At-home for jealousy
Published: July 08, 2008 5:00 PMPORT HARDY - Threatening to kill a man caught kissing his girlfriend at the Filomi Days Dance last summer earned house arrest for 21-year-old Darren Ray Howich.
The victim “danced with a woman and tried to kiss her,” Crown counsel Jackie Gaudet told court. Unbeknownst to him, the woman was Howich’s girlfriend.
“This boiled over at a party later when Mr. Howich threatened to kill the other,” said Gaudet. “He is a jealous man.”
Because Howich has a record for violence, and received probation for threats in 2006, Gaudet asked Judge Brian Klaver to give Howich two months of at-home time.
Defense lawyer Paul Grier said the threats were alcohol soaked.
“The incident, all the players in it ... were highly intoxicated,” said Grier. “The driving forces were too much alcohol and testosterone.”
In the end, Klaver approved the 60-day conditional sentence, including 30 days of house arrest, 30 days with a strict curfew and 10 months of probation.
“You’re getting a jail sentence today, but it’s in the community,” Klaver told Howich. “If you come back for something like this, it’s likely you will go to jail.”
