Anger erupts during sentencing for girl convicted in teen's stabbing death
Members of victim's family stormed out of Halifax courtroom as sentencing decision was read
The family of a 16-year-old boy who died after being stabbed last year in Halifax erupted in anger during sentencing Thursday for one of four teens charged in his death.
Members of Ahmad Al Marrach's family stormed out of the Halifax courtroom where Judge Mark Heerema sentenced the girl to another three months in custody at a youth detention centre, followed by two years of close supervision in the community.
The girl, who previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter, was 14 years old at the time of the incident. She has been in custody since April 2024, shortly after Al Marrach died following a violent altercation in a parking garage at the Halifax Shopping Centre.
In reading his decision, Heerema said the girl and her mother have tried to diminish her part in the incident by suggesting Al Marrach had struck her and knocked her down during the altercation.
At that point, members of Al Marrach's family lashed out at the provincial court judge, calling him an expletive before sheriff's deputies ushered them out of the room.
After they left, Heerema went on to point out that the version of events suggested by the girl and her mother was "blatantly not true," noting the entire assault was captured on the girl's cellphone.
'Shocking absence of basic human decency'
The judge said it was a cowardly attack that showed the worst of humanity, while Al Marrach displayed bravery and strength in his attempts to fend off his attackers.
The girl, whose identity is protected under a publication ban, showed a "shocking absence of basic human decency," said Heerema.
While the girl did not stab Al Marrach, she was carrying a knife and provided one to another teen.
Last week, the girl addressed the court and apologized for her actions, saying she wishes she could "reverse time."
On Thursday, she appeared teary-eyed and sat quietly next to her lawyer, turning occasionally to look at her mother in the public gallery.
Heerema reminded her of all the milestones she has yet to celebrate, like turning 20, buying a car or having children. He said Al Marrach will not get to celebrate any of those events and he told the girl she must carry him in her memory at those occasions.
Intense rehabilitative programs part of sentence
The Crown and defence had submitted a joint sentencing recommendation, which Heerema accepted Thursday. The girl's time in custody at the Nova Scotia Youth Centre in Waterville, N.S., is meant to prepare her for the intense rehabilitative programs she will go through when she's released.
The exact terms of the two-year community sentence will be worked out at a later time. In addition to the sentence, her DNA goes in a national data bank and she faces a five-year weapons ban.
A second teenager charged in the case has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is facing a separate sentencing hearing. A third teenager pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is in the middle of the sentencing process, while a fourth teenager is part way through a trial on a charge of second-degree murder.
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