Terry Naugle needs more than just jail time, his niece urged yesterday.
Stacey Strickland said her uncle grew up facing sexual abuse, extreme poverty and later drug and alcohol addictions. He has been convicted of drunk driving more than 20 times and is once again awaiting sentencing.
Strickland said she understands Naugle may need jail time for his crimes, but she hopes the court will also look into alternatives.
“I would like them to think outside the box and maybe try to save his life as opposed to just incarcerate him for another five or six years when historically, for the last 30, it’s not worked,” she said.
Strickland believes Naugle needs a holistic approach, including drug, alcohol and abuse counselling to “revamp” his life. However, the only facilities in Canada certified for holistic treatment are in Quebec and British Columbia.
She said for the first time she knows of, Naugle pleaded guilty to these latest charges, adding Naugle seems to be taking responsibility for his actions and looking to change.
Strickland said she hopes the system can work for both the McMillan family, whom Naugle hit while driving drunk this March, and her uncle.
“The McMillan family, they deserve to have a sense of justice. They were victimized by my uncle, no question,” she said.
“But let’s not make two victims here. Get him to do the time that our society deems he needs to do for the crime he committed, but let’s also try to save him this time.”
