Assault recorded on bus motivated by hate, Crown says
Defence asks for time served after man pleads guilty in video case
A Hamilton man who livestreamed himself making homophobic and transphobic slurs — as well as kicking a person — on a bus ought to be sentenced to jail time because the crime was hate motivated, argues the Crown.
Christopher Pretula pleaded guilty to assault in November for the incident he recorded on an HSR bus in August 2022 that was posted on his YouTube channel, “Mr. Bum Tickler.” He also pleaded guilty for breaching his release conditions.
At a sentencing hearing Tuesday, assistant Crown attorney Megan Nieuwoudt argued that the case meets the Criminal Code definition of a hate- or bias-motivated offence and therefore calls for a harsher sentence. She asked for a four- to six-month sentence, minus credit for 92 days served in pre-sentence custody.
It has dehumanizing impact on victims and the wider public, she said, adding that Pretula had “high moral culpability.” The fact that the video was made public broadened its reach and made it even more aggravating.
Pretula’s lawyer, Stephen De Wetter, called the video “shocking” and “disturbing,” adding that he would spend no time trying to rationalize or defend the unprovoked incident.
He agreed that the context of the assault, which would otherwise be considered minor, was deserving of jail time. However, he said that is accomplished with the time Pretula already served in custody.
In the video, which was played in court, Pretula is recording on a bus when he turns his attention, unprovoked to two brothers and their mother, aggressively trying to provoke a response.
“What is your pronoun dipsh-t; your pronoun is retard,” he says at one point.
And later: “I don’t know what this goofball transformer looking thing is.”
Toward the end of the approximately five-minute recording Pretula got up and walked toward the doors. At the same time, one of the victims outstretched his leg and it touched Pretula.
Pretula turned and kicked the victim and then clenched his fist to his face while saying: “Do it again … kick me again.”
Nieuwoudt noted that in a presentence report Pretula denied holding anti-LGBTQ beliefs. His words in the video refute this, or they show that he uses that rhetoric for the purpose of followers.
The Crown referenced and played several other videos from Pretula’s YouTube account, where he often livestreams interactions with strangers. This included videos after his arrest, when he was prohibited from recording people without their consent, in which he asked a man to cuddle and claimed to be transgender in another. She argued they showed an unwillingness to comply with house arrest. Pretula also indicated he will continue to livestream.
Pretula’s lawyer called him a “bit of a rebel,” noting that he likes to create controversy and “stir things up” in his videos.
He seems himself as a “rogue interviewer,” De Wetter said, adding that he’s not condoning it — but that’s how Pretula sees himself.
Court heard that Pretula has had a difficult life including being shot in his early 20s and losing his firstborn child to a rare form of cancer several years ago. He also has multiple sclerosis. He and his wife have two young children he cares for while she works.
Speaking directly to the court Pretula called the video “disgusting,” calling it a “fluke incident” that is not reflective of how he acts.
“I feel bad for the victims,” he said, adding that he’s sure it has affected their lives.
Pretula said he understands the gravity of his actions, calling them selfish and “beneath him.”
“There is nothing I can say, it was stupid, I apologize, I don’t ever want to go before this court again,” he said.
The case returns April 4 for sentencing.