A provincial court judge has sentenced Christopher George Musqua to nearly two years in a provincial jail — and not three years in a federal prison as the Crown requested — for his crimes in 2023.
Musqua, 53, appeared by video in Moose Jaw Provincial Court on Jan. 25, where Judge David Chow gave his decision on how long the Keeseecoose First Nation man would spend behind bars.
The indigenous offender committed his offences in Moose Jaw on Sept. 12, 2023, when he assaulted (choked) a woman, confined her in her home, uttered a threat to her to cause death and used a weapon (a knife). He also assaulted another man that day.
Musqua’s trial was in November 2023, when he was found guilty of his charges.
The Crown and defence presented their sentencing submissions on Jan. 18, where both agreed that jail was appropriate. However, they disagreed on the sentence length, with the Crown asking for three years in federal jail and the defence requesting two years in the provincial system.
Sentencing length
Judge Chow said it was appropriate for Musqua to receive 540 days — or 18 months — in jail for the unlawful confinement charge. Further, for assaulting the woman, threatening her and using a weapon, the judge imposed 364 days — or nearly 12 months — to run concurrently or at the same time.
Meanwhile, Chow imposed 120 days — or four months — for Musqua’s assault on the man, with this to run consecutively — or right after — the 18 months.
These 22 months total 660 days, but since Musqua spent 138 days on remand, the judge gave him credit for 207 days served. This means he has 453 days left in jail.
Judge Chow noted that the assault on the woman affected her bodily autonomy, while the unlawful confinement affected her liberty. Although the assault was “violent and quick,” her confinement lasted 30 minutes. Even with the other offences against her included, he declined to impose consecutive sentences because that would be “inappropriate” and would double the punishment.
Meanwhile, Musqua’s assault on the man — about 10 punches to the face — was a separate incident. Therefore, Chow decided to impose a consecutive sentence instead of a concurrent one.
Chow also imposed a five-year ban on Musqua’s owning or possessing any weapons or firearms, forced him to provide a DNA sample, and waived the victim surcharge.
Reasoning for sentence
The Crown proceeded summarily — a less serious route — on all the charges, with the maximum sentence for summary convictions being two years less a day, said Judge Chow.
Yet, the Crown wanted the total sentence to be three years, with the main increase being 364 days for the woman’s assault to run consecutively — immediately following — the confinement charge.
In determining the appropriate length, the judge said he looked at all possibilities while ensuring what he imposed was a “fit and just sentence” given the offences and the offender’s background.
The most serious charge was the unlawful confinement, which occurred in the woman’s home and was Musqua’s temporary residence, the judge added.
Musqua’s Legal Aid lawyer submitted a Gladue report during the sentencing submissions that summarized the man’s Aboriginal background and how his time — and that of his parents and grandparents — in Indian residential schools affected him.
Judge Chow used some of that for his decision, noting Musqua was raised to distrust the police and the church, while the “cruelty and callousness” that the schools inflicted on him were “absolutely appalling.”
“… I have no hesitancy in reasonably concluding that Mr. Musqua’s childhood trauma in residential schools have contributed to his years of criminal behaviour and involvement in the judicial system,” the judge said.
Judge Chow described Musqua as intelligent, insightful, well-spoken and well-written, based on his Gladue report. He has also taken advantage of the resources available in the provincial jail system over the last 40 years.
Musqua indicated that he didn’t want to spend time in a federal jail since there were more supports provincially, while he noted that, at his age, he had only a few working years left, Chow continued.
“Perhaps his decades in the criminal justice system have made him wise as to what sentencing judges want to hear. And perhaps he is just paying lip service to the rehabilitation sentencing objective,” said the judge.
Judge Chow said he was divided on whether Musqua was genuine in pursuing rehab at his age, considering the man had accumulated 111 convictions over his four decades of crime. While the number and severity had decreased into adulthood, the man was still dealing with his childhood trauma and addictions.
The judge added that a fit sentence should focus on denunciation and separating Musqua from society for the public’s safety.
