Man sentenced for manslaughter in NYE 2011 slaying

Joshua Houle is shown in a sketch at a court appearance on Tuesday, December 18.

More than a year after he killed and dismembered his friend’s body – the accused in the New Year’s Eve, 2011 slaying was handed his sentence for manslaughter.

Joshua Houle, 28, was sentenced to 8 years in prison Tuesday – for the stabbing and partial dismemberment of 27-year-old Misty Ward on Dec. 31, 2011.

The sentence was handed down, after Houle pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Dec. 18, 2012.

In an agreed statement of facts, court heard that before the slaying, Houle had warned Ward, his long-time friend, that he could be violent if somebody suddenly woke him up.

On the night of her death, the documents state Ward woke him up – and Houle grabbed a knife, and then stabbed her in the neck.

Court documents state Houle then tried to stop the bleeding, and put Ward in the bathtub, where she died – at which point Houle panicked and began dismembering her body.

Then, the documents state Houle fell asleep as water overflowed from the bathtub.

Ward’s body was discovered after water from the bathtub began leaking into the apartments below.

Houle was given credit for the year he has already spent behind bars, leaving just under 7 years left to serve – it’s a sentence the victim’s family doesn’t think is enough.

“You just have to keep praying and be strong, you’re never going to forget it,” Violet Ward, Misty Ward's mother said. “I can’t believe what he got, it’s just a slap in the face.”

The Crown had asked for a sentence of 10 years, the defence asked for an 8 year sentence.

With files from David Ewasuk