A North Vancouver man who assaulted a female patient in Lions Gate Hospital just 11 days after he got out of jail for a similar previous crime at Royal Columbian Hospital has been sent to jail for 10 months.
Aaron Edward Abernathy, 31, was recently handed the sentence after pleading guilty to the assault, which happened July 15, 2012 in a quiet room of the psychiatric unit of Lions Gate Hospital.
Abernathy was already in the quiet room, when a woman - who was a stranger to him - walked in, according to court documents.
He offered the woman a back massage, which she refused, then invited her to sit on a couch with him. He then got up and turned off the lights, hugged the woman and tried to kiss her. She pushed him away.
When the woman tried to leave the room, Abernathy blocked the door, telling her he "needed a friend and wanted another hug."
Abernathy then left the room and the woman reported what had happened to nurses.
Abernathy got in a taxi outside the hospital but was taken back there when the cabbie realized he wasn't the patient the taxi was supposed to pick up. Abernathy was arrested at the hospital.
The incident took place just 11 days after Abernathy got out of jail for a previous assault at Royal Columbian Hospital that happened in December 2011.
The victim in that case had been admitted to hospital with pelvic pain and was lying naked under a blanket in an examination room when Abernathy walked in, shut the door and began kissing her neck and touching her body under the blanket. The woman later told reporters the assault left her "frozen in fear" and angry.
Abernathy eventually pled guilty to assault in that case and was handed an eight-month jail sentence on April 26 last year.
Less than three months later, however, he was out of jail and had assaulted the woman at Lions Gate.
Abernathy committed both crimes while high on crystal methamphetamine. According to one psychiatric report, Abernathy admitted that crystal meth "makes him hypersexual and this is in fact one of the main reasons that he uses the drug." Under the influence of the drug, Abernathy has repeatedly engaged in inappropriate sexual behaviour, according to the report.
The psychiatrist wrote that Abernathy would likely continue to exhibit bizarre behaviour when in a drug-induced psychosis.
Abernathy has a lengthy criminal history, including convictions for assault, forcible entry and several incidents of committing indecent acts in public.
In addition to the jail term, Challenger placed him on three years probation, with orders to stay away from all hospitals except for medical emergencies or with his probation officer's consent. The judge also banned him from all alcohol and drugs.
The judge said Abernathy "can choose to use methamphetamine or he can choose to be in jail. This kind of conduct cannot be tolerated."
jseyd@nsnews.com
