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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Floyd Bradley Dick was sentenced to 13 months in jail Thursday after previously entering two guilty pleas on charges of assault causing bodily harm and possession of property obtained by crime.

Floyd Dick was sentenced to 13 months in jail last week for a brazen, broad daylight assault last August, and for possession of property obtained by crime. - NNSL photo

Dick, 34, pleaded guilty to the Aug. 26 assault of a man outside the post office on Franklin Avenue. The victim, who had been punched and kicked in the face and head, was taken by ambulance to Stanton Territorial Hospital and later medevaced to Edmonton when doctors were unable to stop his nose from bleeding. The victim suffered a fractured nose but no surgery was required.

A camera containing pictures of Dick was recovered from the scene with a serial number matching that of a Sony camera that another man had reported stolen on Aug. 8.

Judge Garth Malakoe sentenced Floyd Bradley Dick to 13 months less 56 days in prison, taking into account the time he had served in jail since his arrest on Aug. 31. Dick was sentenced to 11 months for the assault charge and two additional months for the possession of stolen property charge. He is also required to actively participate in counselling, is prohibited from owning weapons for 10 years and from having any contact with the victim.

Defence lawyer Hugh Latimer repeatedly emphasized his client's co-operation with police and his guilty pleas, which Latimer said were indications of remorse that should be considered. Addressing Malakoe later, Dick, standing in his socks, called his violent behaviour a "blatant overreaction" to the victim having taken his iPod.

Latimer also pointed out that the incident had initially been reported in Yellowknifer as a daytime robbery, owing to a false statement the victim gave police, and speculated that this had led Dick to lose his job. The victim initially told police that Dick had stolen money from him during the assault but police discovered, upon further investigation, that this story was intended to cover-up the truth about the stolen iPod. Latimer said that Dick had already "suffered to some extent" as a result, though admitted upon being questioned that Dick was not given a specific reason for his dismissal.

Crown prosecutor Alex Godfrey said Dick was "not a stranger to the criminal justice system," and had a nearly uninterrupted criminal record dating back more than a decade. Dick had previously been convicted of other counts of possession of stolen property and at least one count of assault with a weapon, stemming from an incident in 2010.

Godfrey said the victim had suffered "a very serious injury" and that a stolen iPod "does not necessitate this type of behaviour, especially on a public street in broad daylight."

Malakoe agreed that the nature of the assault, especially the time and place where it occurred, were aggravating factors.

"It was vicious and it was highly visible by the public … I cannot stress how important public denunciation of this is, the judge said.

Malakoe added that Dick's sentence must be tough enough to deter him from behaving in the same way in the future but also allowed that "rehabilitation is not lost on someone his age."

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