A P.E.I. man who hit someone with a bat before the victim responded by giving him a severe beating was sentenced Wednesday to four months in jail.
James Michael Wright, 42, appeared before Judge John Douglas in provincial court in Charlottetown for sentencing after previously pleading guilty to assault with a weapon.
The court heard a cab driver saw Wright in the middle of a crosswalk yelling at Christopher John Lambe who was on a skateboard.
Crown attorney Gerald Quinn said an unknown male handed Wright a baseball bat.
Wright hit Lambe with the bat and when the police arrived they found both men had serious injuries, although Wright’s were the worst after Lambe retaliated.
The court heard Wright ended up in hospital with injuries that included facial fractures and bruises.
Referring to Wright’s injuries, Quinn compared the incident to “a titmouse fighting a grizzly bear.”
Lambe was sentenced in April to 7.5 months in jail after pleading guilty to assault causing bodily harm for his role in the incident.
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Wright addressed the court before hearing his sentence, saying the incident escalated and “blew out of control.”
He also apologized for taking up Douglas’ time.
“I truly am sorry,” Wright said.
The Crown submitted photos of both men, including some that showed Lambe with staples in his head and stills from a video of Wright that showed his injuries were more severe.
After looking at the pictures, Douglas said Wright was lucky he wasn’t in worse shape.
“This was brutal,” Douglas said.
In sentencing Wright to four months in jail Douglas followed a joint recommendation from the Crown and defence.
Wright will be on probation for one year, during which time is to have no contact with Lambe.
He must also provide a DNA sample for the national databank and will be under a weapons prohibition for 10 years.