This is a man who doesn’t need jail. He needs help.
Lawyers for the defence and the Crown, as well as the judge, agreed on the same course of action for John Edmond Leblanc, the man who barricaded himself inside a Chase bank in April.
Leblanc, 58, who spent five months in prison following his arrest April 26, was sentenced Thursday in Kamloops provincial court to a 12-month conditional sentence, followed by two years’ probation.
He pleaded guilty to charges of uttering threats, possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and theft under $5,000.
“His background supported what appeared to be the reasons why he did what he did,” Crown counsel Stephen Lawhead told the Observer. “It was a cry for help, the actions of someone who was desperate and trying to get some assistance.”
Leblanc will be living in Kamloops under house arrest in a supervised residence and will be receiving psychiatric help.
Police responded to an alarm at the bank about 4:30 p.m. on April 26. A man had walked into the bank, lit a cigarette and announced he had a bomb. He then ordered everyone to leave. He was also seen holding a knife and a handgun; the bomb and handgun turned out to be fakes.
Streets in Chase surrounding the bank were cordoned off until about 11 p.m. before the man was convinced to come out. Although initially cooperative, he then told police to shoot him. Officers complied, but with a bean-bag shot from a shotgun.
During sentencing, the court heard the sad story of Leblanc’s life, details that included living with an abusive stepfather after his father abandoned the family when Leblanc was three, being sent to a reform school in New Brunswick where sexual abuse was rampant, his mother dying when she was giving birth to his half-brother, and his sister committing suicide.
Leblanc moved frequently, drifting across Canada, settling in Sorrento about two years ago. He struggled with addictions, so was put on methadone a few months prior to the bank standoff.
The court heard that Leblanc felt he was getting disapproving looks at the pharmacy in Sorrento, so he began driving to Chase to get methadone. It was after a visit to the Chase pharmacy that he went to a restaurant and drank several beer, but left without paying. He then tried to buy cigarettes at a store, but his debit card was declined. That led him to the bank.
While in the bank, he attempted suicide by slitting his wrists.
