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James Guggisberg is stunned his consumer, Andrew Stirling, remains to be alive.
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The Sarnia resident has struggled for many years with a bootleg drug dependancy and has suffered a grand mal seizure on account of a cocaine overdose whereas additionally overdosing twice on fentanyl.
“Fairly frankly, it’s shocking that my consumer nonetheless walks the earth,” Guggisberg mentioned Monday in a Sarnia courtroom. “To say that I felt some issues that Andrew could now not be with us – these have existed for a lot of years. I’ve been ready for the report, as I’m certain tragically and silently his dad and mom have as nicely.”
However as Stirling was sentenced Monday to 1 yr of home arrest and a curfew for a slew of crimes linked to his dependancy, Guggisberg mentioned his consumer has made a whole sea change in his life.
“Andrew, for the primary time in many years, has been substance free,” he mentioned, “and it’s actually that turnaround, your honour, that we might suggest what in any other case would possibly seem to be a light-weight contact.”
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That mild contact was a conditional sentence that includes six months of home arrest and 6 months of dwelling at house with a curfew between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. adopted by two years of probation.
Nila Mulpuru, Lambton’s performing Crown lawyer, mentioned Stirling’s earlier prison report was regarding however pointed to his multi-year gaps between convictions and his current run of sobriety to indicate he’s in a position to serve a conditional sentence.
“In the end, Mr. Stirling, if this works can be 100 per cent as much as you,” Justice Krista Lynn Leszczynski mentioned to him earlier than agreeing to impose the instructed sentence. “It’s your selections that may make or break the success of this sentence.”
Stirling advised the decide he’s hopeful home arrest will floor him.
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“And preserve me in line and away from bother out on the streets,” he mentioned. “This has been the longest stretch for me to be sober, and I need to preserve it going that manner.”
“He understands that had been he to slide again into his addictive methods his probabilities of a protracted life are very slim certainly – and that’s a tragic factor to must say,” Guggisberg mentioned.
Stirling additionally apologized to the court docket for what he did. Stirling pleaded responsible to bank card fraud, assault and two counts of failing to adjust to a launch order.
He was caught in a automotive with a slew of bank cards, bank card data and cheques belonging to different folks. He additionally briefly put a lady he’d been relationship in a chokehold in a downtown Sarnia enterprise amid a struggle over his cellphone. Lastly, he was caught with the lady twice in public regardless of having launch orders in place banning contact together with her.
