Passenger in stolen truck that killed Sask. Mountie sentenced

The woman who was a passenger in the stolen truck that ran over and killed RCMP Const. Shelby Patton in Wolseley nearly three years ago has been sentenced.

According to court documents, Marlene Pagee was handed a sentence of 821 days after she pleaded guilty to four charges during an appearance in Regina Provincial Court on Monday.

The documents suggest the sentence amounts to time served, as Pagee has been on remand since her arrest on June 12, 2021.

Pagee pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to an indictable offence (in this case, manslaughter), theft of a motor vehicle, possession of property obtained by crime (a stolen truck), and failing to comply with a release order.

A number of other charges were withdrawn, including accessory after the fact to murder and failing to stop after an accident causing death.

Alphonse Traverse pleaded guilty to manslaughter in September in connection with Patton’s death and was sentenced to 18 years in prison in February.

Court previously heard that on June 12, 2021, Traverse and Pagee stole a truck and left Winnipeg. They got lost south of the town of Virden and stole another truck. Then they got on the Trans-Canada Highway and headed to Saskatchewan.

Court heard the two had addictions issues with crystal meth and gambling. At the time, bars were closed in Manitoba under COVID-19 pandemic rules, so they were going to Saskatchewan to play VLTs.

They stopped in Wolseley and the owner of the stolen truck, who had been tracking it using the vehicle’s GPS, told the RCMP where they were.

After Patton stopped the truck, he approached the vehicle and started talking with Traverse.

The Mountie jumped onto the running board of the truck and reached inside to try to stop Traverse from starting the truck, but Traverse got the vehicle going and took off.

Patton was able to hang on for a few moments, but fell off and was run over by the truck’s rear wheels.

Traverse and Pagee were later arrested about 90 kilometres away, near Francis.

Traverse initially was charged with first-degree murder and Pagee with being an accessory after the fact to murder, among other offences.

Patton’s death hit home in the community of Wolseley, where people paid tribute to him when his body was returned to the town. In Indian Head, where he was stationed, a memorial park was built in his honour.