R. v. Stevens Date:, 2014 BCPC 141

Citation: R. v. Stevens Date: 20140515 2014 BCPC 0141 File No: 38146-1, 38146-3-A Registry: Courtenay IN THE PROVINCIAL COURT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA REGINA v. GRANT COURT STEVENS ORAL REASONS FOR SENTENCE OF THE HONOURABLE JUDGE P.M. DOHERTY Counsel for the Crown: R. Ellsay Counsel for the Defendant: D. Evans Place of Hearing: Courtenay , B.C. Date of Hearing: November 25 and 29, 2013 and April 3, 2014

Date of Judgment: May 15, 2014 [ 1 ] THE COURT: Before the court is Grant Court Stevens for imposition of sentence on Indictment 38146. He is charged and was found guilty: Count 1 . . . on or about the 31st day of March, 2013, at or near Courtenay, in the Province of British Columbia, did sexually assault C.T., contrary to

Section 271 of the Criminal Code . Count 2 . . . [on the same date and at the same place] without lawful authority, confined C.T., contrary to Section 279(2) of the Criminal Code . Count 3 . . . [on the same date and at the same place] did commit assault of another person, C.T., contrary to

Section 266 of the Criminal Code . [ 2 ] Mr. Stevens was found guilty on all three counts. The Court entered a conditional stay on Count 3 because of the Kienapple principle. [ 3 ] After trial, I delivered reasons for judgment, and I shall refer to those reasons now by way of setting out the background. [ 4 ] The incident began late in the day of March 31, 2013, and concluded in the early morning hours of April 1, 2013. The complainant was 54 and living at the [deleted for publication] at the time of this incident. Her neighbours included the accused, who lived across the hall.

The complainant had recently lost her father. The accused, becoming aware of that fact, called her and invited the complainant to his apartment. To entice her to his apartment at that late hour, he was sympathetic and related that he too had lost a parent in the past and knew what it was like. [ 5 ] The complainant was vulnerable and had she not been seeing things through an emotional fog probably would have declined. Instead, she arrived around 11:30 p.m. The accused had the Playboy channel on. She asked him to turn it off, which he did.

He had been drinking, and she had been drinking as well before she arrived at the apartment of the accused. The complainant said she had just over three beer at the home of the defendant. The defendant said she had seven, as did he. In addition, according to him, she had consumed alcohol before arriving. [ 6 ] The couple talked. He wanted to watch a movie. She was not much interested but agreed. She got bored with the movie. It was late, and she told the accused she wanted to go home. She got up to leave. The accused pushed her onto the bed and struck her a very heavy blow to the side of her head with his fist.

Photos taken by police show that injury and other injuries sustained during the struggle that ensued. [ 7 ] The accused straddled the complainant, pulled off her pants and underwear, and touched her vagina. He got duct tape and duct-taped her mouth and taped her forearms together. She described herself as helpless and dizzy and crying. [ 8 ] When he turned her over, her panic was such that she was able to loosen the tape around her mouth sufficiently to start screaming and yelling.

Fortunately, someone heard her, the next-door neighbour, S., and he came to her rescue. [ 9 ] S. described the condition in which he found the complainant. He removed her from the apartment of the accused, escorted her to her own apartment, and unbound her. [ 10 ] S. knew the complainant. He was trying to fall asleep, but because of the noise next door, that was impossible. He heard screaming and yelling and loud noises, and he went to the door of the accused.

When he opened the door, he found the complainant naked and bound with duct tape around her forearms and duct tape wrapped around her head and across her mouth. He removed the tape from the mouth of the complainant, and she said "Help me." [ 11 ] In aid of sentencing this afternoon, I have been provided with a pre-sentence report and a forensic report. The pre-sentence report goes into Mr.

Stevens' background, notes that at the age of 10 he was injured in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in him having a permanent brain injury and hearing loss. [ 12 ] A review of the forensic and neuropsychological assessment completed in 2000 indicated that Mr. Stevens' parents noted a change in his behaviour following the accident. [ 13 ] Mr. Stevens claims that he was the victim of repeated sexual assaults as an adolescent by an adult male while living on Hornby Island. No charges were laid against Mr. Stevens' abuser. [ 14 ] He began to use alcohol at a young age. He is described as an alcoholic.

His mother remembers him taking drinks of beer and wine from people's glasses when he was a small child. He describes himself as a binge drinker. According to Mr. Stevens, he has been involved with support services through Comox Valley Recovery Centre. He has used the detox beds and has participated in the 30-day treatment program. His recovery has never been long-term. [ 15 ] He has a court history dating back to 1994: property offence, breach of probation, driving with more than 80 milligrams of alcohol in his blood.

In later years, 2000, mischief; 2001, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, a couple of failures to comply, and

another mischief. [ 16 ] Under the heading "attitude and understanding regarding the offence," the author notes [as read in]: Mr. Stevens does not express insight, accountability, or empathy toward the victim in this offence. He denied his offending behaviour completely and made several negative comments about the victim being a liar and a drug addict. [ 17 ] He is 52 years of age. This is his first conviction for a sexual offence. Under "summary and proposed interventions," the author notes: Alcohol misuse and mental instability has been prevalent in Mr. Stevens' life.

He has had many negative contacts with the local RCMP, denied his offending behaviour completely, described the victim in disrespectful terms, and made comments that indicate he feels he is the victim. And then certain recommendations are made in relation to a possible probation order. [ 18 ] Dr. Mark Tapper, the consulting psychiatrist at Forensic Psychiatric Services, has prepared a report as well. He notes, at page 2 [as read in]: Mr. Stevens' account of the offence differs considerably from the police report -- -- and I might add, my findings of fact. In

summary, Mr. Stevens maintains he did not commit the offences, whereas the police report [and the court] state the opposite. [ 19 ] The alcohol abuse is referred to under "previous psychiatric history": Mr. Stevens definitely has a long history of alcohol abuse, which he agrees with, and he has abused other substances in the past. According to his parents, even at a very young age, he was attracted to gasoline and alcohol and was apparently found sniffing gas fumes when he was two or three years old. [ 20 ] He is on several medications, one for anxiety, Tylenol 3 for pain control.

He has a puffer for breathing problems. He has a sleeping aid, and he receives a drug to replace the testosterone which he lacks due to Klinefelter syndrome. He also wears bilateral hearing aids to assist in his hearing loss. [ 21 ] At page 5, Dr. Tapper notes [as read in]: A detailed neuropsychological assessment has been done by Dr. Mel Stangeland. The results are described in his report 14 November 2000. At that time, Mr. Stevens was functioning in the low-average range of intellectual abilities. His memory functions were in the low-average range of abilities as well. [ 22 ] Under his diagnosis, Dr.

Tapper cites alcohol abuse, chronic personality disorder with organic and dependent features, bilateral hearing impairment, Klinefelter syndrome, and two previous significant head injuries, the first at 10 years old. [ 23 ] Crown and defence are not ad idem on sentence. Crown seeks a term of imprisonment of two years less a day.

Defence recognizes that a period of incarceration is merited but argues that all of the principles of sentencing and all of the recommendations made in the forensic and pre-sentence reports can be fulfilled with a sentence of one year. [ 24 ] The principles of sentencing are set out in the Criminal Code . I have considered them. These principles include denunciation. [ 25 ] I have been referred to the case of R. v. Reis , 2011 BCSC 319 , in which Mr. Justice Schultes in a case of a similar nature, not on point, obviously, refers to the principles of sentencing starting at paragraph 55 of his judgment.

He says: Denunciation is society's collective condemnation of this type of conduct. The violation of women's sexual integrity must be denounced in strong terms. [ 26 ] He goes on to note, in part, at paragraph 56: General deterrence is also important. A message must be sent strongly by the courts that it is not open to men to take sexual advantage of women . . . and that intimidation . . . will make the situation even more serious. [ 27 ] And I would add in the case at Bar, more serious because of the actual violence.

[ 28 ] As to specific deterrence, at paragraph 57, Justice Schultes says, in his case: . . . I would say that based on the findings that I have made in the trial and the evidence in the pre-sentence and psychological reports, there is still much work to be done to bring home to Mr. Reis that this conduct is unacceptable. I think that specific deterrence looms large in that regard. He must come to accept the unacceptability of his conduct, at least partially through the type of sentence that is imposed. [ 29 ] Those words are applicable in the case at Bar. The comments are right on point when it comes to Mr.

Stevens. He accepts no responsibility for his actions, and the sentence, at least in part, should have, as its aim, bringing home to Mr. Stevens the unacceptability of his actions through the length of the sentence to be imposed. [ 30 ] As to rehabilitation, while it is a noble and worthwhile pursuit and a strong consideration when it comes to crafting an appropriate sentence, there are factors in Mr. Stevens' case that make rehabilitation less than a sure thing.

These include his alcoholism, a brain injury suffered when he was a youth, and other health and genetic factors that will cause concern to those making the effort to rehabilitate him. [ 31 ] This is a serious offence. The circumstances are alarming, and had it not been for the intervention of a Good Samaritan, who knows what might have eventually happened. Certainly, the circumstances must have been terrifying for the complainant and may have left emotional scars on her as evidenced by her victim impact statement.

Moral blameworthiness is high in this case. [ 32 ] After considering the background of this defendant, including his low-average range intelligence and the fact of his disabilities - which do not include, I should note, the inability to know right from wrong - the case law provided, and the submissions made by counsel, I am of the view that a sentence of 18 months' imprisonment will accomplish the goals of sentencing in this particular case. [ 33 ] In imposing such a sentence, I have taken into account those mental disabilities made so much of by defence in the course of submissions and have ameliorated the time in custody accordingly. [ 34 ] Now, following completion of the jail term, Mr.

Stevens is placed on probation for two years.

It has been suggested, and I agree, that he should keep the peace and be of good behaviour; report forthwith upon his release to a probation officer and thereafter as directed; reside where directed and not to change that address without the specific agreement of the probation officer; no alcohol; no drugs except those that may be prescribed for him by a physician or dentist licensed to practise in British Columbia; no contact, direct or indirect, with the named complainant; not to be within 25 metres of her person under any circumstances; no go to any residence in which she may live, business in which she may be employed, or school which she may attend; not to go to any place that has as its main sale alcohol - no pubs, bars, liquor stores, that sort of thing; counselling as may be directed. [ 35 ] You shall attend, participate in any psychiatric or psychological assessments and/or counselling as directed by your probation officer, including sex offender programs and the substance abuse management core program.

For Madam Clerk's benefit, that is paragraph 4 in the recommendation of the probation officer. [ 36 ] There will be a DNA order, a 10-year firearm prohibition under s. 109, a SOIRA order for 20 years. [ 37 ] The victim impact surcharges will apply to both files and payable within a year. [ 38 ] On the breach of probation, he is sentenced to 30 days concurrent. (REASONS CONCLUDED)