Iqaluit man gets house arrest for assault on elder

An Iqaluit man has pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm for punching his elderly, sleeping father so badly he needed a medevac.

Jonah Peter, 35, was drunk when he snuck into the home of his estranged parents in the early hours of April 19, 2009.

According to facts presented in court June 9, Jonah Peter slipped into his parent’s bedroom and slugged his 69-year-old father, Sammy Peter, in the face while he slept.

Jonah Peter’s own mother could not identify him in the darkness, but other family members quickly arrived and threw him out of the house.

The elder Peter’s bleeding was “profuse” as his family helped him into the bathroom to clean up.

He had seizures and passed in and out of consciousness from the pain while he waited for an ambulance.

Medical examinations in Iqaluit and Ottawa showed his eye had been “displaced” and the socket was fractured, requiring surgery to repair, crown prosecutor John Solski said June 9 in court.

Sammy Peter has since completely recovered him his injury, Solski said.

It took six officers and a police dog to arrest the younger Peter near the Northmart store soon after the attack.

Jonah Peter’s defence lawyer, Christian Lyons, said his client could not believe that his single punch had done so much damage, which is why he had not entered a guilty plea until after he faced a preliminary hearing.

Doctors had found some “metallic material” in the wound, so it’s possible some of Sammy Peter’s injuries came from from falling down after Jonah Peter hit him, Lyons said.

Jonah Peter had also objected to the amount of force the police had used in his arrest, especially the use of the dog.

Lyons said Jonah Peter’s actions arose out of longstanding animosity he held toward his father going back to his childhood, but said Jonah Peter didn’t want the details aired in court.

Jonah Peter has no intention of contacting his father ever again, Lyons said.

Jonah Peter had been under a court order to stay away from his father at the time of his assault, but he had no criminal record until this offence.

Crown and defence both recommended house arrest for Jonah Peter, which is what Justice Robert Kilpatrick gave him: five months’ worth of a conditional sentence to be served in his residence, during which time he can only leave his house for work and brief errands.

Jonah Peter had already served four months in jail while his case went through court. If he hadn’t served this time, “you would be going to jail,” Kilpatrick told him.

Kilpatrick said Jonah Peter’s crime was a serious violation of Inuit societal values of respect for elders, especially one’s parents.

“I struggle with the form of sentencing, given the enormity of the crime,” Kilpatrick said.

The charges facing Jonah Peter had originally included aggravated assault, but a plea bargain saw this charge reduced to assault causing bodily harm in exchange for a guilty plea.

If the charge had remained as an aggravated assault, the conditional sentence of house arrest would have been impossible.

Kilpatrick also gave Jonah Peter 14 months of strict conditions, including mandatory anger management counseling and frequent contact with a parole officer.

He’s also not allowed to contact his parents without written permission from his probation officer.

If he breaks any of these conditions, he’ll find himself back in jail.