A Fort St. James man has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2022 shooting death of John Lazarre.
On February 25, 2022, RCMP officers responded to reports of shots fired on Spruce Road. Upon arrival, they found 36-year-old Lazarre deceased. Thomas Duncan, now 33, was later arrested and charged in connection with the killing.
Duncan pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. On December 3, provincial court handed down a mandatory life sentence, with the judge setting his parole ineligibility at 10 years. This means Duncan will not be eligible to apply for parole until at least 2035.
The court also imposed a mandatory firearms prohibition and a DNA order. In Canada, second-degree murder convictions automatically carry a life sentence, though parole eligibility ranges between 10 and 25 years depending on the case.
This ruling concludes the legal proceedings surrounding Lazarre’s death and highlights the serious consequences of firearm-related crimes in Canada.
