Skylar Dalyk's manslaughter sentencing: lawyers make their cases

The lawyer for a Sudbury man convicted of stabbing Tim Lamothe to death asked a court for leniency in sentencing today but the family of the victim asked the court to give Skylar Dalyk a punishment that will allow them to "move on."

Dalyk was convicted of manslaughter last year for killing Lamothe in December 2013.

At today's sentence hearing, the 26-year-old stood and addressed the Lamothe family, who sat stone-faced as he apologized.

"I will never be able to forgive myself," said Dalyk. "It was my fault, regardless of why it happened or how it happened."

Dalyk's lawyer Lindsey Santerre argued minutes earlier that Dalyk should be given a lighter sentence of between two and four years, as this was "not an ordinary manslaughter."

She recounted how Lamothethreatened Dalyk to pay back money he was owed, ambushed him at the Algoma Tavern in Chelmsford and chased Dalyk through the streets.

Santerre argues that Dalyk stabbed Lamothe in self-defence.

"If it were not for the actions of Mr.Lamothe, this incident would not have occurred," she said.

Santerre asked for Dalyk to get extra credit for the two years he's spent awaiting trial in Sudbury Jail, arguing that overcrowding, mold and mice problems inside made his time served more difficult.

She told the court that Dalyk is trying to shake his addiction to drugs, which she called "the main ingredient" in this case and is keen to finish his high school education and support his young family.

"It's clear Mr. Dalyk has grown up a lot," she said.

Losing a family member a 'life sentence'

Members of the Lamothe family shook their heads while Santerre argued for a lighter sentence.

In a series of victim impact statements read to the court, they detailed how the death of the family's eldest son has pulled it apart.

His mother, Kathy Lamothe,says her relationships with her husband and her children have all become distant in the last two years.

"It seems we are always short on patience, short on understanding ... short on love," she said.

Lamothe described losing a family member to a violent death as a "life sentence."

"Today my life consists of searching my brain for memories of my son ... but that picture of him lying there in a snowbank ... haunts me," she said.

Tim's brother, Chris Lamothe,told the court his brother's death has kept him from enjoying life with his newborn daughter.

"How can I ever explain to her who her uncle was without her looking at him in an unfavourable light?"

Lamothe's grandmother, Joan Conners, was one of the only ones to address Tim's dependence on drugs and the risky lifestyle he had fallen into.

"While he may have made some poor choices, he did not deserve to die," she said.

Assistant crown attorney Marc Huneaultpicked up on that theme, calling Lamothe "a good person who made bad choices."

Huneaultargued that Dalyk should be sentenced to nine years in prison, focusing on the fact that he chose to arm himself with a knifethat night.

Huneault also objected to the suggestion that Dalyk get bonus time for living through tough conditions in Sudbury Jail, pointing out that some of his last two years were spent at a jail in southern Ontario.

Justice Louise Gauthier will nowconsider the arguments and is expected to deliver her decision on Jan. 27.