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Appeal court grants South Okanagan arsonist's request to not pay $500K restitution
Justice Patrice Abrioux said the trial judge erred in ordering Gallagher to repay insurers for losses after the Oliver pharmacy fire.
- The B.C. Court of Appeal recently overturned a $472,434 restitution order imposed on Steven Marlo Gallagher, finding the trial judge erred by failing to consider the order's feasibility and the offender's financial situation.
- Justice David Crerar sentenced Gallagher to 45 months for the 2021 arson in Oliver, which destroyed a pharmacy and damaged a neighboring physiotherapy office totaling $472,434 in losses.
- Finding the trial judge lacked restraint, Justice Patrice Abrioux ruled the fine was a "mechanical" add-on, noting the Crown had not requested restitution and acknowledging the order was unlikely to ever be fulfilled.
- With no savings and a sentence extending to 2036, Gallagher cannot realistically fulfill the obligation; the court determined maintaining the financial penalty was impractical given his limited means and rehabilitation efforts.
- This ruling does not affect the arson conviction or Gallagher's total sentence for subsequent crimes, including a 2022 Canada Day shooting, with his release not scheduled until 2036.
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Appeals court vacates $500k restitution order for Osoyoos arsonist
The B.C. Court of Appeal recently overturned part of an Osoyoos man’s sentence that ordered him to pay back almost $500,000 to the victims of the fire he intentionally set in 2021. According to the April 27 decision, published on May 5, Steven Marlo Gallagher’s appeal of the restitution order was granted, after the panel of judges found that Justice David Crerar’s sentence erred by lacking restraint and caution, in being made as a mechanical tho…
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castanetkamloops.netAppeal court grants South Okanagan arsonist's request to not pay $500K restitution
South Okanagan arsonist's appeal to not pay $500K restitution granted
·Kelowna, Canada
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Total News Sources6
Leaning Left3Leaning Right0Center1Last UpdatedBias Distribution75% Left
Bias Distribution
- 75% of the sources lean Left
75% Left
L 75%
C 25%
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