Man gets time in federal prison
Harley David Coleman sentenced to five-and-a-half years for sexual assault with weapon
A P.E.I. man has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in federal prison for sexually assaulting a Charlottetown woman with a weapon inside of her residence.
The offender – Harley David Coleman – was also sentenced on April 2 in P.E.I. Supreme Court to six months concurrent for breach of a release order. At the time of the August 2022 sexual assault, Coleman, 31, was on strict release conditions, including wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet, in relation to other matters.
A publication ban is in place preventing the release of information that could identify the female victim.
Coleman appeared in court in person and sat quietly at the defence table next to his legal-aid lawyer Conor Mullin to hear Chief Justice Tracey Clements read the sentencing decision.
Mullin had requested four years in prison for sexual assault with a weapon and 90 days concurrent for breaching his release conditions. Crown attorney Jeff Macdonald requested seven years in prison for the sexual offence and six months consecutive for the breach.
THE FACTS
On the evening of Aug. 28, 2022, the complainant and some friends were in a vehicle on Fitzroy Street in Charlottetown by the Salvation Army building and spotted Coleman. The victim and Coleman previously knew each other several years earlier from school. The two parted ways but shortly after, Coleman phoned her, and she picked him up on Weymouth Street. They drove around and made stops at different locations in the city, including at the tent encampment on Grafton Street.
They went to her apartment twice – that evening and the following morning. At one point, Coleman snorted Dilaudid inside the apartment. Coleman and the woman were getting along and catching up. At around 4 a.m., Coleman then took a shower. When he came out, the victim said he looked like a different person – angry and emotionless. Coleman said he wasn't leaving until they had sex. Coleman told her not to mess with him and that he had previously been arrested in Manitoba for murder. He then put two knives and a Taser on a table. One knife fell on the floor. A glass pipe also fell and broke on the floor.
Coleman took the other knife and guided the woman to her bed. The knife was then placed on a night table next to the bed and Coleman committed the sexual assault.
The woman went to the hospital that day for a sexual assault examination and later reported the incident to police. It was also noted in court that the complainant had bruising on her inner thighs from the sexual assault.
FOUND GUILTY AFTER TRIAL
Coleman was convicted of the offences after a trial June 2829. Coleman and the female victim both testified at the trial. The female victim said she did not consent to the sexual activity whereas Coleman disagreed and said it was consensual.
During the trial, Coleman also requested a publication ban on his own identity out of concern that he could be physically harmed as a result of the sexual assault charge. Coleman explained that he is a member of the Crazy Dragons gang, which he said has a strict policy against harming women. Coleman said he has received physical punishment from the gang for incidents in the past. Coleman's criminal history includes two convictions in P.E.I. for violence against women. After hearing submissions, Clements denied Coleman's request for a publication ban on his own identity. Saltwire opposed the publication ban request.
Throughout the court process, Coleman maintained his claim of innocence and offered more than once to take a polygraph test to prove he wasn't lying.
SENTENCE
Coleman was born in Winnipeg and is an Indigenous offender. His life growing up was described in court as dysfunctional, chaotic and traumatic. Coleman has also dealt with substance abuse. He has a lengthy criminal record that includes provincial jail and federal prison sentences. This includes a two-and-a-halfyear federal prison sentence in February 2014 for robbery, assaulting a police officer and other offences on P.E.I. Coleman did not have a prior conviction for a sexual offence on his criminal record.
In addition to prison time, Clements sentenced Coleman to a lifetime weapons ban and placed him on the Sex Offender Information Registry for 20 years. Coleman is also not allowed to have any contact with the victim during the prison sentence.
Coleman had been in custody for 570 days since his arrest. He was given enhanced credit of 855 days (or 1.5 days for each day) for time already served in pre-sentence custody.