A man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of Joseph Gauthier outside a house on Hillside Avenue was sentenced to seven years in prison Friday.
Gauthier, a father of four, was found dead after Victoria police were called to the 1400-block of Hillside Avenue for a disturbance early in the morning on March 10, 2018. Police later deemed the death a homicide.
Joe Gauthier, 35, died on March 10, 2018. Submitted.
Daniel Forrest Creagh had originally been charged with second-degree murder in the death but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter in February.
Creagh also received a lifetime firearm prohibition. After receiving credit for time served pre-sentence, he was ordered to serve the additional 1,500 days (four years, one month, eight days).
A statement of facts and witness impact statements was heard at the beginning of the sentencing back in February.
According to an agreed statement of facts, there was a party at the Hillside Avenue home that night, fueled by drugs and alcohol.
A heated argument broke out between Gauthier and Creagh.
Gauthier ended up punching Creagh in the face several times inside the home, knocking him to the ground.
The altercation eventually moved out to the street, where Creagh, armed with a knife he had grabbed in the kitchen, stabbed Gauthier multiple times. The most fatal stab was to the heart.
Friends say Gauthier was unconscious and didn’t appear to be breathing. He was later pronounced dead.
Creagh fled the scene before being arrested by police the following morning in Langford. After being released, he was arrested again in Maple Ridge.
Crown counsel had for Creagh to be handed an eight-year sentence.
CHEK News
