PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. — A Saskatchewan man who viciously beat a homeless woman before setting her on fire will not be declared a dangerous offender.
Judge Stanley Loewen ruled Wednesday that Leslie Black will not get the designation which would have kept him in prison indefinitely.
Loewen recommended Black be sentenced to a lengthy prison term, followed by a long-term supervision order which would mean Black would be monitored for up to 10 years.
Black pleaded guilty to attempted murder in the sexual assault of Marlene Bird, who was attacked in Prince Albert in 2014. Her injuries were so serious both legs had to be amputated and she lost much of her eyesight.
Bird told court in handwritten letters she now can't do anything on her own, including simple things such as picking a blueberry or going to the bathroom.
She said she has to wear adult diapers, can't control her bowels and feels disgusted with herself when she can't make it to the bathroom in time. Bird said she also fears entering the city because of the attack.
At the hearing, Black said if he could go back to the night he attacked Bird, he would have taken his father's advice and stayed home.
In a brief statement, which Black read despite a stutter he has had since witnessing his mother's murder when he was a child, Black said he understands that Bird and her family have not forgiven him.
"I apologize for what I did," he said. "I still can't forgive myself."
Black said he is not a violent person and wants to get the help he needs to succeed in life.
"I'm usually a happy-go-lucky guy."
Black's defence lawyer argued his client's actions were brutal, but said that does not mean Black will violently offend again.
One psychologist testified Black is not necessarily at a high risk to reoffend if he gets intensive, long-term therapy. But another psychiatrist testified that officials can't presume to understand Black and what he's capable of given what he did to Bird even though he had no history of violence.
