CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — A P.E.I. woman who didn’t show up to jail the day after a judge sentenced her was recently given another 60 days on two charges.
Samantha Lea Stretch, 26, appeared before Chief Judge Nancy Orr in provincial court in Charlottetown where she pleaded guilty to being unlawfully at large and breaching her probation.
Crown attorney Gerald Quinn told the court that on July 11, Stretch was sentenced to 30 days in jail to be served on weekends on an unrelated matter.
Stretch didn’t go the jail the next day when she was supposed to start serving her sentence.
The court heard Stretch also didn’t show up for a meeting with her probation officer on July 24.
Defence lawyer Alex Dalton told the court mental health and addictions were underlying issues for Stretch who had also been homeless for some time.
Orr said when someone is homeless and in the throes of addiction the worst thing that could be done is give them an intermittent sentence.
“It’s setting somebody up for failure,” Orr said.
With the 60 days added to Stretch’s previous sentence she is no longer able to serve it on weekends.
