A woman charged with an attack on her neighbour over a barking dog will wait at least another month to appear before a judge for sentencing.
Jessie Brave was in court Oct. 14 to hear sentencing submissions in the case after she pleaded guilty this summer to stabbing her neighbour in November of 2024, leaving the victim permanently injured.
With the submissions in the case not arriving in front of Justice Jenny Restoule-Mallozzi in time for her to review it, the hearing was pushed until Nov. 26.
However, the Oct. 14 appearance set out what the Crown and defence will ask the court for in the case, though they differ significantly on the outcome.
Assistant Crown attorney Brittany Butler and Brave’s defence counsel, Michael Michel, agreed to a statement of facts that saw Brave plead guilty to aggravated assault. They don’t agree on the sentence: Butler and the Crown are pushing for six years in a penitentiary; Michel is asking for three-and-a-half less time served.
At the moment, said Michel, Brave’s time in custody is equal to a little more than 16 months when you add the standard Summers credit of 1.5 days for each real day.
Michel also indicated he may be applying for Brave to receive what’s known as the Duncan credit, applied to pre-sentence custody that has been especially harsh. Based on the 2016 case R. v. Duncan, it could mean two-days-for-every one real day, but it is not often granted.
You can read more about Summers and Duncan credits here.
Though Restoule-Mallozzi herself did not get the files, the court did confirm the receipt of submissions from defence and the Crown in mid-August, including case law, character references and victim impact statements, in time for an Aug. 27 hearing that was later vacated to allow for Brave to have a psychiatric evaluation.
Restoule-Mallozzi said the materials that were submitted to that judge were not forwarded back to the court.
“For today's purposes, I don't have these materials reviewed,” the judge said. “I literally just received them two minutes ago when I spoke with the judicial assistant.” Restoule-Mallozzi said she would be following up on the matter with the Local Administrative Justice and the Regional Senior Justice.
Before adjourning the matter to a new date, she confirmed that Brave was not facing “time-served,” i.e. wasn’t set to be released on Oct. 14
The court heard through an agreed statement of facts on June 10 that Brave, now 34, and the victim, Josee Rouleau, were neighbours on a floor of an apartment building on Errington Avenue in Chelmsford.
It was on Nov. 22, 2024, at approximately 7 a.m. that Brave left her unit to leave a note on Rouleau’s door complaining about Rouleau’s dogs.
A short time later, a neighbouring tenant on the floor heard the commotion between Brave and Rouleau, and came out to find Rouleau lying on the hall floor, bleeding. Rouleau required serious medical care and was taken to Health Sciences North by ambulance.
Sudbury police were dispatched to Rouleau's unit at 7:30 a.m. after receiving several 911 calls, including one from Rouleau’s boyfriend, who witnessed the attack. They also receive one from Brave herself, "indicating she had stabbed someone.”
Police arrested Brave “without incident” in her apartment about 8:05 a.m.
Rouleau’s injuries included a cut to her left forehead, a stab wound to the left side of her neck, and puncture wounds to her back and chest. An artery in Rouleau’s neck was damaged and “beyond the reach” of open surgery techniques, said assistant Crown attorney Brittany Butler in an earlier appearance.
Brave has been in custody since her arrest; Rouleau is now in a long-term care facility. “She may never walk again without a mobility aid,” said Butler.
According to information about the stabbing detailed in a GoFundMe campaign, during the early morning of Nov. 22, 2024, Rouleau was in her Chelmsford apartment, when Brave began “harassing her” and trying to gain access to her apartment, the campaign page claims.
“When she finally opened the door, her neighbour viciously attacked her with a six-inch knife, stabbing her multiple times and leaving her for dead,” the campaign information states.
The GoFundMe was set up by Rouleau’s cousin, Felicia Fahey, and her mother, Sue Rouleau.
Fahey told Sudbury.com both of Rouleau’s wrists were slit, and the front and back of her head and her chest were all stabbed.
Brave was initially charged with aggravated assault, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and mischief, but police later upgraded the assault charge to attempted murder. However, after consultation with the Crown and her defence, Brave pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of aggravated assault.
Jenny Lamothe covers court for Sudbury.com.