Sentencing Decision in Child Abuse Case in BC

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A stepfather who threw his two-year-old son across his living room, causing the baby to sustain serious injuries, has been sentenced to six years in prison, reduced to three years after considering a number of factors.

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At the time of the December 2016 assault, the boy was screaming and the defendant, now 26, lost his temper. After being thrown across the room, the baby landed on a couch.

According to the Crown, the boy’s injuries were life-changing, requiring several months of hospital stays and several surgeries.

The boy was once thought to be a paraplegic, but “fortunately” he appears to be improving, provincial court judge Alexander Wolf said.

Aggravating factors included that the victim was the defendant’s stepson and the defendant had a duty to care for the child, but had violated a sacred trust owed to the children, the judge said.

“The fact that the child is young, defenseless, vulnerable and indigenous – there are already systemic barriers that stand in the way of success in school, in society and in all aspects of thriving. These injuries have created an additional burden to overcome. “

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The defendant, who pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault and is not identified in the court ruling, is an indigenous man with no prior criminal record as an adult.

A report on their aboriginal origin, known as the Gladue report, was prepared for the sentence.

“Unfortunately, it is a textbook case of a human being who has been traumatized his entire life because he is indigenous,” the judge said. “He was detained, spent much of his time in care, suffered alienation from his siblings and family, and was physically and emotionally abused by his father and others in his life.”

The judge added that he was upset by a number of factors, including the fact that the author of the Gladue report found that the defendant was not convinced he needed help with his recovery and had not availed himself of prison services that address addiction. to alcohol and drugs.

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“First, how is hurting a two-year-old not a wake-up call? There appears to be a history of multiple substance abuse, impulsive behavior patterns, and sometimes behaviors that allegedly result in intimate partner domestic violence. “

However, the judge said, anyone who meets the defendant will see him as intelligent, eloquent and thoughtful.

The defendant also provided a letter of apology in which he said that he never intended to hurt the child and knows that there is nothing he can do to retract.

“And I know that you may never ever forgive me and that your family will hate me forever and that I don’t blame them and that I hate myself for what happened and that I will never make my life the way it was again. “The letter said.

The judge said a “good starting point” for the sentence was six years, but reduced the sentence to 36 months of remaining time after considering a number of factors including the defendant’s guilty plea and his youth, apology, custody. prior to sentencing and the Gladue report.

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