Jason Unrau
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Aug 05/05) - Thirty-four-year-old Tommy Bird has been sentenced to three years for sexual assault following a three-and-a-half-day session of Territorial Supreme Court in Inuvik.

A jury of seven women and five men deliberated for more than six hours before returning a verdict of guilty in the case against Bird for a 2001 sexual assault that took place at staff accommodations for Bob's Welding.

Bird was accused of engaging in intercourse with an 18-year-old woman while she was passed out following a party. At the time, Bird was an employee of Bob's Welding.

During the sentencing phase on Thursday, July 29, defence lawyer Tom Boyd asked the court for a conditional sentence, taking into consideration the fact Bird had no previous record of violent crime.

However, Justice Vertes went with Crown Prosecutor Steven Hinkley's submission that Bird should receive a three-year sentence.

"This crime is deserving of a penitentiary sentence because it was a case of serious bodily interference of a helpless and young victim," said Vertes when handing down his sentence. "I also do not ignore the prevalence of this crime in the North."

For more than two-and-a-half years, police had an outstanding bench warrant for Bird's arrest after he failed to appear at a February 2002 preliminary inquiry connected with the case.

Bird was apprehended by police in Inuvik last November, after being stopped for a traffic violation. He remained in police custody until his trial, for which he was credited with 15 months time served.

In rendering his decision, Vertes expressed his disappointment with law enforcement for taking such a long time to apprehend Bird, who, according to his lawyer, was attending community college in Alberta while on the lam.

As part of his sentence, Bird will be required to submit a DNA sample to police and comply with the national sexual offender registry for 20 years following his release. Bird is also prohibited from owning a firearm for 10 years.