An Edmonton woman that pleaded guilty to manslaughter in relation to the death of her sister has been sentenced to 65 months in prison.
According to an agreed statement of facts, in November 2015, 29-year-old Ashley Bruce had been drinking for hours when she kicked through the glass door of her sister’s Clareview apartment to get inside.
Once there, she went into Crystal Bruce’s suite and the sisters got into an argument that turned into a physical fight. Ashley admitted to repeatedly punching her sister before stabbing her through the heart with a kitchen knife.
Crystal was found on the kitchen floor by first responders, but she was unresponsive and pronounced dead on scene.
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Ashley, meanwhile, was arrested at the apartment with blood on her hands, arms and legs. Officers noted she was intoxicated at the time. She was originally charged with second-degree murder, possession of an offensive weapon and assault with a weapon.
In December, she pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
In his sentencing decision on Thursday, Justice Peter Michalyshyn described Ashley as being “out of control” at the time, saying “I don’t doubt the only reason this happened was because she was intoxicated by alcohol and/or drugs.”
Crystal and Ashley’s father, Ivan Opikokew, wrote a lengthy letter to the court asking for a lenient sentence. Speaking of Ashley, he wrote “she needs to be out here raising her son properly and being with family. We all forgive her for the things that happened.”
Justice Michalyshyn handed down a sentence of nearly five-and-a-half-year sentence, less time served. Because Ashley has been in custody since November 2015, that means she has about two years left to serve.