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Judge gives bat wielder 2 years less a day

One victim beaten unconscious and left with brain injuries

A young man who beat two people in the head with a baseball bat and then, while he was out on bail, attacked another man by repeatedly kicking him the head has been sent to jail for two years less a day by a provincial court judge.

Judge Doug Moss of the North Vancouver provincial court handed the sentence to Thomas Baker, 19, after he pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault and one count of assault causing bodily harm in relation to the attacks, which happened in December 2010 and February of this year.

The victim in the worst attack suffered brain damage as a result of the attack and had to have emergency brain surgery.

"Basically he was beaten senseless," said Moss, adding there was no motivation that would justify "such an outrageous act."

The first attack happened on Dec. 3, 2010, when a group of people gathered in the basement of Joseph Kelso's home in the 300-block of West Fifth Street in North Vancouver. A fight broke out in the back yard, where Baker wielded either a baseball bat or a baton, striking Kelso in the head with it multiple times. When another man, James Thomas, tried to intervene, Baker hit him with the bat too.

Kelso was rushed to hospital with bleeding on the brain, which required emergency surgery.

Kelso's life changed dramatically after the attack, said Moss. He had to take pain medication for several months, couldn't sleep unless he was sitting up, required plastic surgery and was unable to work because of severe headaches.

Baker was arrested and spent two months in custody. He was then released to a recovery house in Surrey. But Baker spent only 10 days there before walking away. On Feb. 19, he committed the second violent attack in the same neighbourhood - near Fourth and Mahon in North Vancouver - when he punched Ian Knowles in the face, then kicked him five times in the head when he was on the ground. Knowles suffered a major concussion in that attack. Baker tried to run away, but was caught after a brief police chase.

Moss noted Baker was extremely drunk both times.

Crown counsel Ron Edwards asked the judge to consider federal jail time, pointing to a pre-sentence report that said Baker presents a high risk to reoffend and is on a path to a life of crime.

Moss said the report was "probably one of the most negative ones I've read in my 20 years as a judge," noting Baker's history of violence and aggression in schools and his tendency to hang out with others who share an interest in drugs.

Baker started drinking at 11 or 12, the report writer noted, and sometimes went on benders lasting weeks at a time.

Despite knowing that drinking leads to problems, "you seem unwilling to do anything about it," said Moss, noting Baker has rejected treatment programs and offers of help from the Squamish Nation.

Defence lawyer Alex Wolf urged the judge to give Baker a second chance. "He's 19. You can't just throw away the key," said Wolf.

"He knows that he's violent when he drinks."

Wolf said Baker is the result of a dysfunctional home where he never got proper guidance.

Baker will serve his sentence in a provincial jail on top of the seven months he has already spent in custody. Moss also ordered him to serve three years probation following his release, with conditions to complete a residential treatment program if directed to do so, to obey a curfew for the first four months and not to appear in public under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

jseyd@nsnews.com