Shaun Weibe is led out of the Vernon courthouse by sheriffs after receiving a four year prison sentence for manslaughter. (Liam Verster / Vernon Matters photo)

By Liam Verster

Supreme Court

UPDATE: Four year prison sentence handed out in Vernon manslaughter case

Jun 9, 2023 | 11:36 AM

UPDATE 2:25 p.m.

Shawn Weibe has been sentenced to four years in prison, minus time served.

Justice Alison Beames made her decision on the manslaughter case in the B.C. Supreme Court in Vernon Friday, June 9.

The case from 2018 saw Weibe cause the death of his then-girlfriend Heather Barker. In May of 2023, Weibe plead guilty to the manslaughter charge

The sentence was one jointly requested by the Crown and the defence.

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In total, Weibe will serve 1,261 days (3.4 years) in prison after accounting for 200 days of credit for time served.

Prohibitions were issued for him to not be in possession of firearms, crossbows, weapons or ammunition for 10 years following his release from custody, and to not contact the victim’s daughters, her ex-husband and father of the three girls, and the parents of the victim while in custody. He will also have to provide a DNA sample.

The ruling by Justice Beames aligned with other cases with similar circumstances, with Beames noting,without the guilty plea, the matter would have gone to trial, which could have been complex due to the Mr. Big undercover operation involved in getting a confession.

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Original story

Crown and defence call for four year sentence in Vernon manslaughter case

A four year prison sentence is being suggested by the Crown and defence for a man who caused the death of a Vernon woman five years ago.

Shaun Ross Weibe, who plead guilty to the 2018 manslaughter of Heather Barker in May, appeared in B.C. Supreme Court in Vernon for sentencing before Justice Alison Beames Friday, June 9.

Shaun Weibe (submitted photo/Facebook)

In the morning session of the hearing, the Crown outlined details of the crime, described by the accused to an undercover investigator conducting a Mr. Big operation

The Crown said Weibe, who was a pharmacist, had accused Barker of stealing drugs from the pharmacy they worked at on March 15, 2018. They were both intoxicated and at their residence on Cordon Place in The Rise when Weibe attempted to grab Barker’s purse to check for the drugs and pushed her to the ground.

She got up and onto the bed, but he pulled her off and slammed her head into the floor multiple times.

She suffered brain injuries and bruises and abrasions across her body from the incident.

Weibe, who was born in 1977, attempted CPR until paramedics arrived on the scene to take her to hospital for treatment of severe, life-threatening injuries.

She was put on life support and, on the afternoon of March 16, 2018 she was taken off the machines and died of her injuries.

Barker died of blunt force trauma to the head, according to the coroner, with injuries similar to those from a high speed vehicle crash.

Weibe’s brother-in-law called an ambulance from Saskatchewan after he had spoken with his sister and said Barker’s breathing had become irregular.

The details of the death were collected from investigators conducting a Mr. Big undercover operation between June 2020 and January 2021.

He was taken into custody in late January, 2021, and in June of that year released on bail conditions.

The submission stated Weibe had a history of alcohol and steroid abuse and was hospitalized for a bad steroid batch in 2018. The investigators in the Mr. Big operation also allegedly learned from Weibe that he was using a steroid that caused mood swings at the time of the incident and that he was enraged and “seeing red.”

The Crown said the four year sentence recommendation is a joint submission with the defence, and outlined similar cases, as manslaughter has no mandatory minimum sentence, and stated a four year sentence had been handed down in a case with similar circumstances.

The submission added the four year sentence aligns with Weibe having no other criminal record, his guilty plea and plea bargain, the fact that no weapon was used, the crime was not planned, medical treatment was sought (indirectly), CPR was performed, and they were intoxicated.

The Crown then presented impact statements from Barker’s family and friends.

The recommended auxiliary orders are that Weibe would be prohibited from possessing firearms, crossbow, weapons and ammunition; and to have no contact with Barker’s family. These would be 10 year prohibitions.

Following the break, the defence outlined the conditions and noted the joint submission for four years would be minus time served.

Weibe had spent 133 real days in jail which, when multiplied by 1.5, accounts for 199 days served credit.

Weibe’s counsel submitted a letter from his physician, which stated Weibe had been seeking treatment for alcohol abuse, going to counselling, and was prescribed medication for depression from a psychiatrist.

Another letter stated Wiebe had not breached the bail conditions for two years.

The defence brought forward other cases with similar circumstances and sentencing, then made note that this case is a joint submission and should be considered differently by the justice.

Weibe was presented with a chance to address the court, and he used that opportunity to apologize to Barker’s family and friends in the court, express remorse for his actions and state Heather’s death was never something he intended to cause.