That’s terrifying,” White said.
The youth was evasive, self-serving and sometimes testy on the stand, he added.
The teen’s admission that he lied to his caseworkers also means those reports and recommendations are based on wrong information, White argued.
Court heard about three main options for sentencing, including an adult sentence, which is the Crown’s preference.
It would mean life in prison with no chance of parole for seven years, and the youth’s name would become public.
White argued that only a life sentence could ensure public safety and adequate risk control.
The teen could also be given a youth sentence, which would likely be four years in custody and three years in the community.
The issues that led to the crime could not be adequately addressed in seven years, White said.
The third option is an IRCS sentence, which is a sentence for youth with mental health issues who have committed a severe crime. It involves specialized programming and extra supervision.
The defence asked for an intensive rehabilitative custody and supervision, or IRCS, sentence, of four years in custody, three years in the community and 14 months of credit for time served. It would work out to a total sentence of nine years, Wilson said.
Skylar Prockner, the teen who fatally stabbed Leflar, was not recommended for the IRCS sentence, but this youth was.
The youth has been in custody just over 32 months.
Prockner was sentenced as an adult with no chance of parole for 10 years. He’s appealing.
The judge is expected to deliver her decision November 7.