A big crowd forced a judge to move to a bigger courtroom on Tuesday for the sentencing hearing of Matthew Spring.
The sentencing phase for Spring’s manslaughter conviction began on Tuesday. Spring was found guilty last year in the death of Bradley Hubbard.
Hubbard died after Spring stabbed him in the neck with a broken golf club during a fight with Spring, his brother and a friend in October of 2011. It happened at a glow-in-the-dark mini putt centre.
Spring’s lawyer, Angela McLeod, spent most of the morning trying to convince the judge that he should consider a lighter sentence.
“We've submitted to the court that a sentence as low as a suspended sentence and a term of probation up to two years, less a day is appropriate,” says McLeod.
The Crown is seeking seven and a half years, but McLeod says that is not an appropriate term because of the circumstances involved.
“Other cases where people have received sentences of six, seven or eight years, the range the Crown is asking for, are much more serious and aggravating in factors,” she says. “Multiple stabbings, coming to a scene armed and ready to fight, things like that make it more serious, which we do not have in our case.”
Spring was originally charged with second-degree murder, but after two days of deliberations, the jury unanimously convicted him on the lesser charge of manslaughter.
A sentence is expected to be handed down by April 15. Springs lawyer say he plans to appeal his conviction.
