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Victoria dangerous offender gets eight-year term

A 32-year-old Victoria man with an extensive history of violence and arson has been declared a dangerous offender and sentenced to eight years in prison followed by a long-term supervision order for 10 years.
photo generic court justice
Windstand Paul Lionel, 32, will be 50 years old before he will be released to the community.

A 32-year-old Victoria man with an extensive history of violence and arson has been declared a dangerous offender and sentenced to eight years in prison followed by a long-term supervision order for 10 years.

Windstand Paul Lionel, who is also known by the surname Nurmi, will be 50 years old before he will be released to the community.

“The federal system can provide more intense treatment, so there is some reason for optimism,” B.C. Supreme Court Justice Keith Bracken said at Lionel’s sentencing hearing Wednesday. “Therefore, I am satisfied that there is a reasonable expectation that Mr. Lionel can be released without risk to individuals in the community.”

In June 2012, the Crown applied to have Lionel designated as a dangerous offender after he pleaded guilty to the aggravated assault of a stranger outside Streetlink Emergency Shelter on April 21, 2010. The application was not opposed by defence lawyer Lou Webster.

Prosecutor Paula Donnachie told the court that Lionel became upset during a conversation with a stranger and grabbed the man by the throat and choked him into unconsciousness. When the man fell to the ground, Lionel began kicking and stomping on his head.

People in the area tried to intervene but were threatened by Lionel, Donnachie said. Lionel walked away from the man, who was lying on the ground not moving, then came back and began kicking and stomping him again.

Police arrived as Lionel was leaving the area. He was taken to city cells, but police became concerned about his erratic behaviour and took Lionel to the hospital, Donnachie said.

Lionel’s victim had very serious injuries, Donnachie said, showing photographs of Lionel’s footprint on several areas of the man’s body.

Lionel had been out of jail only two or three days when he committed the aggravated assault.

In December 2009, he received a 30-month sentence followed by three years of probation after pleading guilty to setting fire to a house rented to his girlfriend in Cadboro Bay on Dec. 14, 2008.

That case drew public attention when it was revealed that two Oak Bay police officers had arrested Lionel earlier that morning. When he became agitated and injured himself in the back of a police car, they took him to Eric Martin Pavilion mental-health facility and left him with staff. Lionel left about five hours later and set fire to the home, which was reduced to rubble.

Lionel also pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm to his cellmate at the Vancouver Island Correctional Centre on May 31, 2013. Lionel was burning material in his cell to make tattoo ink. A guard intervened. At first, Lionel denied doing anything, but he later admitted responsibility.

After, he became angry and violent towards his cellmate, injuring him with a mop handle. Lionel believed the cellmate should have taken responsibility because he was about to face a dangerous-offender hearing.

Bracken described Lionel’s criminal history as “replete with violence.” He noted that Lionel had spent almost all of his adult life either in custody or on supervision.

Lionel’s background is more troubling than most, Bracken noted. He was born in St. Lucia. His mother, who abused both drugs and alcohol, was absent. He was left in the care of an alcoholic and abusive father. As a young boy, he wandered the streets, living on beaches without any supervision by an adult or parent. He had some early education but did not get much out of it.

Lionel came in contact with a medical student in St. Lucia named Miss Nurmi, Bracken said. She became concerned about the boy, contacted his father and got a waiver of his parenting rights. She adopted Lionel but immediately found his behaviour was disruptive. At one point, Lionel threatened to burn down her house when he didn’t get his way.

In 1995, because of his behaviour problems, Nurmi decided she could no longer care for him, Bracken said. Lionel was taken into the care of the ministry.

His behaviour continued to be difficult, and he soon came in contact with the criminal justice system.

Lionel has two convictions for assault with a weapon and numerous convictions for assault against girlfriends, ex-girlfriends, friends and strangers.

Court-ordered reports show Lionel has cognitive deficits and is very low functioning. Drugs and alcohol contribute to his problem.

However, one psychiatrist found some reasons for optimism, Bracken said. Lionel has participated in a number of programs in understanding patterns of violence and substance abuse. He has made recent gains in insight and attitude and seems better able to control his behaviour.

His literacy skills a — a real barrier to his rehabilitation — are improving, and he is able to write sentences. In fact, he has produced a microwave cookbook, Microwave Jailhouse Cooking, with these new skills, Bracken noted.

Overall, with the gains he has recently made and his genuine desire to change, he may be able to lessen his risk substantially, the judge said.

The conditions of Lionel’s long-term supervision order include a lifetime prohibition on possessing firearms or explosives. Lionel is not to consume drugs or alcohol, not to associate with criminals and to participate in treatment and counselling as directed by his parole supervisor.

Lionel must report any relationship he has with a woman, sexual or non-sexual. He is not to live in an intimate relationship without letting his parole officer know. He must also respect a parole board curfew and must reside in a residence run by Corrections Canada for high-risk offenders.

ABOUT THE DESIGNATIONS

• The primary objective of the dangerous-offender designation is to protect the public from offenders who have committed serious sexual or violent offences, except murder, and continue to pose a threat to society.

• Dangerous offenders typically have been found guilty of a serious personal injury offence and have demonstrated a pattern of repetitive or aggressive behaviour that makes them a threat to public safety.

• Those declared dangerous offenders are often in prison for life, although they are to be reviewed for parole seven years after being incarcerated and every two years after that.

• Dangerous offenders who are paroled are monitored for the rest of their lives. If they continue to present an unacceptable risk to society, they will stay in prison for life.

• Long-term offenders typically have been convicted of a serious personal injury offence and are considered likely to reoffend.

• Long-term offenders can be managed through a regular sentence, along with a specific period of federal supervision in the community of up to 10 years after their release.

ldickson@timescolonist.com