A Surrey woman who hired two men to shoot and kill her ex-husband over a child custody battle has been sentenced to six years in prison.
Liza Belcourt was convicted by a jury in November on a charge of conspiracy to commit murder for offering up $10,000 to end the life of Richard Noniewicz, the father of her young son. Middleman David Laidlaw and would-be hitman Jordan Doiron were also convicted for their roles in the unsuccessful plot.
On Thursday, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Janice Dillon ruled that both Belcourt and Doiron should spend six years in jail for their crime, but knocked Belcourt's sentence down to five years and four months and Doiron's to one year and two months to give credit for time served.
"The collective security of the community is compromised when criminals are prepared to kill with high-powered weapons in public places, without regard for the sanctity of the lives of others who might be endangered by such activity. Society is scared by the prevalence of public shootings and shocked by the killing for hire of a stranger. These are very serious acts that demand serious consequences," Dillon wrote.
The judge went on to say that 34-year-old Belcourt is "emotionally inadequate" as a mother and has done little to educate herself or find a real job.
"She has not made good use of her time on judicial interim release, shows no insight into her behaviour, and has expressed no remorse," the judge said.
The judge said that Doiron, on the other hand, has shown signs of repentance after almost two-and-a-half years in jail. Unlike Belcourt, who declined to make a statement during a sentencing hearing, Doiron stood up in court and apologized to Noniewicz.
Belcourt and Noniewicz were in the middle of a nasty custody battle when she approached Laidlaw with an offer of payment to knock off her ex, according to court documents. He hired Doiron on an agreement to split the cash, and Belcourt provided them with photos of Noniewicz and details of his schedule.
The plan was for Doiron to shoot Noniewicz down in a public place.
But police caught wind of the plot and listened in on a conversation between the three conspirators, giving investigators enough evidence for an arrest.
"The eerily gay attitude of Belcourt, the instigator, overheard as she planned the killing with Laidlaw is chilling. She had plenty of time to reflect upon and consider the nature of her activity but chose to continue in a plan that would result in her child losing the father that the child loved," Dillon said.
Police who investigated the plot say that Noniewicz was protected throughout the operation.
When Noniewicz learned of the plot, he told ctvbc.ca that he was shocked.
"It's not every day two cops come and take you downtown and tell you someone is trying to kill you," he said at the time.
"This is movie material."
He was given sole custody of his son in 2010, with Belcourt allowed only supervised visits.
A sentencing hearing for Laidlaw was scheduled to take place Friday.
