Holding cell mischief
A B.C. man who left his mark on his holding cell with toilet paper and blood was released from the Edmonton Remand Centre Monday.
Matthew Wade Allan appeared in St. Albert court via CCTV and pleaded guilty to impaired operation of a motor vehicle and property mischief.
Allan was pulled over by St. Albert RCMP on patrol in the early morning hours of May 2. Allan’s black pick-up truck was seen speeding and tailgating a white mini-van travelling northbound on St. Albert Trail.
Once stopped in the parking lot of Future Shop, officers noticed an odour of alcohol on his breath, his speech was slow and slurred and there was mustard on his face and shirt. At the detachment Allan gave a breath sample of 220 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, nearly three times the legal limit.
The 22-year-old then became violent with police and refused to provide a second sample. Officers put him in the holding cell, where he started “acting like an animal,” yelling and banging on the bars.
Officer notes stated Allan took toilet paper – wet with toilet water – threw it around the cell and smudged the lens of the in-cell video camera. He cut his hand and smeared blood on the walls and urinated on the cell door and floor, which leaked into the detachment’s hallway.
In court, Allan said he had not urinated, but splashed toilet water around the cell. He cut his hand while punching the walls and subsequently trailed blood around the room.
The 22-year-old had no prior criminal record.
Allan was handed a $1,500 fine for the impaired charge, a one-year driving prohibition and three days in jail for mischief. He was given credit for time served.
Addiction driven
An Edmonton woman who stole lotto tickets, shoplifted and forged prescriptions will be under house arrest for the next two years.
Launa M. Baumgartner appeared in St. Albert court Monday to face 68 charges. She pleaded guilty to four counts of theft under $5,000, identity fraud with intent to obtain property, two counts of uttering a forged document and breach of recognizance.
Court heard that on July 23 and 27, 2012, Baumgartner stole lotto tickets from two Petro Canada gas stations in St. Albert using a “distraction” style scheme.
Prior to that she was arrested for shoplifting at a Save-On Foods and Walmart in Edmonton.
The fraud charges relate to 12 prescriptions Baumgartner filled for Dexedrine – a central nervous system stimulant used to treat ADHD and narcolepsy – at several Edmonton pharmacies using a fake identity and forged prescriptions between August 2011 and February 2012.
The 31-year-old’s defence counsel said her crimes were fuelled by drug addiction. Baumgartner has epilepsy and chronic pain; she began abusing Oxycodone and self-medicating with Dexedrine to get over the withdrawals.
“I used to wake up in the morning to a cup of coffee. All I can remember for many years now is waking up to a needle and a syringe,” said Baumgartner in court.
“I was backed into a corner and couldn’t find my way out. I have now taken great strides to get back on track. I would do anything to erase what happened.”
Baumgartner was given a two-year conditional sentence. She will spend the first nine months under house arrest and the following nine months under curfew.
She must abstain from alcohol and non-prescribed drugs, seek counselling and treatment for her addiction and is banned from all licensed premises. The 31-year-old will also have to complete 120 hours of community service and is to have no contact with the woman whose identity she used to forge and fill prescriptions.
Due to her precarious circumstances, the court ruled it would not be seeking restitution for the stolen property.
