Stabbing through the heart is fatal?

"Don't worry, you'll be fine. You only got stabbed in the heart."

“Wait, you're telling me that stabbing someone three times in the heart kills them? No kidding!”

This was roughly the defense of a 16 year old boy in Regina, Sask. The boy stabbed another teenager after the teenager stepped in to try and stop the accused's friend from stealing a bag of sunflower seeds on Boxing Day, 2006.

Wow and I thought poverty was bad in Newfoundland.

The boy while on the stand testifying said in court “I didn't think it would kill him”. When has stabbing a man 3 times in the heart not killed them? Either this kid is lying through his teeth or our educational system is severly failing us. I thought it was instinctual to know that if you stab someone in their heart they die. I can never remember a point in my life where I did not know that. And over sunflower seeds.
The worst part of this story for me though was the fact that he was convicted of second-degree murder and not first. The difference between the two is that with second the death stems from assualt without then intention to kill and carries onlya maximum of 7 years jail time for a youth. For example if I shot someone in the arm and they died of blood loss then I would probably be found guilty of second degree murder. How could you not have the intention to kill when you stab someone in the heart? Isn't that the most obvious way to kill someone. “Oh I get over here I murder you, ah, I stab ya in the heart.” Noone thinks “Oh I'll just maim him with a friendly stab to the heart, he'll be fine.” Noone is fine after their heart, the key organ that pumps blood to all other organs, which you need to live, is torn apart. It's not your goddamn appendix, you can't just say “frig it I don't even use that.”

And it took the jury two hours to reach a verdict. Two HOURS! It should've taken them to minutes to figure that one out. “Wait he what! Through the heart! How many times!!? Well maybe there's more to it, let's hear his testimony. What? Did he just say he didn't think it would kill him. Oh god we have to lock him up for the sake of the grade curve.”

Also Boxing Day? Didn't have a chance on Christmas? Too busy not opening up packets of sunflower seeds in your stocking. All those Boxing Day sales and you just had to go rob some sunflower seeds. Merry Christmas I just stabbed you through the heart.

Come on Canadian Legal system, you have to try these cases faster, and harder. Noone should ever be allowed to use “ I didn't know that would kill them” as a defence and get a reduced sentence. This man stole the Good Samaritians life and all he loses is 7 years and a few points off his IQ? That's just not justice.