Man can’t recall repeatedly stabbing male last Christmas, court hears

A Niagara man who believes someone may have spiked his drink because he has no recollection of stabbing a man multiple times near a Welland bar will return to court next month for sentencing.

Sydney Blair, 20, pleaded guilty Monday in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines to a charge of assault with a weapon.

On Dec. 25, 2017, court was told, Blair and a 21-year-old friend left a Park Street bar after staff refused to continue to serve them due to their level of intoxication.

Outside the bar, the second male and the third young man engaged in a “consensual” fight, assistant Crown attorney Tim Hill told Judge Tory Colvin.

When it appeared the victim was getting the better of the friend, court was told, Blair intervened and stabbed the man four times.

Hill said the victim’s injuries were “significant,” including a stab wound to his lungs.

The man spent two weeks in hospital after the incident and “he still has not recovered,” Hill told the judge.

Defence counsel Jeff Root said his client has little to no recollection of what happened that night.

He said the defendant, who does not have a criminal record, believes someone may have put something in his drink.

Blair will return to court Nov. 28 for sentencing. The Crown is seeking a 12-month jail term.