Four months house arrest for assault on police officer

BARRHEAD - A 37-year-old Barrhead-area man received a four-month conditional sentence order (CSO) of house arrest and 12-month probation after he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer.

Justice Carrie-Anne Downey handed down the sentence to Dallas Anthony Shephard during a Jan 28 Barrhead Court of Justice session accepting a joint Crown and defence submission. The case was scheduled to go to trial later that day.

The Crown also withdrew an additional charge of assault of a peace officer, threatening to use a weapon, obstruction of a peace officer, resisting a peace officer, trespassing at night and an indecent act in public in the presence of one or more people.

The victim fine surcharge was also waived.

Crown prosecutor Matthew Kerr said that on April 8, 2024, at about 5 a.m. Shephard walked by a residence in the Town of Barrhead and pulled down his pants, exposing his buttocks and genitalia and then proceeded to masturbate.

"No one was around or observed him doing this, so he pulled up his pants and walked away," Kerr said, adding that a security camera had captured the incident. 

However, he added, Shephard wasn't facing the camera.

Kerr said the accused returned to the same residence shortly after and was again captured on security footage, "This time with his pants up."

He added that a woman living at the residence checked the security footage later that morning and called the RCMP to report the incident, including a description of the person committing the act.

At about 8:10 a.m. on the same day, Kerr said RCMP started looking for the individual on the security footage.

Police spot the accused nearby and ask him for his name.

"He replies. Robert Faithful," the Crown said.

Not believing him, the officer detains Shephard and asks Shephard to produce identification, but the only things in the accused's pockets are cigarettes and a lighter.

"[The officer] is speaking with him, and he unexpectedly lunges at her, pushing her in the chest and then starts to run away," Kerr said.

He added she then attempted to follow him on foot before getting her cruiser.

"Mr. Shephard continues to run, picks up a piece of concrete and throws it at the cruiser, but it misses," Kerr said, adding Vicente then contacts dispatch asking for backup, observing the accused go into a local restaurant.

When an additional officer arrived, police entered the restaurant and proceeded to the restroom, where the accused exited one of the bathrooms.

"They attempt to arrest him. Shephard starts to walk away, and [the officers] take physical control of him and try to handcuff him with the help of a civilian," Kerr said. "He resists, pulls one of his arms underneath his body, and grabs one of the [constable's] thumbs and pulls it back, pulling away, trying to run, and the officers take the accused to the ground."

The Crown added Shephard, while down, attempts to grab one of the officer's batons and "other deterrent items" before being subdued.

"As he is about to be put into the police cruiser, he attempts to run again unsuccessfully and is put into the unit, where he begins to speak nonsensically," Kerr said.

Police later identified the accused as a resident of Life Empowerment and was released following a hearing on a $1,500 promise to pay release order.

Kerr alleged a previous criminal record with two convictions for violence.

He also noted "significant gaps" in his record between offences, with the latest occurring in 2018.

Kerr also said that the accused suffers from significant mental health issues.

It was a true joint submission,Kerr told court.

"I thought long and hard about what sentence I would suggest. The assault of a [police officer] is serious in and of itself," he said. "His overall circumstances are concerning, coupled with his significant mental health challenges.

Kerr noted that the defence and the Crown agree that custody is appropriate under the circumstances, believing it can be accomplished through a conditional sentence order followed by 12 months of probation.

Conditions of the CSO and subsequent probation include keeping the peace and being of good behaviour, attending assessment, counselling, and treatment sessions as directed by his probation officer for drugs and alcohol, mental health, sexual offending and a no-contact order with the complainant. Shephard is also prohibited from leaving the province for the duration of the CSO.

Shephard's lawyer, Cyprian Ifada, said his client has a long history of mental illness and, at the time of the offence and still currently receiving support from Life Empowerment, a company that provides individualized support services for people who live with disabilities.

"[My client], who admittedly has addiction issues, has been taken advantage of by drug peddlers and has been sexually abused and exploited by them," he said.

Ifada said that on the day of the offence, his client snuck out of Life Empowerment, where he was staying, after being contacted through social media by drug dealers.

"He was then given drugs and was sexually exploited to pay off people," he said. "That's what led to all of this."

Ifada said that besides having 24-hour support from Life Empowerment, Sheppard will also receive help from his family, specifically from his mother.

Justice Downey called the gravity of the offence high and increased even more that the assault was on a police officer.

Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com