Vernon nightclub assailant gets more jail time on appeal

A Vernon man who was convicted in connection with an unprovoked attack on a man in a nightclub has had his sentence increased to 18 months in jail following an appeal by the Crown.

In March, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Crawford handed Lucas Allen Slizak a sentence of 90 days to be served on weekends after he pleaded guilty on the second day of trial to one count of aggravated assault.

On Sept. 21, 2014, Slizak sucker-punched Chad Westman at the nightclub, hitting him very hard with a closed fist. Westman, who did not know Slizak, was knocked unconscious and collapsed. Slizak then took several steps forward, raising his knee to hip level and stomped on the defenceless victim’s head. Slizak fled the scene as Westman lay on the ground in a pool of blood.

It was unclear why Slizak, who was not intoxicated, punched Westman. The assault occurred after a brief interaction between the two men.

Westman, who was hospitalized for two weeks, suffered a broken nose and a brain injury that left him with short-term memory loss. He also suffered depression and ongoing headaches.

Court heard that Slizak, who had no prior criminal record, was a man of otherwise good character who was in a long-term, stable relationship and had a supportive family and a good employment history.

On the appeal of the sentence, the Crown argued that the judge did not address how the sentence, which fell “substantially” below the low end of the range for aggravated assault of 16 months to six years, adequately reflected the principles of denunciation and deterrence.

The prosecution also argued that the judge wrongly characterized the offence as arising out of a fight that escalated out of control.

The defence argued that the judge made no such errors, but in a ruling released Tuesday a threejudge panel of the B.C. Court of Appeal found that the sentencing judge had failed properly to give effect to the gravity of the offence.

“The fact is that the attack on Mr. Westman was unprovoked,” B.C. Court of Appeal Justice David Harris said in his reasons for judgment.

Harris noted that Westman was a smaller man than Slizak and was hit so hard he was knocked out, after which Slizak stomped on his head.

“This latter part of the assault was a cold and calculated act. It was vicious. It is a serious aggravating factor of the offence. It led to serious injury, from which Mr. Westman has not fully recovered.”

Harris said that even though Slizak has nearly completed his 90-day sentence, it would not be unjust to impose more jail time.

“This is not a case of re-incarcerating someone who had completed a sentence or a case effectively requiring someone to serve a second sentence …. The offence is a serious one and staying the sentence would be inconsistent with or potentially undermine the goals of denunciation and deterrence.”

Justice Peter Willcock and Justice Gail Dickson agreed with Harris’s ruling.