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A Kelowna, B.C., man accused of killing his estranged wife in July has been sentenced to 12 months in jail on unrelated charges of uttering threats and assault by strangling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
James Plover, 33, appeared virtually for the sentencing hearing on Thursday from the facility where he is being held in custody.<\/p>\n
The charges stem from a 2024 assault <\/a>which a provincial court judge said left a \u201cprofound psychological and emotional impact\u201d on the victims, whose identities are protected under a publication ban.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Judge David Ruse handed Plover a 12-month sentence for the assault by strangling charge, and six months on three counts of uttering threats. He ordered the sentences to be served concurrently, rejecting a Crown request for consecutive sentences.\u00a0Ruse awarded Plover 218 days enhanced credit for time already spent in custody, leaving him with 147 days to serve.<\/p>\n ‘Highly visible and tragic’ hit-and-run and assault<\/p>\n Plover was convicted of the charges on July 4, 2025, and was out on bail awaiting sentencing when he is alleged to have attacked his estranged wife, Bailey McCourt.<\/p>\n Later that afternoon, Plover was arrested in Lake Country, B.C., in connection with what RCMP described as a \u201chighly visible and tragic\u201d hit-and-run and assault with a weapon in a Kelowna parking lot.\u00a0<\/p>\n McCourt was taken to hospital and later died of her injuries. Another woman who was with her during the attack sustained serious injuries and was later released from hospital.<\/p>\n Charge upgraded to 1st-degree murder<\/p>\n Plover was initially charged with second-degree murder<\/a>. Earlier this month, the Crown upgraded the charge to first-degree murder and also charged him with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle resulting in bodily harm.<\/p>\n The case has drawn widespread attention in Kelowna and across B.C., prompting calls from family, friends and politicians for bail reform and stronger responses to intimate partner violence.\u00a0<\/p>\n Advocates have held rallies in front of the Kelowna courthouse<\/a> and at the B.C. Legislature in Victoria.<\/p>\n Advocates seek stronger response for involving intimate partner violence crimes<\/p>\n In October, Kamloops-Thompson-Nicola MP Frank Caputo introduced Bill C-225<\/a>, also known as Bailey\u2019s Law, a private member\u2019s bill that would make changes to the legal response to intimate partner violence, including treating the murder of an intimate partner as first-degree murder and empowering courts to detain a person charged with domestic assault for a risk assessment.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1764320588_478_default.jpg\")
A crime scene in Kelowna, B.C, July 4, 2025, which resulted in Bailey McCourt’s death. James Edward Plover is charged with first-degree murder in connection to the incident. (Brady Strachan\/CBC)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1764320588_454_default.jpg\")
Bailey Plover, the mother of two children, was killed in Kelowna, B.C., on July 4 in what police called a ‘highly visible and tragic event.’ (Submitted by Morey Maslak)<\/p>\n