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Judge rules teen killer will receive adult sentence

By: Mike McIntyre

Posted: 10/9/2012 12:50 PM

Joseph Alexander Hall died after being stabbed when a group of youths robbed him. One of them, 17 at the time, will face an adult sentence. (FAMILY PHOTO)

A Winnipeg gang associate will be given an adult sentence for his role in a random robbery spree that ended with the death of a stranger.

The accused, who was 17 at the time of the July 2009 attack, was found guilty earlier this year of second-degree murder following a month-long trial.

In a written decision released Tuesday, Queen’s Bench Justice Jeffrey Oliphant ruled in favour of the Crown’s request to raise the man to adult court where he faces much more serious legal sanctions.

Under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, the young killer could only have received a maximum of four years behind bars. As an adult, he will get a mandatory life sentence with no chance of parole for at least seven years.

Joseph Hall, 24, died in his mother's arms on the same night police flooded his neighbourhood responding to a surge in violent crime.

Two others have already admitted to their roles in the killing. James McMahon, 22, and Randall Preston Bourassa, 22, both pleaded guilty to manslaughter as part of a plea bargain struck with justice officials. Both were given the equivalent of 10-year prison sentences.

Hall's killers were apparently out of beer when they decided to find innocent victims to rob while strolling through the North End, court was told. Oliphant called the group "urban pirates on bicycles" who didn't care who they hurt or killed.

Their first target was robbed and stabbed but escaped with only minor injuries. The next victim, Hall, suffered three stab wounds to the chest, one of which punctured his heart.

www.mikeoncrime.com