Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
A bullying victim, who was lured and then beaten as a crowd of kids looked on, is struggling to cope with his ordeal.
Crown attorney Yaso Mathu told court that the victim not only suffered physical injuries that included a concussion, he suffered emotionally from the attack and struggles with thoughts of suicide.
“It’s the emotional scars that will have a lasting impact here,” Mathu told Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta in Brandon court on Monday.
In total, four teenage boys were charged with assault for the incident. They and the victim were all Carberry Collegiate students at the time. As they are protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, the offenders cannot legally be named.
Two of the charged youths — one 17 years old and the other 15 years old — were both sentenced on Monday for assault for their respective roles in the beating that took place in Carberry.
The 17-year-old offered to pay the 15-year-old $50 to beat up the victim, which the younger teen did after the 16-year-old victim was lured to a spot at the edge of town.
The plot against the victim was set in motion on Nov. 7, 2012.
The 17-year-old met the 15-year-old in the Carberry Collegiate canteen in the early afternoon and made an offer to pay $50 to have the victim beat up.
A pair of students witnessed the deal being done.
The plan was finalized the next morning in the parking lot of a town grocery store. The victim would be lured to baseball diamonds at the edge of town.
At lunch, someone suggested that a group, including the victim, drive to the baseball diamonds where a crowd of 50 youth gathered.
Upon arrival, as part of the ruse, the driver claimed that the 15-year-old was there to beat him up.
It was only when the victim exited the car that he realized that he was actually the target.
He tried to get back into the car, but a couple of youths who remained inside locked the doors.
The 15-year-old then punched the victim six times in the head, kneed him two to three times in the head and kicked him twice in the head as he was on the ground.
The attacker then stopped and the victim was allowed back in the car.
The victim’s uncle later reported the matter to police.
There was no mention made in court of any effort made by anyone in the crowd to help the victim.
Defence lawyer Philip Sieklicki represented the 17-year-old boy who’d offered to pay for the beating.
Sieklicki said his client claims that the victim had stolen cigarettes from him the week before the assault. The 17-year-old claimed that the victim had been bothering him for some time and had slapped him while at school at one point.
The 17-year-old picked the 15-year-old to do the beating because there seemed to be some ill will between them.
Mathu said the attack left the victim in pain, with bruises and a concussion.
Perhaps worse, it strengthened feelings of suicide that the boy had. He said he feels ostracized by his peers and believes they think of him as a “weak snitch” for telling an adult what happened.
The youth who delivered the beating has a school record with 31 incidents of assaultive behaviour, nine incidents of disobedient behaviour, 14 incidents of bullying or intimidation, 21 incidents of causing a disturbance or being disrespectful and 19 incidents of inappropriate behaviour.
However, neither he nor the other youth sentenced on Monday had prior criminal records.
They were in no danger of going to jail, but Hewitt-Michta sent both boys down to the courthouse cells to think for a couple of hours before delivering her sentence.
“I have no tolerance and no time for bullies, the two of you behaved horribly … The two of you should be completely ashamed of yourselves,” Hewitt-Michta said when the boys returned to the courtroom.
Hewitt-Michta imposed 15 months probation for both youth, a sentence that will leave them with a youth record.
They’ll have to take any anti-bullying programs that are available and write an apology to the victim.
The 17-year-old will have to do 50 hours of community service work, while the 15-year-old will do 70 hours.
The younger boy gets extra work because he also pleaded guilty to breach of a bail order by trying to indirectly contact one of his co-accused.
Another 17-year-old — the one who drove the car to the diamonds — has been diverted from the justice system and referred to the John Howard Society to have his matter resolved.
A 16-year-old — also said to have been in the car— has had his case set to March as police continue to investigate his role.
» ihitchen@brandonsun.com
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition February 13, 2013
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A bullying victim, who was lured and then beaten as a crowd of kids looked on, is struggling to cope with his ordeal.
Crown attorney Yaso Mathu told court that the victim not only suffered physical injuries that included a concussion, he suffered emotionally from the attack and struggles with thoughts of suicide.
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A bullying victim, who was lured and then beaten as a crowd of kids looked on, is struggling to cope with his ordeal.
Crown attorney Yaso Mathu told court that the victim not only suffered physical injuries that included a concussion, he suffered emotionally from the attack and struggles with thoughts of suicide.
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