The defendant, Michael Bascoe, was convicted after trial of simple assault and assault involving choking, suffocation, or strangulation against his intimate partner.
The assaults were prolonged, unprovoked, and involved choking to the point of brief unconsciousness, occurring while the victim was pregnant.
The Crown sought a 10-month jail sentence, while the defence requested a 12-month conditional sentence, citing the significant impact of incarceration on the defendant's two young children, whose mother was recently diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer and could no longer care for them full-time.
The court, considering the principles of denunciation and deterrence in domestic violence cases and the recent amendments expanding the availability of conditional sentences, balanced the seriousness of the offence with the collateral consequences on the defendant's family.
The court imposed a one-year conditional sentence, followed by one year of probation, a DNA order, and a five-year section 110 order, finding it a fit and appropriate sentence given all circumstances.
