Crown seeking jail sentence for man guilty in pair of Welland stabbings
Penitentiary term of between three and six years sought in assaults
A man released on bail after a bar patron was stabbed in the abdomen in Welland was arrested again five months later after another man was stabbed in the stomach, court heard Tuesday.
Paul Witter, 25, appeared in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines on Tuesday for a sentencing hearing on two counts of aggravated assault.
The Crown is seeking a penitentiary term of between three and six years.
“These are two very serious assaults that occurred quite close in nature, one of which he was on bail for,” assistant Crown attorney Michelle Colacarro told Judge Donald Wolfe.
“Given the fact of all the aggravating features that I’ve outlined, I think that this case falls within the higher end of the ranges.”
Defence lawyer V.J. Singh advocated for a sentence in the range of three years, with credit given for the time the defendant has spent under house arrest.
He noted his client, formerly of Welland, has no prior criminal record, and he had pleaded guilty to the charges.
“It appears he just jumped into the deep end in trouble,” Singh told the judge.
He said Witter has taken positive steps since his last arrest to address issues with anger management and substance abuse.
Emergency crews responded to a report of a stabbing at the Kavern Bar on Maple Avenue in July 2022.
Upon arrival, they found a man in his 20s suffering from a serious stab wound.
He was treated at the scene and later transported to an outof-region hospital for treatment of injuries that were not life-threatening.
Court was told the victim underwent emergency surgery to remove 11 centimetres of his intestine.
The two men did not know each other.
The defendant was released on bail with conditions that included he not possess any weapons and that he stay out of Niagara.
In December, court heard, he was arrested again after a man in his 20s was stabbed at a Welland home in the area of McAlpine Avenue South near Hagar Street.
The victim was rushed to hospital with what police originally described as life-threatening injuries.
He underwent emergency surgery to repair damage to his bowel and his liver.
The judge is expected to deliver his sentence in May.