SASKATOON – A woman sentenced to 3.7 years in prison in 2023 for manslaughter is wanted for being unlawfully at large after being released from jail.
Shanelle Crowe, now 23, was sentenced in Saskatoon Provincial Court in November 2023 after she had pleaded guilty to manslaughter. She was initially charged with second-degree murder in the death of Trinity Squirrel.
In March 2024, Bret Rattlesnake and Cynthia Cheryl Chelsey Swiftwolf pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter. They were also initially charged with second-degree murder in Squirrel’s death.
Rattlesnake was handed a 12-year prison sentence. A total of 1,037 days was taken off his sentence for the enhanced 1.5 days credit for the 691 days he was in jail on remand. This means he has 3,346 days to serve.
Swiftwolf, who is from Moosomin First Nation, was sentenced to six years, or 2,191 days in prison. A total of 917 days for the 611 days she was in jail on remand was taken off of her sentence. This means she has 1,274 days to serve in prison.
Court previously heard that Squirrel was beat to death. Squirrel was hanging out with Shanelle Crowe, Bret Rattlesnake and Cynthia Swiftwolf in Saskatoon the night of April 14, 2022. They were drinking and taking cocaine. Around 10:30 a.m. the next morning, the beating started. A graphic cell phone video of Squirrel being kicked and punched inside a home was played in court.
Warning: Graphic details may be disturbing to some readers
A graphic cell phone video of Squirrel being kicked and punched inside a home was played in court.
The video showed Squirrel on the floor and not fighting back. There was a pool of blood from his mouth on the floor. He tried to lift his head and was heard groaning. At one point he rolled from his back and onto his side. His head was seen flopping back and forth. Rattlesnake continued to kick and hit him on the head and upper body. Swiftwolf participated.
Crowe was seen sitting on a nearby chair, crying. Rattlesnake asked her, “Why are you crying? He did worse to you.”
A woman’s voice in the background is heard saying, “Look, he is still moving.”
Rattlesnake said, “He’s a piece of (expletive) bum,” and kicked him in the head saying, “Stay down. No one wants you.”
Squirrel groaned.
Rattlesnake complained Squirrel’s blood was on his jeans.
After beating Squirrel, they discussed what to do with him and decided not to take him to hospital. They put him in the back of a van and drove him outside of the city limits, took his cell phone and dumped him in the ditch.
Passersby noticed a body on the side of Highway 7 and called 911. At about 1:15 p.m. on April 15, 2022, Warman RCMP responded to the report of an injured person on Hodgson Road near Highway 7, about five kilometres southwest of Saskatoon.
Squirrel was found injured on Hodgson Road near Highway 7 about five kilometres southwest of Saskatoon at about 1:15 p.m. on April 15, 2022. He was pronounced deceased shortly after emergency responders arrived.
Mother dies year after her son’s death
Squirrel’s mother, Jamie Lee Young died in September 2023, a year after her son’s death. The grief of her son’s death contributed to her own, court heard. Her victim impact statement was read into the court.
“He had a mother who loved him so much. He had a baby who loved him. You didn’t know what kind of person you murdered. You took my son’s life. You took everything.”
Squirrel’s aunt and uncle John Young and Janine Young appeared in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench by telephone on March 6, 2024. They provided victim impact statements that were read into the court.
“His life was taken away mercilessly,” read John Young’s statement. “My sister drank herself to death after her son died. She drank every day until her pancreas burst.
“(Trinity) will never get to watch his daughter grow up and graduate.”
Janine Young described Squirrel as the kindest and most respectful young man.
“Sometimes I think this is all a dream but it’s not. It’s real.”
Squirrel was an active member of the Fishing Lake community and a volunteer firefighter for the First Nation’s fire department.
Crowe is about 5-foot-7 and 293 pounds. Her last known location was in Saskatoon.
Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 or submit a tip online at www.p3tips.com
