Striking woman earns Lethbridge man jail term

By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on January 6, 2024.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

A Lethbridge man who struck a woman in the stomach as he attempted to flee onto a busy street, has been handed a short jail sentence.

Tyler Ray McNabb was sentenced to 90 days in jail after he pleaded guilty in Lethbridge court of justice to charges of assault and uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm.

Court was told that on Dec. 8 of last year police were called to SASHA, the Southern Alberta Self Help Association, to assist with a resident who was overdosing on drugs. Staff found McNabb in the basement and administered Narcan, after which he began fighting and threatening staff.

“He grabbed the fire extinguisher, pulled the pin and stated he was going to kill them with the pin,” said Crown Prosecutor Marshall Gourlay.

Another resident wrestled the fire extinguisher from McNabb, who then ran outside into traffic on 6 Avenue South. As he ran onto the road, a female employee grabbed his backpack and pulled him back, but was nearly pulled into the street herself.

McNabb struggled with the woman, striking her in the stomach, and elbowed another employee in the stomach. She later complained of abdominal pain and had to be checked at the hospital.

When police arrived and staff went to get McNabb from his room, they found his window open and the man gone. Police found him afterward on the northside and told him he couldn’t return to the residence.

Later the same night, an employee of London Drugs on the Northside went to get on her bike, which she had earlier secured with two locks, but the $600 bike was gone. Police reviewed security video and watched McNabb stealing the bike.

McNabb also pleaded guilty to a single charge of theft under $5,000 and was sentenced to 30 days in jail, to run concurrently with the 90-day sentence for assault and uttering threats.

Calgary lawyer Shaun Leochko told court his client, who suffers from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, is remorseful for his actions. He noted that following a staff meeting at SASHA, it was decided that McNabb can return to his residence after he is released from custody.

“There was a conference about this situation…they reviewed their policies and determined that the situation perhaps was not handled as it should be by everybody,” Leochko said.

McNabb was given credit for the equivalent of 42 days he spent in custody since his arrest, which leaves him with 48 days to serve.