The victim of an assault at the Prince George Regional Correctional is suing the provincial government and the inmate who allegedly attacked him.
In a notice of claim filed Monday at the Prince George court house, Kelly Michael Richet says he was in the showers on March 18, 2018 when, "suddenly, and without provocation," Jeff Lapier attacked him with a bladed weapon.
Richet says he needed 20 stitches to close deep cuts to his body and specifically his right arm.
Richet also claims that in the days that followed, Lapier pasted signs around the facility saying Richet was a "rat" and shortly after two unknown inmates tried to attack him. Richet says he locked himself in his cell to secure his safety and was then placed in protective custody.
"Lapier was known to the inmate community and the community staff at PGRCC for having a history of assaulting others, including assaults with weapons such as knives/razors," Richet says in the claim.
He says Lapier had just been released from the jail's special handling unit on the day of the attack, "knowing that Lapier was a danger to other inmates," and had attacked staff at the jail on that day prior to going after Richet.
By releasing Lapier, PGRCC staff "acted negligently and fell below the standard of care required of them."
Richet also says he was denied any pain medication for the wounds while at PGRCC, but in August 2018 he was transferred to a federal institution where he was prescribed pain medication.
The transfer occurred after Richet was sentenced to a further five years and four months for his role in a July 2016 targeted shooting in Mackenzie.
Lapier, meanwhile, was sentenced in November 2018 to a further 23 months in jail for a February 2016 shooting of a woman in Moore's Meadow.
As a result of the attack, Richet says he suffered nerve damage to his right forearm and his ability to work has been severely diminished. Richet also says he has suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and nightmares and attends counselling sessions on a weekly basis.
If staff had followed standard operating procedure, Richet says he would not have become the victim of a "brutal assault" from which he sustained personal injury, loss and damage.
The provincial government and Lapier have not yet filed responses and Richet's claims have not yet been tested in court.
