A Manitoba man who fatally stabbed an acquaintance during what a judge called “an unprovoked attack” has had his prison sentence reduced from eight years to seven because of his indigenous background and his efforts to bring the victim to hospital.Dean Richard Bell, 31, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the January 13, 2024, stabbing of 33-year-old Calvin Chartrand on Main Street in Swan River, Man. Provincial court Judge Geoffrey Bayly said Bell’s actions were “akin to an act of revenge” but that Gladue principles, which require courts to consider the impact of colonialism and systemic factors when sentencing Indigenous offenders, reduced his moral culpability. Bayly also noted Bell helped take Chartrand to hospital after the stabbing..The confrontation stemmed from a dispute days earlier when Chartrand asked Bell to leave a home. Bell later told police Chartrand threatened him and took his cellphone.On the night of the killing, Bell and his half-brother, Tyrone Guiboche, encountered Chartrand and his girlfriend. The brothers demanded the phone back, then attacked Chartrand in the street. Bell stabbed him twice, once in the face and once in the buttock, the second wound severing an artery and causing fatal internal bleeding.The judge said the attack was “preemptive” and that Chartrand was “vulnerable due to being outnumbered and unarmed.” He added that Chartrand “lost his life needlessly.” Bell admitted to police that he stabbed Chartrand but claimed self-defence.“The offender’s history of victimization, trauma, and cultural disenfranchisement is intricately linked to our country’s shameful legacy of colonialism and attempts at cultural genocide,” said the judge. .Bell, who grew up in Birch River, Manitoba has a history of substance abuse, trauma, and family loss, including the suicide of a sister and the death of a brother in a crash. He has struggled with meth-induced psychosis and has limited connection to Indigenous culture, though he expressed interest in learning more.Guiboche, 41, was arrested October 6 after fleeing police who tried to detain him. Officers used a Taser to subdue him following a foot chase. He faces charges of manslaughter, resisting arrest, assaulting police, and failing to attend court.Judge Bayly concluded that while Bell was the aggressor, systemic factors and his decision to help Chartrand after the stabbing justified a sentence of seven years in custody.
