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Drug trafficker gets weekends Paul Bickford Northern News Services Published Monday, March 7, 2011
Morgan Charles Monkman, 21, was sentenced to 90 days behind bars for possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking on March 2 in Hay River territorial court. Monkman had earlier pleaded guilty to the charge. Under the sentence, he will have to report to South Mackenzie Correctional Centre at 8 a.m. on Saturdays and will be released at 8 p.m. on Sundays. Those 36 hours each weekend will count as two days. In addition, Monkman was sentenced to 240 hours of community service and to serve two years probation. Judge Bernadette Schmaltz said the sentence was at the "very, very low end of the range" of possible sentences. "I have exercised as much restraint as I possibly can," she said. Prior to sentencing, Monkman apologized to the community for his actions. He said he has turned his life around since his arrest and has realized the error of his ways. The intermittent sentence was imposed partly to help Monkman keep his employment. It was also noted he had no previous criminal record. Monkman was charged after the RCMP received a tip that he was selling marijuana from his residence. The police obtained a search warrant and raided the residence on Sept. 28 of last year. Police seized 230.2 grams of marijuana, $2,110 in cash and weigh scales. According to an agreed statement of facts read by the Crown, Monkman was co-operative with police and made a statement estimating he had sold two pounds of marijuana in the two months before he was arrested. His involvement in the drug trade began after he lost a job after failing a drug test. In addition, he owed about $10,000 in credit card debt. Schmaltz said it was an aggravating factor that Monkman was making his living from illegal drugs. "It was a commercial venture on his part," she said, adding he was also not at the bottom of the distribution chain. The judge also condemned the drug trade in general, noting people are drawn to it because "quite astounding" amounts of money can be made. "Drug dealing is a parasitic lifestyle and it has to be denounced," Schmaltz said.
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