Teen who fatally stabbed stepmother in heart pleads guilty to manslaughter

A teenager who fatally stabbed his stepmother in the heart has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

The young offender, who can not be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was 16-years-old on May 31, 2016.

• Youth faces 2nd-degree murder charge in stepmother's stabbing death in Forest Lawn

On that night, the teen, his brother and girlfriend were drinking at his mother's home. His father and stepmother were also there.

An argument broke out between the boy and his stepmother around 11p.m. It escalated and the teen stabbed the woman once in the heart with a hunting knife, according to an agreed statement of facts read aloud in court on Monday.

Teen found under tree

The youth and his girlfriend took off while his mother called 911. Police and paramedics tried to tend to the victim but she was pronounced dead in hospital just after midnight.

Around 1:15 a.m., the Calgary Police Service found the boy and his girlfriend hiding under a tree near a park about 1.5 kilometres away.

JusticeCharlene Anderson was told that the teen and his parents all suffer from addiction and alcohol abuse.

Before he is sentenced,a number of reports have been ordered including a FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorder report) and a Gladue report (which is an examination into an Aboriginal offender's upbringing).

ProsecutorCarla MacPhail indicated she would seeka youth sentence.

Defence lawyer Jim Lutz noted his client has been in custody since the arrest onJune 1, 2016.

The maximum sentence for a young offender convicted of manslaughter is three years: two in custody and one in the community.