Bail granted man to attend treatment programs while awaiting sentencing
By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on June 26, 2024.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com
A Standoff man caught in Lethbridge with a significant amount of drugs has been released on bail to attend addiction treatment programs while he waits to be sentenced.
Larry Healy Jr. was granted bail Tuesday in Lethbridge court of justice, after he pleaded guilty to two charges of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking, two counts of failure to comply with release orders, and one count of possession of a prohibited firearm.
While on bail, Healy must participate in the Bringing the Spirit Home detox program and attend the Kainai Healing Lodge Centre on the Blood Reserve. He is also bound by a curfew 24 hours a day, and prohibited from consuming alcohol and drugs, possessing weapons and leaving the province. He is also on the hook for $4,000 should he breach any conditions of his release.
The criminal charges stem from several incidents over the course of about one year, the first shortly before midnight on Dec. 22, 2022, when a police officer was patrolling the area around the Streets Alive Shelter downtown in response to multiple fentanyl overdoses in the previous hour. The officer stopped alongside a vehicle parked in the alley, and saw Healy slumped over in the driver’s seat.
A second police officer arrived to assist and noticed Healy was holding a large bag of methamphetamine. When Healy eventually awoke, he seemed confused and reached for the gear shifter on the steering wheel column. However, the officer grabbed the keys and turned off the engine, then arrested Healy.
During a search of a “cross-body bag” Healy was wearing, police found a large bag of fentanyl. They also seized a meth pipe, digital scale, and wallet containing $955. Inside the vehicle they found another scale, two cell phones and brass knuckles.
The total amount of drugs police seized comprised 204.2 g of meth, 5.1 g of cocaine, and 485.4 g of fentanyl.
Court was told that at the time of his arrest, Healy was bound by release orders stemming from violence-related offences between 2019 and 2022, which prohibited him from having weapons.
On Feb. 23, 2023 Healy was released on bail with conditions that he not possess any weapons. At about 5 p.m. on June 8 police received reports of suspected drug activity near 4 Avenue and 12 Street South, and when they arrived, they noticed Healy standing on a scooter next to the driver’s door of a Chrysler 300. Healy, who was again wearing a cross-body bag, left the area on the scooter. Shortly after 6 p.m. Healy was in Galt Gardens, despite a court-ordered curfew of 6 p.m. to 8 a.m., and when he noticed a police officer enter Galt Gardens, he walked to a garbage can and dumped a black package.
The package contained 28.4 g of fentanyl, 28 g of meth, 11.1 g of crack cocaine, 5.8 g of cocaine and $1,585. Healy was arrested shortly after leaving Galt Gardens, and during a search he was found in possession of two cell phones, cash and a set of keys.
The keys fit the vehicle that was still parked in the area of 4 Avenue and 12 Street South, and the vehicle was towed to the Lethbridge Police Service’s identification bay. During a search of the vehicle the following day, police found three knives, a scale, 82.6 g of fentanyl and about 103 grams of meth.
“The accused admits and agrees that he had knowledge and control over the items seized from the package found in the garbage can and the Chrysler 300,” Federal Prosecutor Ben Allison said as he read from an agreed statement of facts.
On Oct. 13 of last year Healy was again released on bail with a condition that he not have any weapons. On Dec. 19, however, police searched a home in the 1900 block of 9 Avenue North and arrested Healy. Police searched the residence and found $690 cash, 138.5 g of fentanyl, 9.1 g of meth, 2.5 g of cocaine, a BB revolver and several edged weapons.
At the conclusion of the hearing, the judge ordered a Gladue Report, which will provide the court with information about Healy’s indigenous background and personal circumstances to help the judge determine a fit sentence. The matter is scheduled to return to court on Aug. 22 to determine if the report is completed, and set a date for sentencing.
16-15
Yeah , sounds like a guy we should release into the community.
This individual is an example of our screwed up judicial system. His extensive record does not warrant bail to hopefully recover but a lengthy prison sentence then recovery.
I wonder how many of the overdose deaths in our area are due to this criminals trafficking activity? The police do the dangerous job of apprehending these repeat offenders then watch as our judges and prosecutors make these illogical deals that place the guilty individuals back on the street. This is not justice. George