A Manitoba man convicted of stabbing an acquaintance to death in what a judge called an “unprovoked attack” has received a reduced prison sentence after the court considered his Indigenous background and history of trauma.

Dean Richard Bell, 31, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the January 2024 death of 42-year-old Calvin Chartrand in Swan River, Man. In a written decision released Oct. 2, provincial court Judge Geoffrey H. Bayly sentenced Bell to seven years in custody—one year less than what he initially deemed appropriate—after applying Gladue principles, which require sentencing judges to consider the effects of colonialism and systemic discrimination on Indigenous offenders.

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“I would impose a sentence of eight years,” Bayly wrote. “However, I believe that the Gl

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