A Prince George man was sentenced to a further nine-and-a-half months in jail Friday for his role in a home invasion in which a quadriplegic and his two caregivers were bear sprayed.
The last of three to be sentenced on the matter, Joel Milton Clark, 28, did not wield the weapon - another of his two accomplices committed that act - but he was still an "active participant," provincial court judge Michael Brecknell found in issuing the term.
On the night of Dec. 10, 2012, Clark joined Joshua Bowser, 35, and John Robert Hawkins, 56, in breaking into the Chief Lake Road home where the 51-year-old quadriplegic man was living.
The man had hired Bowser to build a shed on his property. But Bowser had also developed an addiction to cocaine and had worked up a significant debt to his dealer.
When Bowser told the dealer the man kept all his medication, debit cards and credit cards, cheque book and cash in a fanny pack, the dealer ordered him to rob the home, the court had heard during his sentencing hearing in May.
Clark and Hawkins were sent along with him, each given masks and gloves and Bowser was given the bear spray. They first tried to break in through the back door and when that didn't work, they went to the front door where Clark "initiated the tactful step of breaking the window on the door to gain entry when forcing the door did not work," Brecknell noted.
Once inside, Bowser went into the man's bedroom where, the court had previously heard, he intended only to spray the caregivers but also indirectly sprayed the man in the process.
The glasses he was wearing afforded some protection but the spray still caused respiratory problems that twice led to a collapse of a lung and a week-long hospitalization. There was also the emotional distress and the man has said he no longer trusts people at home or on the street, Brecknell said.
A recording from a security camera at the home showed the three entering the home and then leaving less than a minute later. They then went to a nearby store to use the man's bank card withdraw some money from an automatic teller, which was also caught on camera.
Although he had a bandana over his face, jail guards were able to recognize Hawkins from his distinctive hair. Clark was arrested two days later, while Hawkins was arrested 11 days after the incident and Bowser was apprehended on May 1, 2013.
In addition to noting Clark's degree of involvement, Brecknell noted he had been released from jail on another matter just a day before he committed the act and after telling the court in a previous sentencing proceeding that he intended to leave Prince George for the Lower Mainland immediately after completing his term.
Brecknell also noted Clark's "unenviable" criminal record of 38 convictions. None were for break and enter but included one conviction each for assault causing bodily harm, assault with a weapon, two for assault and three for threatening or harassment.
Brecknell also found Clark's acceptance of responsibility was "clearly equivocal and his explanation of his level of participation is vague and disingenuous."
However, Clark did plead guilty to a count of break and enter to commit an indictable offence, thereby saving the victims the trouble of testifying at a trial, and he was unarmed and unmasked during the incident, Brecknell said. Moreover, the court heard Clark has made significant steps to improve himself while in custody and expressed a wish to pay restitution.
In all, Clark was sentenced to 40 months in jail and received credit of one-and-a-half days for each of the 619 days he has been in custody, working out to 929 days.
Clark must also serve three years probation upon his release. Terms include being no closer than 150 kilometres of Prince George and paying the victim $5,000 in restitution for the damage done to his front and back doors, at a pace of $200 per month beginning two months after his release.
Bowser, who had no previous criminal record, was sentenced in May to three years in jail, less 18 months credit for time served, plus three years probation.
Hawkins, who has been described as an enforcer with a long criminal record, including a conviction for manslaughter over an apparent drug debt collection gone wrong, was sentenced to eight years in prison in May 2013 for his role. Hawkins had been out of prison for just two-and-a-half weeks from a previous offence, when he acted as the "muscle," making sure the two others followed through on the dealer's orders, the court had heard.
