Visit to former girlfriend ends up in criminal conviction in Barrhead court

BARRHEAD - Failing to comply with conditions of a court undertaking netted a man 10 days of incarceration.

However, due to time in pre-trial custody he is in a time served situation.

Justice Carrie-Anne Downey handed down the sentence during a Sept. 10 Barrhead Court of Justice session, accepting a joint Crown-defence submission after Dalton Dean pleaded guilty to failing to comply with conditions of an undertaking. She also waived the victim fine surcharge.

The Crown withdrew a second, failing to comply with an undertaking charge.

Crown prosecutor Andrew Dirgo said that Barrhead RCMP went to Dean's former girlfriend's home to see if they could locate him as he was the subject of two "endorsed warrants."

He added that when police arrived, they found Dean at the residence.

At the time, Dirgo said, the accused was under conditions to have no contact with his former partner.

The Crown stated that a mitigating factor included the accused's guilty plea. However, it was somewhat subdued as it was slated to go to trial, while Dalton's criminal record was an aggravating factor.

Dirgo also noted that Dean had spent at least seven days and at 1.5 days enhanced credit, effectively putting him in a time-served situation.

Dalton's lawyer, Richard Forbes, said his client had a lot of family support, pointing out that the accused's father and former partner had accompanied him to court.

He added that since his client's release from the Edmonton Remand Centre, he has been staying and working at his father's farm, effectively on house arrest, noting Dean's sister also lives at the farm.

"She has assured me things are going well with Mr. Dean," Forbes said. "He has an ongoing relationship with [his former partner] and was at her residence with her permission. He knows he was on conditions, which doesn't excuse the fact that he breached a court order."

Forbes also requested that the justice consider waiving the victim fine surcharge, saying it would be an unnecessary hardship on Dean as he is not bringing in any income.

When weighing her decision, Justice Downey credited Dean for his guilty plea, even though it was on the day the trial was scheduled to begin.

"Aggravating is that the breach appears to be in relation to a domestic context, even though the victim was somewhat complacent in having contact," she said. "From what I have heard, it is still in the acceptable range, and I will accept [the joint submission]".

Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com