Sandel Pierre, one of the three individuals who beat former SPVM investigator Pietro Poletti at his home in Lasalle in June 2020 and who molested his octogenarian mother was sentenced to four years in prison on Friday at the Montreal courthouse.
Pierre, 21, who pleaded guilty to counts of breaking and entering, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and mischief, has been detained since his arrest on the day of the attack. Therefore, by subtracting the period of time spent in pre-trial detention which is calculated in time and a half, he has a month and a half of prison left to serve.
This is a victory for the Defense which asked for four years of imprisonment while the Prosecution claimed the double.
Pietro Poletti answered his door on the afternoon of June 12, 2020 and three individuals took the opportunity to enter and beat him with kicks and punches, bricks and snow brooms, before fleeing to in a car driven by a fourth accomplice, who also pleaded guilty and testified against his former accomplices.
In her oral decision, Judge Joëlle Roy of the Court of Quebec noted in particular the fact that the sponsor and the motive for the attack still remain unknown and that nothing in the evidence shows that the accused knew where he was going. afternoon of June 12, 2020 and that the occupant of the house was a former police officer now retired.
PHOTO DOMINICK GRAVEL, THE PRESS
The hallway of Pietro Poletti’s house where the attack took place.
“This is amateur work,” declared the judge, who also retained the following elements: that the accused has no criminal history, that the assault was limited to the vestibule, that nothing was stolen, that objects in the house within reach of the assailants which could have caused serious injuries were not used, that the victim suffered injuries “on the whole minor” and that the testimony of this one at the he preliminary investigation and at trial showed some variation.
The “forks” in the dock
The judge also criticized the “ranges” of sentences mentioned by the parties during the pleadings.
Broadly, a range is the spectrum within which a sentence will be considered appropriate based on case law and facts.
“The Tribunal does not believe in forks. They conceal a purely subjective character according to what one wants to make them say. (….) They do not turn out to be reliable, moreover, they go against the cardinal principle of our criminal law, namely the individualization of the sentence. They become an easy safe-conduct and are dangerous to use, because they perpetuate the same errors from file to file to such an extent that we no longer see the accused, who receives this sentence, “said Judge Roy.
The magistrate spoke to Sandel Pierre after reading her decision. She invited him to “seek help and surround himself well”. “We don’t want to see you here anymore,” she told him.
“It is certain that we are disappointed. We put forward our arguments and asked for eight years. On the other hand, Mr. Pierre pleaded guilty and we agree with the judge in the sense that there was a beginning of rehabilitation”, reacted the prosecutor of the Prosecution, Mr.e Philippe Vallières-Roland, adding that the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) would assess whether or not he will appeal the sentence.
Mr. Pierre was represented by Mr.e Kristina Markovic.
The other two individuals who beat Pietro Poletti at his home, Yadley Deutz-St-Jean and Mitchaino Bruno, were tried and found guilty on the same counts. They are still awaiting their sentence.
To reach Daniel Renaud, dial 514 285-7000, ext. 4918, write to [email protected] or write to the postal address of The Press.