Man sentenced 21 months after breaking wife's jaw
Offender attacked partner twice, including once after she had surgery for injuries he inflicted
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Friday, March 31, 2017
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A 47-year-old man has been sentenced to 21 months in jail after pleading guilty to two counts of assault causing bodily harm, including one attack on his common-law spouse that left her with a broken jaw.
The offender was handed his punishment by NWT Supreme Court judge Andrew Mahar on Wednesday.
Yellowknifer has chosen not to identify the man in order to protect the identity of the victim. Court heard that in late April of last year, the man and his partner of eight years were drinking at their residence when he became angry and jealous and began punching her all over her body. He also pulled a clump of hair out of her head and bit her, court heard.
The woman was sent to an Edmonton hospital where she underwent plastic surgery to repair her broken jaw. She returned to Yellowknife about two weeks later, where, while recovering from surgery, she was assaulted by her partner again. She was punched and choked in the second attack, according to a statement of facts agreed to by both the Crown prosecutor and the man's lawyer.
In between the two assaults, the offender also assaulted a childhood friend while trying to evict him from his home. Court heard he punched the man in the ribs, possibly breaking one.
Crown prosecutor Annie Piche had called for a sentence of two years less a day, noting the offender had a criminal record and was on probation at the time of the assaults. She said the fact he had assaulted his partner after her surgery following a previous attack was an aggravating factor in the case. Piche nonetheless acknowledged the man had suffered significant hardships growing up.
Court heard he was taken from his birth parents and adopted by a couple in Kugaaruk when he was three-years old.
The man's lawyer, Kate Oja, told the court her client's adoptive mother abused him and locked him in his room after school.
"He grew up a prisoner in his own home," Oja told the court.
She said her client did not feel any emotional attachments until he was sent to a youth treatment facility in Fort Smith at age 15. Oja told the court, as an adult, the man has been involved in a number of long-term relationships, including an arranged marriage when he was 19. She said despite his criminal record, he has not been convicted of any violent offences since 2007.
In handing down his sentence, Mahar acknowledged the offender's troubled childhood.
"The amount of damage and trauma is what brings him before the court. There is an obvious connection," Mahar said. "Because of the lack of proper upbringing I can't help but be sympathetic."
The victim, who testified at a preliminary inquiry before her partner had pleaded guilty, had filed a victim impact statement which was not read out in court. She was not present in court for the sentencing.
Mahar said he had read her statement and found it very sad.
"She feels for him but can't live with his behaviour," Mahar said.
He barred the man from contacting the woman without her consent and permission from his probation officer.
The judge also ordered the man to provide a DNA sample for the national registry and prohibited him from possessing firearms for 10 years unless for hunting purposes. He is also prohibited from consuming alcohol for the 18 months he will be on probation.
The offender, dressed in a green T-shirt and grey sweat pants, apologized for his actions before being sentenced.
Taking into account the 317 days he spent in pre-sentence custody, for which he received 476 days credit, the man was sentenced to a further five months and eight days in custody.
