A man guilty of sexual assault following two attacks on women on the North Battleford walking trail Sept. 28 will remain behind bars for the next 11 months.
Chad Weasel pled guilty to sexual assault and to failure to comply with conditions of an undertaking. He also pled guilty to a charge of theft over $5,000 in connection with an Aug. 25 incident in which he was picked up while hitchhiking and stole the driver's vehicle.
He was sentenced by Judge Lloyd Deshaye in North Battleford Provincial Court to serve 14 months in custody on the sexual assault charge and was credited 90 days already spent in custody. Weasel is also ordered to serve 18 months probation following his release. His probation conditions include participation in assessment and programming for addictions and for sexual offending, as well as a weapons prohibition and providing a DNA sample, among others.
In addition, Weasel receives two months concurrent on the failure to comply charge and five months for the theft charge.
Weasel was initially charged with robbery in connection to the Aug. 25 vehicle-stealing incident. Instead Weasel pled guilty to the lesser offence of theft over $5,000.
The Sept. 28 incident was one of several to attract public attention during a violent month in North Battleford. During the month there were two separate shooting incidents in the city and a stabbing death in a downtown hotel.
All together, the incidents prompted outrage and public meetings on the city's crime issue.
The two walking trail incidents happened on the evening of Sept. 28. According to the facts outlined in court Wednesday, the first incident was reported around 7 p.m. near Clements Drive and Territorial Drive where Weasel was alleged to have grabbed a woman's buttocks and tried to put his left hand underneath her shirt.
The victim had to kick Weasel in order to escape, according to the Crown prosecutor's submission in court. She filed a victim impact statement.
The second incident took place later that evening. Weasel was accused of following a second woman, this time near St. Laurent Avenue. According to facts outlined in court, Weasel approached the woman and asked her if she wanted to have sex with him.
Both incidents put Weasel in breach of his condition to keep the peace, a condition imposed after the Aug. 25 incident.
While sexual assault is an indictable offence in the Criminal Code that can carry a prison term of up to 10 years for the most serious cases, summary convictions for sexual assault carry a lower maximum of 18 months.
Crown prosecutor Nicole Leinenweber outlined the Crown's concern with Weasel's behaviour and with the "random" sexual assaults that took place. She called for 15 to 18 months custody less 68 days of remand credited at one-for-one, plus two years probation.
Legal Aid defence lawyer Andrew Lyster called for a shorter jail sentence. He suggested nine months custody less an "elevated remand credit" of 90 days taking into account the fact that remand was consented to, with probation to follow.
Lyster noted this particular sexual assault fell into the lower end of the scale for severity compared to others. Lyster also outlined Weasel's troubled background of abuse that included beatings as well as being sexually assaulted by relatives.
In imposing sentence Deshaye noted the charges were serious and expressed concern about whether Weasel would go along with treatment for alcohol abuse, given his previous history. A bail report was filed in October that noted Weasel had been in alcohol treatment before but dropped out.
Weasel could have "accepted treatment more readily" in the past, Deshaye noted, but "he didn't."
Weasel offered his apology, admitting he had done "a stupid thing" and adding the victims did not deserve what happened. It was also noted Weasel had written letters of apology while he was in custody.
