Man charged in killing of Jannai Dopwell-Bailey handed life sentence with no parole for 13 years
A 21-year-old man charged with the second-degree murder of Montreal teenager Jannai Dopwell-Bailey has been sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 13 years.
A Superior Court judge delivered the sentence Thursday in the case against Andrei Donet, who was 18 when he was arrested in connection with the teen's death.
Last month, a jury found Donet guilty of second-degree murder in the October 2021 fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Dopwell-Bailey outside of his high school in Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges district.
A minor was also convicted for second-degree murder in December 2023 for the same case. The identity of the teen is protected by a publication ban because he was a minor at the time of the event.
The second-degree murder conviction comes with an automatic life sentence in prison with no possibility of parole before 10 years.
The jury had recommended Donet be eligible for parole after 12 years in prison.
The prosecution recommended 15 years while Donet's lawyers recommended 10.
Charla Dopwell, Dopwell-Bailey's mother, said she hopes the sentence will help prevent teen violence.
"My son is gone and he will always be remembered. I love him, I miss him and it's salvation victory for my son," she said.
"I will be able to move on from the case, but my son is always in my heart. He is always with me. He is with me 24/7."
Bernard Bailey, Dopwell-Bailey's father, said he has to fight "day to day just to stay positive."
"Every day I try to re-energize because since they took my son from me I just lost all my strength, my motivation, everything," he said.
"I miss my son so bad.… He was the life of the house, the life of the family, and we're missing all that. It's terrible."
