In a Red Deer courtroom last September, Benjamin Rabbit expressed his remorse during a traditional First Nations sentencing circle to relatives of the man whose life he had taken.
It was the first gathering of its kind at the downtown courthouse and was part of Rabbit’s unique legal journey that made him the first person in a central Alberta courtroom to receive a conditional sentence order rather than prison for a crime as serious as manslaughter.
The sentencing circle came about because of the efforts of his Red Deer defence lawyer Laura Phypers. She has fought to shine a light on how the justice system has failed to recognize the unique circumstances of many Indigenous offenders and jails them at far higher rate than other offenders.
In 2020, Indigenous people represented only five per cent of the Canadian population but 30 per cent of the federal prison population.
Phypers successfully argued at sentencing that a conditional sentence order was appropriate punishment for Rabbit given his circumstances and the efforts he had made to turn his life around since he fatally choked Lance Service on Dec. 27, 2021 in his Maskwacis home.
“It was really emotional,” Rabbit said of the sentencing circle. “It gave you a chance to explain yourself and the (situation) I was put in.
“Everyone had their chance to share in that circle.”
Two of his sisters and an aunt were there along with elders, police officers and many others who have helped him over the last two years. Also there was Service’s sister, who has supported Rabbit’s efforts to make amends.
In sentencing Rabbit to a conditional sentence of two years less a day followed by three years probation last October, Red Deer Court of King’s Bench Justice Gillian Marriott noted that Rabbit was intoxicated when he awoke to Service apparently trying to sexually assault him.
Rabbit, 27, had gone to Service’s home to hang out and drink. Rabbit had known the 66-year-old Service for a couple of years, had lived at his house on and off, and considered the 66-year-old a father figure and friend.
The two had been drinking together that night and Rabbit eventually went to sleep in a bedroom. He awoke to find his pants being pulled down.
The court heard he saw red and “snapped.” Rabbit put his forearm across Service’s throat and pressed down until the older man was choked to death, an action the judge called “impulsive and reactive.”
Rabbit, who had no prior criminal record, was charged with second-degree murder but would later plead guilty to manslaughter.
The judge acknowledged Rabbit’s life had been shaped by substance abuse, violence, poverty and the inter-generational trauma of residential schools. An alcoholic himself then, Rabbit had lost several siblings and a niece to alcoholism.
However, following Service’s death, the judge said Rabbit “had demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to working on his own rehabilitation,” which included participating in a detox program, extensive counselling and deep involvement in cultural activities while adhering to strict release conditions.
Part of his sentence is to continue cultural practices and to make direct reparation to Service’s family by doing work for them, along with other community work.
In what Phypers calls a “beautiful touch of reconciliation,” Rabbit was asked to perform a smudge ceremony when the new Red Deer Justice Centre opens its doors later this year. The centre includes a courtroom set aside for Indigenous justice.
“To me, it is quite an honour I get to do that,” said Rabbit.
Phypers credits Justice Marriott and Justice Marilyn Slawinsky for seeing Rabbit’s potential and recognizing that more time behind bars (he had spent 158 days in remand) was not the justice required.
Slawinsky, who granted him bail, took a particular interest in Rabbit’s case and asked him to write her and provide an update every three months.
“She took a chance on me,” he said. “It wasn’t easy. I told her the truth about the things I was going through, the things I felt.
“Through each letter I sent her, she saw strength, I guess. She saw resilience. She saw that I was actually trying.”
His journey has not been easy.
“Right now, it’s always in the back of your mind that a life was taken. That never goes away and I still have a hard time to this day dealing with that, accepting the fact that it happened.”
Rabbit is now working at Lionsheart Wholeness Centre, a rural retreat north of Edmonton he had attended where people are helped to overcome trauma and begin their healing journeys.
“I love it. I get to work with people who are trying to better their lives. And I feel like I’m contributing back, not just for me, but for them. I get to give back and help people along their journey.
“It’s my honour to be part of their journey as well.”
He has even bigger plans in the works. He is developing a Reconciliation Matters movement that will focus on the importance of respect for the Indigenous community in all areas of society. He intends to push for reform in the child welfare system and a justice system that continues to lock up too many Indigenous people.
One of the key messages he hopes to pass on to others facing their own challenges is that prayer works.
“You don’t give up. Keep holding on.”
Phypers hopes Rabbit’s experiences in the justice system can be repeated by other deserving offenders.
“The outcome was powerful and it was the first in this region on this type of offence to have culturally appropriate community sentence.”
Phypers said the justice system needs more judges and Crown prosecutors who understand the “epidemic of over-incarceration rates” for Indigenous offenders and that restorative justice programsneed to be expanded and properly funded.