Alberta Judge Sentences Transgender Activist to 5 Years in Prison for Stabbing Children

Transgender activist Alice “Michael” Attwood, 35, has been sentenced to five years in prison for a stabbing attack on his two children.

Attwood pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in what Justice Jasmine Sihra called an attack on the “basic value” of parental care and protection of minors.

“This Court seeks the strongest possible condemnation of the accused actions for violating Canadian society’s basic value of protecting children, particularly one’s own,” Sihra said, adding that a “clarion call of deterrence and denunciation is required in this case due to the gravity of the offences and the aggravating factors.”

The court heard how Attwood had stabbed his daughter, 8, in the neck after coming into her room late at night with a large knife. The attack occurred in February 2025 in Grande Prairie, Alta. Emergency surgery was required to save the young girl’s life, while Attwood’s stabbing of his son, 7, resulted in minor injuries.

According to court proceedings, Attwood cleaned the knife after the stabbing and then phoned 911.

The court concluded via a forensic psychiatrist’s report that Attwood did not have a serious mental illness at the time of the stabbings, although he did present symptoms of borderline personality disorder and stress as well as overusing cannabis to the detriment of his mental health.

“Although the accused’s gender identity may have been an additional source of stress, there is no evidence that it triggered mental health issues so acute as to diminish moral culpability,” Sihra said. He said that, while the heavy cannabis use “may explain” the behaviour, it doesn’t erase the responsibility for carrying out the stabbing.

“The accused chose to use cannabis regularly. The regular use of cannabis despite having the care of the children manifested recklessness on the accused’s part,” Sihra said.

Attwood’s five-year sentence includes credit for time already served in custody.

Conservative MP Chris Warkentin, who represents the riding of Grande Prairie, had issued a statement following Attwood’s release from custody just 48 hours after his arrest in February 2025.

In his statement, Warkentin had criticized what he called the federal government’s “catch-and-release” policies, calling the state of the current justice system “unacceptable.”

Warkentin particularly singled out the fast bail granted Attwood.

“Two days later, Attwood was free to return home and livestream himself playing video games on his YouTube channel while one of the children faces months on a feeding tube, and the remainder of the family must try to find ways to ensure their children’s safety,” Warkentin wrote.

The Liberal government has said it’s introducing legislation to toughen bail laws.

“We’re proposing over 80 clauses of targeted changes that will make bail harder to get while also toughening sentencing laws for repeat and violent offenders,” Justice Minister Sean Fraser said in October.