No jail for repeat offender who ransacked 78-year-old’s Vernon home

A former Vernon man, who stole $13,000 of cash and goods after breaking into a senior’s house and ransacking it while high on drugs, has managed to avoid jail and house arrest after a BC judge agreed he was a changed person.

Sober and well-put-together 38-year-old Stanley Michell appeared in Vernon court, Dec. 11, almost four years after he broke into the senior’s home.

The court heard how Michell had no memory of the break-in and was “swimming in addiction” when the break and enter happened in January 2022.

The homeowner wasn’t in at the time when Michell broke a window to gain access. He went through every room and every drawer in the home. 

The homeowner had recently sold a bunch of machinery and had $8,000 cash that Michell swiped along with electronic and other goods worth $5,000. None of it was ever retrieved.

Blood was found on the broken window, and a DNA sample came back as Michell. He was arrested a year later.

However, just weeks after the theft, Michell had entered rehab and over the years that followed, became a different person.

“We are really seeing a tale of two different people, when he’s using and when he’s not,” Crown prosecutor James Bagan told the court.

The Crown described the homeowner as a kind, thoughtful and giving person, and said it was lucky the 78-year-old who lived alone wasn’t traumatized by the break-in.

The Crown wanted Michell to serve between two and three years in jail, and highlighted his criminal record, which dated back almost 20 years and had multiple convictions for robbery and violence.

Defence lawyer Laura Fadden argued that Michell was a changed person and should be spared any jail time.

The court heard how Michell was a member of the Okanagan Indian Band and grew up in a household where he witnessed drug and alcohol misuse, and it was normalized. He also spent several years in foster care.

“His family history is not unusual,” BC Supreme Court Justice Richard Hewson told the court. “His parents went to boarding school, and all his grandparents went to residential school. The stories he has heard of their childhoods were all similar (to his) and included mental, physical, verbal and sexual abuse.”

The Justice said the consequences of his grandparents’ upbringing impacted his parents’ upbringing and then his.

The court heard he started drinking at 12 years old and by 13 was using meth.

“Whether he experienced what (his grandparents) did or not, their experience has affected his life and will continue to do so in the future,” the Justice said.

The court heard how since becoming sober, he had reconnected with his Indigenous culture and gone back to school. 

He has a passion for Indigenous justice and reconciliation and spent his time learning about Indigenous human rights and its connection to human rights legislation.

He lived in Burnaby with his partner in the winter, but in the summer, went to live in a remote part of Vancouver Island and foraged off the land.

“This pattern of living has allowed him to maintain a stable and healthy physical and mental state,” the Justice said.

His mother addressed the court and spoke passionately about the work he had done.

“Stanley has demonstrated significant effort in rebuilding his life. He has worked diligently to achieve and maintain sobriety… he also engages in cultural healing practices including ceremonies, smudging and talking circles, which he has strengthened his connection to identity, accountability and emotional regulation,” his mother said. “His actions show responsibility, resilience and a consistent ability to make healthier choices.

“He is not defined by his mistakes of his past, but rather his growth, humility and sincerity in becoming a better man.”

His partner also addressed the court and said he was a “calm, honest and ambitious man” who is open-minded and sincere.

Michell told the court he was remorseful for his actions and read an apology letter to the victim of the break-in.

Justice Hewson said there was a risk in putting too much weight on statements made by family members.

“The risk is that the interest of the community can be overlooked and that the image presented of the offender can become one-sided,” the Justice said.

However, the Justice concluded that the family’s statement matched that of various reports and that Michell was sincere in his words.

The Justice said that rehabilitation is the best protection society has.

Ultimately, Justice Hewson sentenced Michell to a curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. from now until April.

After that, he will be allowed to live remotely on Vancouver Island, even though correctional services won’t be able to check on him.  

The Justice said he knew the harm caused by break-ins on the community, but he’d lived in the community for a long time and that Vernon was a forgiving community.

“It is a community that wants the best for people… who are working hard to be better tomorrow than they were yesterday,” the Justice said. “Mr. Michell is such a person.”