A 31-year-old woman from Wawa pleaded guilty to eight offences involving domestic violence toward the father of one of her children. Although the recommendation after her arrest for domestic assault was to receive a 90-day jail sentence, the judge allowed her to have a 75-day conditional sentence due to extenuating circumstances.
The woman faced charges for dangerous driving, assault and breaching probation and other court orders. According to court documentation, the woman assaulted the father of her youngest child on February 11 and on February 18 after they got into arguments. The first assault included the woman punching, clawing, biting and kicking the man. Seven days later, the woman admitted that she punched the man multiple times at his brother’s residence. The second charge was also accompanied with complaint’s from the man’s brother. The woman allegedly drove her vehicle toward him and he had to jump into a nearby snowbank to avoid getting hit with the vehicle.
Some of the charges initiated after the father reported that the woman was calling him and leaving him messages when there was a no-contact order in place. The Crown originally proposed that the woman serve 90 days in jail, with credit given for the 25 days that she had already served.
Defence counsel convinced the judge to give the woman a conditional sentence because she has two small children. She was also injured in a motor vehicle accident when she was a toddler and was hospitalized for a broken leg for three months, causing her to turn to oxycodin for treatment for chronic pain. The defence counsel also discussed the couple’s tumultuous relationship.
A Toronto criminal defence lawyer may be able to help a client receive a reduced sentence or avoid jail time. Certain circumstances may give judges a valid basis for a different or lesser sentencing, if the charges cannot be dropped altogether.
Source: saulstar, “Wawa woman gets conditional sentence for domestic assaults“, Linda Richardson, July 26, 2013
