A sergeant in the Canadian Armed Forces pleaded guilty to assaulting his wife and young son in St. Albert court Monday.
Jeffrey G. Yetman pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and one count of assault with a weapon.
Yetman’s wife reported the 41-year-old to military police, stating Yetman had threatened his 12-year-old son with a knife and a fork, as well as kicked and punched the boy on several occasions between June 1 and Aug. 31, 2013. She also reported that Yetman had spit in her face, threatened to kill her and burn their house down after they had an argument about infidelity.
Military police notes stated Yetman did not deny the allegations. He was cited as saying, “I can’t say yes to something I can’t remember.”
Court heard the 41-year-old suffers from chronic blackouts and emotional instability from previously undiagnosed and untreated post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Yetman is a sergeant with the Prince Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry and has served with the military for 24 years. He completed a total of six tours in Bosnia, Croatia and Afghanistan. His defence counsel noted that Yetman also suffers from anxiety and depression.
Court heard that since the assault incidents, Yetman has undergone treatment and counselling for PTSD. He has reconciled with his wife while his 12-year-old son is now living with a relative in a different part of the province.
Judge Bruce Garriock agreed with the recommendation from the Crown prosecutor and handed Yetman a two-year suspended sentence. Yetman must abide by conditions to seek treatment and counselling for PTSD, abstain from the consumption of alcohol and other intoxicating substances and to have no contact with his son.
A St. Albert man well known to police was back in court Monday to receive a 15-day jail sentence.
Glenn Kelly Ball pleaded guilty to breaching a condition of his probation – to abstain from consuming alcohol. St. Albert RCMP picked up Ball after they found him drunkenly staggering down the middle of Cunningham Road by Sir Winston Churchill Avenue before rush hour on Dec. 21, 2013.
Ball made headlines in July when he climbed the metal security cage on the pedestrian overpass spanning St. Albert Trail near St. Albert Centre and had to be talked down by three RCMP officers. He was heavily intoxicated at the time.
The 51-year-old told Garriock Monday he was walking on the roadway because snowplows had covered the sidewalks with snow.
“I am concerned because this is not the first time this transgression has happened,” responded Garriock.
In addition to several ascents atop the pedway, Ball’s criminal record includes obstructing a police officer, theft under $5,000, possession of stolen property, impaired driving, causing a disturbance and assault.
Ball was handed a 15-day jail sentence, with credit for two days time served.
A man who sold cannabis marijuana to an undercover cop on two separate occasions has escaped jail time.
Cameron McDonald pleaded guilty to one count of possession for the purposes of trafficking in October 2013. In April, the St. Albert RCMP drug unit used an undercover police officer to contact McDonald, who sold him seven grams of marijuana from his Springfield Crescent home. The officer made another purchase from McDonald outside a restaurant one week later.
RCMP then followed McDonald back to his house and arrested him, seizing a black cellphone and two bundles of cash. They also found more than 340 grams of marijuana and a scale with drug residue.
Federal Crown prosecutor Jeremy Newton noted the pre-sentence report prepared for McDonald’s sentencing was positive. The report identified McDonald as the principal breadwinner of his family and that the crime was purely motivated by financial gain.
“He’s not the lowest level drug dealer,” acknowledged Newton.
McDonald was given a 12-month conditional sentence, divided into six months of house arrest and six months of strict curfew conditions. He must also complete 40 hours of community service, pay a $100 victim fine surcharge and may only possess a cell phone for the purpose of employment.
