A Prince George man found guilty of aggravated sexual assault in a 2001 attack on a woman near Connaught Hill has been declared a dangerous offender.
It means William Garfield Garnot, 57, must serve at least seven years behind bars before he can apply for parole and if he is released from prison, he will be under supervision for the rest of his life.
During a lengthy hearing on the matter, Crown prosecution had argued Garnot should be given the designation based on the circumstances of the offence, his criminal history and previous refusal to comply with treatment efforts.
Garnot had six previous convictions for sexual offences, all involving children, and a criminal record of 56 convictions since his first one in 1973, when he was prosecuted as an adult at age 15.
He has been sentenced to periods of imprisonment totaling about 30 years.
Evidence from three other sexual offences that have not been the subject of a conviction was also considered.
Garnot's counsel did not dispute that Garnot posed a high risk to reoffend but argued for a long-term offender supervision order with a sentence of appropriate length for treatment followed by a 10-year supervision period.
Garnot's health problems and renewed interest in his aboriginal heritage were brought up in support of the position, as was Garnot's willingness to forgo credit for pre-trial custody.
The decision by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Terence Schultes was reached in August and posted online last week.
It came four years after the same judge found Garnot guilty of the most recent offence.
A key part of the case against Garnot in that instance was DNA found on the victim that match a sample from the assailant that had been submitted to the national databank in connection with a 2008 sexual assault investigation in High Prairie, Alta.
The victim had testified she had left a downtown nightspot where she had been drinking after it had closed, when she asked a man passing by if he knew where she could get a drink.
When he said "yes," they walked toward Connaught Hill and then onto a narrow trail where the woman was struck with something like a board and knocked unconscious.
When she regained conciousness, she found herself lying face down on the ground with her pants off and the man lying on top of her having sexual intercourse.
When police were called to the area, one of the woman's socks was found in the middle of Connaught Drive at the intersection with Norwood Street, near a heavily-wooded vacant lot.
Abrasions and lesions were found on and around her genitalia, and she suffered fractures to her nose and facial bone that a doctor found would have "taken a strong physical blow to inflict."
Delays in reaching the decision on whether he should be declared a dangerous offender included Garnot's decision to fire his previous lawyer after he was found guilty, problems scheduling the testimony of an expert psychologist and the fact that the previous prosecutor had since been appointed a provincial court judge.
