The Crown has made its sentence submissions for Michael Gordon Jackson, the Saskatchewan man found guilty of withholding his daughter to prevent her from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.
Jackson, 55, was found guilty by a jury in April following two weeks of court proceedings for contravention of a custody order for withholding his then seven-year-old daughter from her mother in late 2021 and early 2022.
As part of her submissions, Crown Prosecutor Zoe Kim Zeggelaar submitted her arguments to the court for a two-year prison sentence.
“General deterrence sends a message,” she said.
In addition to time behind bars, Kim Zeggelar also requested three years of probation plus 200 hours community service.
“This sentence speaks to the need to denounce and deter [Jackson’s conduct],” she said.
Court also heard from the girl’s mother once again.
For the final time in the courtroom, she recounted the nearly 100 days away from her daughter and the emotional toll it had on her.
“The months [my daughter] was missing …