Regent Park Murder, Army Reservists convicted in homeless man's death

[the 48th regulator]

Reservists go on trial accused of killing homeless man

Last Updated: Monday, March 17, 2008 | 12:19 PM ET Comments16Recommend62CBC News

The trial of three reserve soldiers charged with second-degree murder in the death of a homeless man opened Monday in Toronto. 

Brian Deganis, Jeffery Hall and Mountaz Ibrahim are accused of beating 59-year-old Paul Croutch to death in August 2005.

It's alleged the attack happened as Croutch was sleeping on a park bench near Sherbourne and Shuter streets.

In court, Crown prosecutors said one of the accused was overheard saying he hated homeless people and wanted to take them on. It was after that the reservists went to the park and allegedly committed the attack.

The three men had been at a function at the nearby Moss Park Armoury.

The jury was told that Croutch was punched and kicked so hard that his body landed almost a metre behind the bench where he was sleeping.

The three are also accused of attacking a woman who tried to help Croutch.

The brutality of the killing shocked people in Toronto. It was not only the violence against a vulnerable, homeless man that caught people's attention, but also the fact that three Canadian Forces reservists were accused of the fatal assault.

An autopsy showed Croutch suffered head injuries likely caused by punching, kicking or stomping.

A forensic expert is expected to testify Monday afternoon.

 

[old medic]

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/Story.html?id=382249

Homeless man 'never knew what hit him'
Former Editor; Three former reservists on trial in beating death
Shannon Kari, National Post  Published: Tuesday, March 18, 2008

TORONTO - Paul Croutch was trying to sleep on a park bench in downtown Toronto in the early morning hours of Aug. 31, 2005, wrapped in plastic garbage bags during a rainstorm, when he was suddenly attacked.

The 59-year-old homeless man and former newspaper editor was knocked from the bench and then repeatedly and savagely beaten until he lapsed into unconsciousness and eventually died from numerous injuries, including a fatal blow to the brain. Several ribs were fractured and his spleen was torn.

"Paul Croutch never saw it coming. He never knew what or who hit him," said Crown attorney Hank Goody in his opening address to the jury in the trial of three former Canadian Forces reservists accused of beating the homeless man to death.

Jeffrey Hall, 23, Mountaz Ibrahim, 25, and Brian Deganis, 23, are charged with second-degree murder in the death of Mr. Croutch, who was killed in the same park that is also home to an armoury where they served in the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada.

They are also facing charges of assault causing bodily harm and are accused of attacking a woman who tried to stop the beating of Mr. Croutch.

The defendants have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

In his opening address, Mr. Goody reminded the jury of the physical differences between the defendants and the victim, who had been living on the streets and suffered from a number of physical ailments.

"Paul Croutch was a homeless person, sleeping in the park on a bench wrapped in green garbage bags, in the middle of a rainstorm -- completely defenceless, completely non-resistant," Mr. Goody said.

"The three men who attacked Paul Croutch were each young, strong, physically fit" and "trained combat soldiers," observed Mr. Goody, a senior Crown attorney.

The Ontario Superior Court jury was told it will hear evidence that Mr. Deganis made comments indicating his dislike for the homeless people who sleep in Moss Park.

Mr. Deganis allegedly stated the evening of the incident that he "hated bums" and wanted to "take them on."

The three defendants left the armoury at about 4 a.m. and the jury was told there will be evidence that "one or all" of the young men was under the influence of alcohol.

The bench where Mr. Croutch was attacked is only a couple of hundred metres from the armoury.

During the attack, a "Good Samaritan" who was walking to a shelter tried to intervene, the Crown said. When Valerie Valen threatened to call police, the three defendants allegedly came after her and knocked the woman to the ground.

The three defendants sat next to each other in a cramped prisoner's box, with family members present in the public gallery. No family or friends of Mr. Croutch, who was once the editor of a newspaper in the northeastern B.C. community of Dawson Creek, were in the courtroom.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Woman said she witnessed beating of homeless man
Updated: Wed Apr. 02 2008 2:06:17 PM

ctvtoronto.ca


The prosecution's key witness at the murder trial of three army reservists took the stand on Wednesday, saying she heard screaming and then saw a homeless man being beaten.

Valerie Valen, a self-described recovering drug addict, told the court she was in Toronto's Moss Park in the early morning hours of Aug. 31, 2005 when she heard the commotion.

She said during the attack, a man shouted "all these bums -- these (expletive) druggies." Valen testified she shouted at the men to stop their attack, and then they attacked her.

The Crown alleges a homeless man, 59-year-old Paul Croutch, was sleeping on a bench in the park when he was attacked by the three reservists -- Brian Deganis, Jeffrey Hall and Mountaz Ibrahim.

Croutch died of his injuries in hospital. The accused, all in their 20s, are on trial for second-degree murder.

The former Queen's Own Rifles members are also charged with assault causing bodily harm for the alleged beating of Valen.

Deganis, Hall and Ibrahim were at the nearby armoury for an event on the night of the attack, court has heard.

Major Peter St. Denis testified on Tuesday that Deganis and Hall seemed intoxicated, and that he had heard Deganis cursing the homeless who frequent the park and threatening to "take them on," the Toronto Star reported.

The three accused have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

With a report from CTV Toronto

 

[the 48th regulator]

Reservist's ranting 'out of character,' trial told


April 02, 2008
Betsy Powell
Courts Bureau

TheStar.com - GTA - Reservist's ranting 'out of character,' trial told

Accused seemed intoxicated but unlikely to be a danger, major testifies at reservists' murder trial

Canadian Armed Forces Reserve soldier Brian Deganis's ranting and raving about bums after a night of drinking was "totally out of character," Major Peter St. Denis testified yesterday, agreeing with the young man's lawyer, J.J. Burke.

"Never once did he say `I want to kill anybody'?" Burke then asked St. Denis, who wrapped up his final day on the stand at the trial of Deganis and fellow Queen's Own Rifles reservists Jeffery Hall and Mountaz Ibrahim.

St. Denis agreed he had not heard that utterance.

The three men, all in their twenties, are charged with second-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old Paul Croutch, a homeless man who was attacked Aug. 31, 2005 as he lay sleeping on a bench in Moss Park, near the downtown Toronto armoury. He died in hospital.

Under questioning later by Crown attorney Hank Goody, St. Denis said that while he was concerned about Deganis driving a motor vehicle in his condition, he did not think he was a danger to himself or others.

Deganis, Hall and Ibrahim were at the armoury that night after St. Denis had hosted a farewell dinner at the Bier Markt on The Esplanade for a group of visiting German soldiers.

St. Denis, who was a police officer in Peel for 16 years, has told the jury that Deganis and Hall seemed intoxicated when he returned to Moss Park. Both smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot eyes and Deganis, in particular, had a "blank" look like the "lights are on and nobody's home," Burke said, prompting an agreeing nod from St. Denis.

St. Denis has testified that he heard Deganis cursing the "f---ing bums' who frequent the park and threatening to "take them on."

Burke finished his cross-examination of St. Denis by asking him if he knew that on Sept. 1, 2005, at 3 p.m., Deganis had driven back down to the Moss Park armoury and tried to enlist to go to Afghanistan.

St. Denis said he did not.

The trial resumes today when the Crown's key witness, Valerie Valen, is expected to take the stand. The Crown alleges the three accused attacked Valen after she saw them beating Croutch, a man she knew to be homeless.

The three are also charged with assault causing bodily harm. They've pleaded not guilty to all the charges.


Copyright:  2008 Torstar Syndication Services 
Publication:  Toronto Star 

 

[the 48th regulator]

I saw homeless man beaten, witness says

TheStar.com - GTA - I saw homeless man beaten, witness says

RON BULLl/ TORONTO STAR
Witness Valerie Valen enters court in the trial of reservists charged in the killing of a homeless man in Moss Park.

Homicide maps
View interactive maps of homicides in the GTA since 2005.
April 02, 2008
Curt Rush and Justin Piercy
STAFF REPORTERS
A key witness in the trial of three army reservists accused of murdering a homeless man in a Toronto park told a court this morning that she broke up the fatal beating of the victim, only to have the accused attack her.
Valerie Valen testified she was in Moss Park looking for a friend sometime after 1 a.m. on August 31, 2005, when she heard the commotion.

Asked what was being said, she responded: “F---king druggies, bums and f---ing bums. At first it was just one voice, it was pretty loud. I was able to hear from 20 to 30 feet away (and) the voice was very angry,” said Valen.

It’s alleged the three accused, Jeffrey Hall, Mountaz Ibrahim and Brian Deganis, all in their twenties and all charged with second-degree murder, beat Paul Croutch, 59, on Aug. 31, 2005 as he lay sleeping on a bench in Moss Park, near the downtown armoury. He died in hospital.

The Crown believes the three accused attacked Valen after she saw them beating Croutch, a man she knew to be homeless.

Although the defence pointed out it was dark and there was pouring rain, she said there were small lights surrounding the park and she had a “clear view of what was going on” and saw “three young men hitting and football-kicking a sleeping bag containing Mr. Crouch.”

She testified they beat Crouch for three to five minutes and stopped only when she called out to the men: “`What the hell are you doing? He’s an old man. I’m going to call 911. What could he possibly have done?’”

Valen testified the men told her to `get the hell out of the park’ and to `mind her own f---king business’ before they kicked her legs out from underneath her, pushed her and knocked her to the ground.

“What, you beat up an old man, now you’re going to beat up a woman?’” Valen said she told the men.

Now realizing she was a woman, Valen testified that one of the men responded by saying, “You’re a dyke and you don’t mean anything anyway.”

After this they told to get up and start running, before knocking her down once more.

“I feared for my life,” Valen said as she rubbed at her eyes, becoming tearful as she recounted the memories of the night.

She told the court that most of the beating inflicted upon her was carried out by Ibrahim and Hall, while Deganis put his military dog tags in her face and said, “We own this park. This gives us the right to kill all the homeless derelicts.”

Valen said she eventually got up again and scrambled to safety on Queen St. She testified that when she turned around, the three men had disappeared into the armoury.

An admitted drug addict, Valen said she was receiving treatment for her addiction to opium at the time.

She also admitted to smoking pot and drinking in the park hours earlier, but said the effects had worn off and she was “sober.”

Her time on the stand is expected to wrap up tomorrow.

Deganis, Hall and Ibrahim were at the armoury that night after the previous witness to take the stand, Major Peter St. Denis, had hosted a farewell dinner at a restaurant on The Esplanade for a group of visiting German soldiers.

St. Denis, who was a police officer in Peel for 16 years, told the jury that Deganis and Hall seemed intoxicated when he returned to Moss Park. Both smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot eyes and Deganis, in particular, had a "blank" look like the "lights are on and nobody’s home," the young men’s lawyer, J.J.Burke said, prompting an agreeing nod from St. Denis.

The three are also charged with assault causing bodily harm. They’ve pleaded not guilty to all the charges.


Copyright:  2008 Torstar Syndication Services 
Publication:  Toronto Star

RON BULLl/ TORONTO STAR
Witness Valerie Valen enters court in the trial of reservists charged in the killing of a homeless man in Moss Park.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Witness To Savage Murder Of Homeless Man: No Human Could Survive That Beating

Wednesday April 2, 2008
CityNews.ca Staff
Warning: The following story contains offensive language and descriptions of a violent crime. Reader discretion is advised.

Her name is Valerie Valen and she will never forget what being a Good Samaritan did to her life. She's the woman who tried to come to the aid of a homeless man as he was being beaten to death at Moss Park Armoury on a rainy night in August 2005.

Three reservists, Jeffrey Hall, Mountaz Ibrahim and Brian Deganis, are charged with second-degree murder in the terrible crime, which the court heard began when the trio returned from a night of heavy drinking.

Valen was passing by the park that night, and couldn't believe what she was hearing. In some stunning testimony on Wednesday, the only living witness to the crime recalls being startled by the voice of a man later identified as Hall emerging through the downpour, screaming ""f***ing bums" and that the homeless were "all a waste of skin."

She watched in shock as Paul Croutch was kicked and pummeled by three men. While she never saw the victim close-up, the 44-year-old recalls seeing the men "beating and football kicking the sleeping bag containing Mr. Crouch ... He didn't see what was coming."

She became alarmed at the violence and remembers thinking, "no human could survive that beating." Sadly, she was right. Croutch died following the brutal assault.

And Valen became a victim herself when she screamed back at the trio, warning them she was calling 911. She told a hushed courtroom that was the moment they stopped going after Croutch and turned on her.

She claims she was beaten by both Hall and Ibrahim and kicked in the head and ribs, leaving her black and blue from her ear to the back of her skull. When the men discovered they were beating a woman, she alleges they didn't stop for a moment. Instead she testified Hall sneered at her, "you're a dike, and you don't matter anyway."

All three are also facing charges of assault causing bodily harm for that incident. 

After the beating, she says Deganis marched back up to her and shoved his dog tags in her face. "These gave them the right to kill all us homeless crack heads and bums," she concluded.

Valen, who knew the victim, called him a sad homeless man who was a "little more prideful" than other homeless people. She termed him a "gentleman" who always tried to help the addicts and the working girls who hung around the area.

Her dramatic testimony is scheduled to continue on Thursday.

Court graphic by: Marianne Boucher

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Crime/2008/04/09/5234286-sun.html
Good Samaritan suing accused
Admits to $2.5M lawsuit during fatal beating trial

By SAM PAZZANO, COURTS BUREAU
The Toronto Sun     

A Good Samaritan who bravely intervened to save a homeless man from a fatal beating admitted yesterday she is suing her alleged assailants and the Canadian Armed Forces for $2.5 million.
Valerie Valen confirmed to defence lawyer John Rosen that she filed the civil lawsuit on behalf of herself, her common-law spouse, Deborah Patterson, and her son, Levi Patrick Valen.

Armed Forces reservists Pte. Brian Deganis, 23, Cpl. Jeffrey Hall, 23, and Cpl. Mountaz Ibrahim, 25, are being tried for second-degree murder in the death of Paul Croutch, 59, atMoss Park where he slept on a bench during a driving rainstorm in the early morning of Aug. 31, 2005.

Valen balked at Rosen's question, saying she didn't see "how it was relevant."

Justice Eugene Ewaschuk quickly interjected, telling the witness it was relevant and ordered her to answer the question confirming the lawsuit's existence.
Valen, 44, a recovering addict who smoked crack after being beaten that night, is seeking $500,000 in damages each for assault and battery, negligence, "infliction of nervous shock," and other damages.

Valen was searching for a hooker named "Donna" in the Moss Park area for a friend known as "Pork Chop Dave."
Valen heard an angry voice decrying homeless people and drug addicts, and saw Croutch being beaten when she tried to save him.

Rosen described his client, Hall, as being in a "drunken stupor" and unresponsive when Valen confronted him as to why he was assailing Croutch.
Valen agreed with Rosen that she was "dealing with a man who isn't making any sense.

"Hall keeps repeating himself, instead of answering the question, and he gets more angry and frustrated."
Rosen said Hall's level of intoxication showed by the heavy smell on his breath and the way he walked toward Valen.
Rosen said the witness was "roughed up," but not relentlessly kicked and punched, leaving black eyes and broken nose injuries.

The three accused were reserve members of Queen's Own Rifles of Canada, an airborne infantry unit of the Canadian Forces.
The trial continues today.

 

[old medic]

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080417/trial_homeless_080417/20080417?hub=TopStories

Reservists plead guilty in homeless man's death

Updated Thu. Apr. 17 2008 6:33 PM ET

ctvtoronto.ca

The trial of three former Canadian Forces reservists charged in the beating death of a homeless man came to an abrupt halt Thursday when the three men agreed to plead guilty to lesser offences.

Paul Croutch, 59, died as a result of injuries after being beaten in Moss Park, near Toronto's downtown armoury, on August 31, 2005.

Brian Deganis, 23, and Jeffrey Hall, 24, both pleaded guilty to manslaughter and assault causing bodily harm. Mountaz Ibrahim, 25, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to assault causing bodily harm (on Croutch) and assault causing bodily harm.

The three former Queen's Own Rifles members were originally charged with second-degree murder and assault causing bodily harm. The assault was against a witness who testified in court that she tried to stop the attack against Croutch.

Deganis, Hall and Ibrahim were at the nearby armoury for an event on the night of the attack, the trial heard.

The witness, Valerie Valen, said she saw men kicking and punching Croutch, who was on a park bench. When she yelled at the men to stop, they chased after her and beat her as well, she told court.

Valen said during the attack on Croutch, one of the men shouted "all these bums -- these f---ing druggies, hookers, addicts, bums, homeless derelicts."

During her beating, Valen said one of the soldiers shoved his dog tags in her face and screamed, 'Who do you think you are? All you crack heads, derelicts and bums don't belong here. This is our park. This gives us the right to do what we want. We can kill you.'"

Crown prosecutor Hank Goody said he accepted the lesser pleas because there was a reasonable doubt the jury would have found Hall and Deganis committed murder because of their levels of intoxication.

Goody also said there was reasonable doubt that Ibrahim was present during Croutch's beating.

"I think what happened here was that in alcoholic haze, my client and Deganis misjudged entirely the situation and completely overreacted," said lawyer John Rosen, who represents Hall.

After the court hearing, Ibrahim said he was relieved.

"There are really very few days that go by that he hasn't thought back about what he could have done differently that day to be in a different place," his lawyer Boris Bytensky told reporters.

Beric German, who advocates on behalf of the homeless, said he was disgusted by the outcome.

"When we talk about intent, there was hate there -- there was hate against homeless people," he said.

The three men will be sentenced on April 30. Both Deganis and Hall face prison terms of up to 10 years, while Ibrahim faces a jail term of several months.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Sentencing due in beating death of homeless man
Updated: Wed Apr. 30 2008 8:33:51 AM

The Canadian Press

TORONTO — Three Canadian Forces reservists are due back in court Wednesday for sentencing in the beating death of a homeless man in Toronto.

Corporal Jeffrey Hall and Private Brian Deganis pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the August 2005, slaying of Paul Croutch.

The Crown had charged the two with second-degree murder but accepted a plea bargain, agreeing with the defence that they were too drunk to form the intent to murder.

The men are members of Queen's Own Rifles of Canada.

Hall, admitted he has a "Jekyll and Hyde'' personality when he drank, and says he and Deganis punched and kicked Croutch to death near the bench where the homeless man often slept.

A third reservist, Corporal Mountaz Ibrahim, pleaded guilty to being an accessory for helping the killers' escape.

All three also pleaded guilty to assaulting Valerie Valen, a Good Samaritan who tried to stop the attack on Croutch and was chased from the downtown park near Moss Park Armoury.

The three army reservists on trial for the second-degree murder of Paul Croutch, a homeless man, are seen in this court sketch


dileas

tess

 

[Bigmac]

Reservists jailed for several years each for killing of Toronto homeless man
TORONTO — Two Canadian Forces reservists who beat a homeless man to death in a Toronto park after hours of heavy drinking were handed jail sentences of several years each Thursday for a crime that the judge called a "sadistic" attack carried out "with military precision."

Cpl. Jeffrey Hall and Pte. Brian Deganis, both 24 and members of the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada, pleaded guilty to manslaughter last month in the death of 59-year-old Paul Croutch in August 2005.

They had each faced a charge of second-degree murder that was temporarily elevated to first-degree murder.

Hall was sentenced to 10 years and eight months, while Deganis got five years and six months.

Deganis's sentence takes into account the two-plus years he has been in jail since being arrested in September 2005, while Hall had been out on bail.

A third reservist, 25-year-old Cpl. Mountaz Ibrahim, was sentenced to 10 months.

He pleaded guilty to being an accessory after he helped the killers flee the scene.

Hall and Deganis are prohibited from owning guns, firearms and ammunition for life, while Ibrahim's prohibition of the items will last for 10 years.

All three men were also sentenced for assault causing bodily harm for attacking Valerie Valen, a Good Samaritan who attempted to stop the beating.

Superior Court Judge Eugene Ewaschuk said the assault on Croutch was one of the most vicious he's seen in his 42-year legal career.

"They used him as a combination punching bag and soccer ball," Ewaschuk said.

Hall and Deganis told police they were drinking heavily leading up to the fatal beating of Croutch, who was a father and former community newspaper publisher.

Court heard earlier this week that Hall and Deganis have battled alcoholism since their teens.

Hall's lawyer John Rosen had argued that his client suffered a partial blackout at the time of the attack.

In asking for a sentence of between nine and 10 years, Rosen said Hall had a "blemish-free" record before he and Deganis attacked Croutch in Moss Park on Aug. 31, 2005.

Rosen claimed Croutch had lunged at Deganis, and Hall stepped in because he misjudged the situation in his drunken state.

"He wishes he could turn back the clock and undo this," Rosen said.

The Crown had been asking for a sentence of up to 15 years.

Prior to sentencing, Deganis's lawyer James John Burke reminded the court that his client has been in jail since his arrest in September 2005.

Burke had asked for a sentence of another three years on top of the time Deganis has already served.

"He never did apply for bail," Burke said. "The explanation, clearly, is that he lost control."

A Canadian Forces spokesman said Thursday the trio were suspended shortly after their arrests and will soon be discharged from service.

http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jC-XRgBCvR7dHPET9nITU1vCpxvw

They got what they deserved. I am surprised they have not been discharged from the reserves yet!?

I take exception toward what the judge said. What kind of "military precision" does it require for two drunk idiots to beat up a homeless man! The media eats that crap up though don't they?

 

[Nemo888]

I've only ever been in one fist fight in the Army and it was with one of the A$$%**S in question. I felt a little guilty about it at the time. Wished I would have swung a little harder now. He actually threw dirt in my eyes. I thought he was all talk and no guts.

 

[medaid]

I feel for the family of the homeless man where ever they maybe.

I also feel for the Regimental Family of the QOR... they'll have a hell of a time to get rid of that mar from their name.

 

[1feral1]

Sounds like for than manslaughter to me, but at least these losers will be behind bars.

I am sure their 'boyfriends' are waiting for them to punch out some dialated ring pieces in the years to come.

Beating to death a homeless man is very 'weak and gutless' crime, and I am happy to see the Judge throwing a bit of weight behind the sentancing, compared to the limp wristed decisions they usually hand down these days.

The QOR in its entirety hopefully will distance themselves quicksmart from these three murdering scumsuckers.

 

[The_Falcon]

http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jC-XRgBCvR7dHPET9nITU1vCpxvw

They got what they deserved. I am surprised they have not been discharged from the reserves yet!?

I take exception toward what the judge said. What kind of "military precision" does it require for two drunk idiots to beat up a homeless man! The media eats that crap up though don't they?

The administrative procedures to release them from the reserves had to wait until their trail concluded.  Now that the trail and sentencing is concluded, the army can now show them the door.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

The administrative procedures to release them from the reserves had to wait until their trail concluded.  Now that the trail and sentencing is concluded, the army can now show them the door.

Ok what reg's state it has to wait for the trial to be concluded?  I am looking for a ref to a CFAO, etc not shots in the dark.

 

[George Wallace]

Ok what reg's state it has to wait for the trial to be concluded?  I am looking for a ref to a CFAO, etc not shots in the dark.

You can try looking up the Charter or Rights, Harassment Policies, advice from the DJAG, etc.  Remember: they are innocent until proven guilty.  To "Discharge" them before a verdict comes in, opens the CF up for "Grounds of Wrongful Dismissal", Harassment, etc.

 

[George Wallace]

Remember:  Members of the CF serve, not only under the Codes of Military Discipline, but also under the Laws of Canada.  What would a "smart Lawyer" have done if they were dismissed from the CF prior to the Trial?

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Seen. Brain fart.

 

[chris the merc]

Two Canadian Forces reservists each received prison sentences of 11 years on Thursday in the beating death of a homeless man in Toronto in August 2005.

Jeffrey Hall and Brian Deganis, both 24, pleaded guilty last month to manslaughter in the death of 59-year-old Paul Croutch.

Both men apologized on Wednesday for the alcohol-fuelled beating in Moss Park, near a downtown armoury.

Hours before being sentenced, Hall's lawyer John Rosen said his client suffered a partial blackout at the time of the attack. Rosen, who asked for a term of between nine and 10 years, said Hall had a "blemish-free" record until the beating.

Rosen said his client got involved in the assault because he misjudged the situation in a drunken state when he saw Croutch lunge at Deganis.

"He wishes he could turn back the clock and undo this,'' Rosen said.

The assault shocked the presiding Superior Court judge, who called the assault one of the most vicious he's seen in his 42-year legal career.

"They used him as a combination punching bag and soccer ball,'' Justice Eugene Ewaschuk said.

During their six-week trial, court heard that Hall and Deganis "spewed out" hate-filled words about "bums" and "crack heads" during the beating.


"They punched and kicked him with such ferocity that they moved his body a distance of seven to 10 feet," Ewaschuk told the packed courtroom.


"The two accused literally stomped Mr. Croutch to death."


Deganis' lawyer said his client clearly "lost control" of his emotions in the fatal beating. James John Burke asked for a sentence of another three years on top of the time Deganis has already served since his arrest in Sept. 2005.

"He never did apply for bail,'' said Burke, adding his client has carried an enormous burden of guilt for the killing.

With credit for time served, Deganis will serve another five-and-a-half years.

The Crown asked for a sentence of up to 15 years for both men.

A third reservist, 25-year-old Mountaz Ibrahim, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after he helped the killers flee the scene. He was sentenced to one year in jail.

Ibrahim's lawyer, Boris Bytensky, asked for a term of 30 to 60 days, while the Crown wanted up to 12 months.

With credit for time served, Ibrahim will serve 10 months.

All three members of the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada, who were led away from the courtroom in handcuffs, were also sentenced for assault causing bodily harm for attacking Valerie Valen, a Good Samaritan who attempted to stop the beating.

"As much as it hit my heart and upset me to see them be carted off like that and to see their families going through so much pain, I do think the sentencing was very fair," Valen told CTV Toronto.

Hall and Deganis are also banned from owning firearms, ammunition or explosives for life, while Ibrahim's prohibition is 10 years.

A Canadian Forces spokesman said Thursday the trio were suspended shortly after their arrest and will soon be released from service.

Originally, Hall and Deganis each faced a charge of second-degree murder, which was temporarily elevated to a first-degree murder charge.

 

[1feral1]

11 yrs eh, and that will be watered down with time served and if they are good boys.

So thats all one gets for what I consider MURDER, not manslaughter.

Our justice system needs some balls.

The sentance is a joke for all three.

Lets hope its gang-bang central three times a day for them.