A pair of young men shocked a community when they went on a savage rampage, brutally beating a pair of senior citizens for no apparent reason. However, a judge presented the criminals with an incredibly generous gift when he heard how they had “suffered.”
After meeting friends for breakfast, 72-year-old Morty White pulled into the parking lot of the Scotiabank in the Canadian capital city of Ottawa. The elderly gentleman walked into the establishment to use the ATM then headed back to his white Subaru to continue about his day. Unfortunately, he was the perfect target for a particularly evil act of violence.
“The next thing I remember, it’s 9:30 and I’m in an ambulance.”
White told the Ottawa Citizen that he was jumped without warning by a pair of young men, who beat him nearly to death. Incredibly, he maintained consciousness long enough to manage to get a good look at his attackers. He relayed to police that there were two tall, slender men of minority descent on the sidewalk as he walked out of the bank. He recalled that they said something to him in what was possibly broken English before delivering the first blow to his face.
White was rushed to the hospital with a fractured pelvis, broken and bruised ribs, a broken nose, black eyes, and bruising and swelling on the back of his head. Incredibly, he wasn’t robbed, making the attack appear to be a random act of unprovoked violence.
“I’m obviously upset that it happened but I’m glad that it isn’t as bad as it could’ve been because if something were like that to happen, there was much easier that it could’ve killed me,” White said in an interview.
Thanks to surveillance footage, police tracked down Yusuf Hussein, 18, and Abdirahman Sahal, 18, and arrested them for the vicious attack. Investigators quickly linked the pair to another attack on 57-year-old Julian Wilson, who was walking down the sidewalk when one of the men approached him and punched him in the face out of the blue.
The two men were ultimately found guilty of aggravated assault. However, they wouldn’t be under lockdown for very long. Unbelievably, Ontario Court Justice Peter Doody ensured that Hussein and Sahal will each serve less than two years in jail after hearing the defense attorney’s claim that one of the men has “suffered” unduly after his arrest.
Judge Doody reduced the men’s sentences after considering that Sahal has asthma that could worsen during his incarceration and has “suffered emotional stress beyond that suffered by inmates” who do not have chronic illnesses. Of course, even without the special deal, the men’s sentences were still veritably lenient. Sahal’s original 3-year sentence was lowered by more than 14 months, which included credit for time served. Hussein was given a 30-month sentence, which was reduced to approximately 23 months in jail.
“Nevertheless, I have concluded that the sentences I am imposing are as short as possible, considering all of the circumstances of the offences and the offenders,” Doody said.
Sahal expressed no remorse for his victims during the entirety of the trial. Still, Doody explained that he took Hussein’s mental health struggles into consideration when handing down the men’s punishments.
Hussein “has not had an easy path dealing with the mental health system,” Doody said. “(Hussein) said that he was very sorry for what happened that day — that is was a life lesson. He told me that his almost two years on house arrest had made him more mature, and that he was working with his psychotherapist on his coping skills. He said he was very ashamed of himself, that he knew that Mr. White and Mr. Wilson were innocent victims and that his apology would not be enough, but hoped that it would help in some way with the healing process. He said this will never happen again.”
Both White and Wilson expressed to the court that they now suffer from anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder since the attack. White is unsure that he will ever fully recover and remains in a wheelchair for the time being.
The judge was determined to ensure that the attackers didn’t “suffer” any further for their crimes. However, their innocent victims continue to suffer and must now watch as their abusers are given compassion and mercy that they were denied.
Disturbingly, mental and physical illnesses are being used as excuses for escaping justice. At the same time, the real victims are not only having to live with the effects of the crimes committed against them but also the fear and distress from knowing that their attackers will be back on the streets in no time.
