Pangnirtung man to serve 18 months at BCC for child rape

KIRSTEN MURPHY

A 37-year-old Pangnirtung man who raped a 13-year-old girl in her home requested a lenient sentence because he fears for his life if sent to federal prison, his lawyer said in court last week.

The child was first assaulted in January 2002 when her mother was away. The second attack came a few weeks later when the man cornered the girl in a furnace room, reached for a condom and forced himself upon her. A third assault occurred several weeks later.

The man was arrested in March 2002, two months after the first rape, which robbed the girl of her virginity, the court heard.

The man, who cannot be named because it may identify the victim, has been repeatedly assaulted and threatened, and has suffered a broken finger since his arrival at Baffin Correctional Centre, his lawyer, Andy Mahar, told the court during a sentencing hearing last Thursday.

“There is a very real fear [for his safety],” Mahar said.

However, Mahar didn’t present medical records to support his client’s claim.

Incidents of unwanted sexual touching between the man and the child dated back to 1998, Crown lawyer Ken Kehler said.

The accused, who has four children, originally faced numerous charges. After he pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault and one charge of uttering a threat, the Crown stayed the remaining charges.

The uttering charge arose from an incident in March 2002 when the man threatened to kill his wife during an argument.

Both Crown and defence agreed to a four-year sentence. However, they disagreed on how much credit the accused should be given for the 15 months he spent in remand custody.

“He’s not a pedophile or a sexual predator. This is not a pattern,” Mahar said, borrowing evidence from a psychological assessment. “His remorse was obvious and immediate.”

Sentences longer than two years must be served in a federal prison. Shorter sentences may be served at the Baffin Correctional Centre or Yellowknife Correctional Centre.

Ultimately, Justice Beverley Browne gave the man a 30-month credit — double time because remand is considered “hard time” due to its overcrowding and lack of counselling and treatment services. The remaining 18 months of his sentence will be served at BCC.

Upon his release, he’ll be on probation for three years. During that time he cannot be with children under the age of 16 unless with a sober adult. He is prohibited from operating firearms for 10 years and must get counselling at the discretion of his probation officer.

“You did a terrible thing and I hope you read the victim impact statement and see how it’s affected her,” Browne told the man.

“Until you get your sexual urges [under control], you’re going to be dysfunctional in other walks of life.”