PORT HARDY—Alcohol was at the heart of a series of cases in the Port Hardy Courthouse last week.
Billy Ray Walkus was sentenced to 90 days in jail for his part in a May 17 break and enter on Sporty’s Bar and Grill on Port Hardy’s Market Street.
The court heard that Walkus — along with two accomplices who can’t be named for legal reasons — used rocks to break a side window to the premises at 3:40 a.m. before Walkus climbed in and handed out six bottles of liquor.
Walkus was detained at the scene and a review of security footage confirmed his presence.
Appearing by video, counsel for the defendant entered a guilty plea on the charges, describing a “poor choice made by Mr. Walkus that night, not indicative of the type of person he is.”
A joint submission recommended a 90 day sentence — effectively 57 days taking time served into account — with a 12-month probation order, a $100 restitution fine and 30 day concurrent sentencing on breach charges.
Bad example
A night’s drinking in breach of a court order earned Johnathan Louis a 90-day conditional sentence.
RCMP members responded to a complaint that a male was “smacking a female around” off Granville Street and stopped Louis as part of their investigations. Members discovered he was intoxicated, and arrested Louis after he admitted to officers that he’d “had a few shots,” in breach of an existing order.
A joint submission suggesting a 30-day jail sentence was rejected by the judge and a conditional sentence imposed.
The judge berated Louis for setting a poor example for his children, telling him that children follow the examples set by their parents. “The older I get the more I worry about the children in our society,” he said. “Because I have to send too many of them to jail I guess.”
The court handed down a 90-day conditional discharge along with 20 community work hours for the offences.
Hot water
Port Alberni’s Lewis James Leach landed himself in hot water after a night’s drinking in Port Hardy got a little out of hand.
Leach was charged with causing a disturbance after the RCMP were called to deal with the man. The court heard that the fisherman was ejected from Sporty’s but lingered in the parking lot picking fights.
“Let me guess that you don’t behave this way when you’re sober,” said the judge to agreement from Leach.
In light of the man’s job aboard a boat, a suggested work service order was changed to a $500 fine, which the judge said Leach should have no problem paying. “I understand there’s going to be lots of fish,” he said, “you’re going to make lots of money.”
Molly
In other matters, Robert Beatty was ordered to serve 15 hours of community service after what Crown Counsel described as “a bit of vigilanteism.”
The court heard that Beatty took umbrage after hearing that a former friend had been involved in a break and enter at Providence Place, responding with a punch to the head.
Rupert Wilson, the man accused of causing unnecessary pain/suffering to an animal in the Molly case, appeared briefly in court Tuesday.
The court heard that counsels were still awaiting a pre-sentencing report and the matter, along with a pair of unrelated charges, was put over to July 15.