Canupawakpa man sent to jail for two assaults

A Canupawakpa Dakota Nation man was sentenced on Thursday to almost seven months in jail after two assaults, with one taking place less than two weeks after he served a sentence for a related offence.

“It seems to me that you lost control, lost your ability to manage your relationship with alcohol, lost your ability to manage your anger,” Judge Patrick Sullivan said in Brandon provincial court.

Keesic Brown, 24, pleaded guilty to the charges of assault and assault with a weapon prior to his sentencing. He was originally charged with assault causing bodily harm and aggravated assault, but the Crown amended the charges.

Crown attorney Caroline Lacey suggested a sentence of 60 days for the assault charge and 150 days for the assault with a weapon charge, for a total of 210 days, followed by two years of unsupervised probation.

Brown had been in custody for the equivalent of 96 days, meaning he would spend 114 days in custody going forward.

Lacey read the facts behind both assaults.

On April 3, Manitoba First Nations Police Service in Canupawakpa Dakota Nation received a call from Brown asking for their assistance and saying Elvis Higheagle had assaulted him. When police got to the residence, Brown had blood on his face.

Officers later found out that the fight had been consensual and neither wanted to press charges. While police were there, Brown told them they should go check on Elias Sutherland, since “Elvis beat him up pretty good.”

Police found Sutherland at another residence. He had a cut along the left side of his face and multiple bruises, Lacey said.

Sutherland gave an audio statement to police, saying Brown came to his residence and “shook his hand and was telling him that he had just got out of jail,” Lacey said.

“He and Sutherland then went to the living room, where Keesic Brown began to assault him by punching him and kicking him.”

At some point, Higheagle joined Brown in assaulting Sutherland.

Higheagle pleaded guilty to a single count of assault causing bodily harm in Virden provincial court in August and was sentenced to five months of time already served.

Brown was arrested and subsequently released.

On July 9, police received a call to attend a house in Canupawakpa. When officers got to the residence, they found Brown and his brother, Stewart.

“They both had slight injuries, and both did not want to speak about how they were injured, and both were intoxicated,” Lacey said.

Emergency medical services transported Stewart to get injuries on his hand taken care of. On July 16, he gave a statement to police, saying Brown had assaulted him with a rake.

Lacey said it’s concerning that Brown’s first assault came days after he was sentenced to a time-already-served sentence on March 21 for stabbing Stewart.

She said the Crown’s position was appropriate if not lenient, but it considered the uncertainty of the co-operation of witnesses if the matter were taken to trial.

Defence lawyer Bob Harrison asked for a sentence of time already served and said Brown should be given a lot of credit for his guilty plea, since there were some potential triable issues.

“I think the guilty pleas in this situation are very, very important, because I’d say he could have rolled the dice and probably come out successfully,” Harrison said.

He said Brown knows alcohol is an issue for him, and that while in custody he has attended AA meetings and is seeking treatment for when he is released.

When given a chance to speak, Brown apologized for being back before the courts and said he wanted to do better.

“I’ve been taking programs to better myself so that I can get home and take care of my mother,” he said.

Sullivan said he recognized Brown’s efforts and encouraged him to follow through with treatment once he’s released.

He said he believed the Crown’s position was a reasonable one and sentenced Brown to 210 days in custody followed by two years of unsupervised probation.

» sanderson@brandonsun.com