SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A Yellowknife doctor who threatened to kill a woman and broke three no-contact orders was sentenced to 90 days in jail in territorial court Jan. 27.

Dr. Richard Cunningham leaves court Jan. 27 after pleading guilty to several charges, including uttering death threats. Later in the day, Cunningham was sentenced to 90 days in jail. - Terrence McEachern/NNSL photo

"Something has to get through to Dr. (Richard) Cunningham that these are just not pieces of paper," said Judge Bernadette Schmaltz, referring to the no-contact orders.

Schmaltz also said Cunningham was responsible for causing the woman to "live in fear" and made her life "unbearable."

Cunningham, 61, originally pleaded not guilty, but changed those pleas to guilty last Thursday. His trial was scheduled to begin today.

Schmaltz granted defence lawyer Peter Fuglsang's request to allow Cunningham to serve his sentence on weekends so he can continue working as a doctor for the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Authority.

Ewan Affleck, medical director of the health authority, said he couldn't comment on Cunningham's current employment status with the health authority due to privacy issues, but he did say the matter is being evaluated.

Cunningham was expected to report to the North Slave Correctional Centre on Saturday, Jan. 29 at 8:30 a.m. "in a sober state" and remain until Sunday at 7 p.m. He must return every Saturday at 8 a.m. until his sentence is complete. Schmaltz also ordered him stay five metres from the woman, her vehicle or her residence at all times.

Crown prosecutors Blair MacPherson and Roger Shepard requested a 30-day jail sentence for all the offences.

The threat happened on Aug. 8, 2010 when Cunningham left a message on the woman's phone telling her "unless you do as you agreed to do, your life will end kind of abruptly. I'm sorry."

Cunningham then broke a no-contact order by phoning the woman on Aug. 29, and then later in the day, confronting the woman in her apartment building parking garage. As the woman was getting out of her vehicle, she heard a voice behind her say: "Oh look, a sighting." The woman turned around and saw Cunningham about seven metres away walking toward her. She got into her car and locked the doors as he calmly walked up to the car and smeared an ice cream cone into the window.

Cunningham broke the no-contact order again when he phoned her on Sept. 19.

In addition to the 30-day sentence, MacPherson requested one-year probation, a DNA order and a firearms prohibition.

Fuglsang cited Cunningham's work helping others as a doctor in Yellowknife and in communities such as Whati. Fuglsang requested a conditional sentence.

Cunningham apologized for his behaviour and assured the court "this will never happen again."

This wasn't Cunningham's first conviction. On May 28, 2010, he received a $3,000 fine for an Oct. 9, 2009 incident at the Yellowknife Airport where he falsely declared a bomb in his luggage. His record also includes a 2008 conviction for drunk driving and a 2009 conviction for driving while disqualified.

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