Man jailed for kicking Sarnia senior in head shortly before he died of stab wounds (2024)

A former Sarnia man has been jailed three months for assault for kicking an elderly downtown Sarnia shopkeeper in the head shortly before he died from stab wounds.

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Brandon Knight, then 24, was one of four people arrested and charged with second-degree murder on Aug. 30, 2020, the same day Jim Wilson, 76, died in hospital after being stabbed during an altercation on College Avenue North. The charges against Knight and two others were dropped in December 2020 after the Crown said there was no reasonable prospect of conviction, leaving Jackson Henry as the only person accused with his death.

Henry was sentenced in February 2023 to three years for manslaughter.

But Knight was later charged with assault causing bodily harm. A warrant for Knight’s arrest was issued on March 31, 2023, when he didn’t show up to court and his lawyer couldn’t get in touch with him.

He was on the lam in London for more than a year until he was arrested there in late July. After spending about a month in the Sarnia Jail, Knight, now 28, was brought into a nearby courtroom Wednesday, where he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of assault and was sentenced to 90 days.

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The courts heard Wilson, who ran a Christina Street North retail store called Cowboys and Indians, confronted Knight’s then-partner outside her College Avenue home that Sunday afternoon nearly four years ago because he believed she had stolen property from his store. Wilson, who was armed with an axe, let the air out of one of the tires of a Jeep he believed had his stolen property in the back.

A group of people inside the home came outside and a melee ensued. Henry, then a 21-year-old Sarnia resident, wasn’t involved in the initial conflict, but he eventually emerged with a steak knife and stabbed Wilson twice in the chest.

During the melee, Knight kicked Wilson in the head and shoulder area. When he realized how injured Wilson was, Knight tried to help him by getting him a glass of water before going back inside the College Avenue home, where he was later arrested.

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Wilson was rushed to Bluewater Health by paramedics and pronounced dead within an hour.

“Being kicked in the head and shoulder after being stabbed is an extremely aggravating feature of this offence,” assistant Crown attorney Mikesh Mistry said Wednesday.

Defence lawyer Sarah Donohue said Knight, who had a drug problem at the time, is traumatized by the incident and it made him stop and think about changing his life. He later left Sarnia.

“He is sorry for the events. He apologizes to the courts. He apologizes to the victim and members of Mr. Wilson’s family. He’s incredibly sorry for what transpired that day,” she said.

No one from Wilson’s family spoke in court Wednesday, but the judge who sentenced Henry last year read a statement on their behalf.

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“He is described as a loving and guiding father and grandfather. He was a community leader and role model to others. His death has had a profound impact on his family and on his community,” Justice Mark Hornblower said at the time.

On Wednesday, Justice Paul Kowalyshyn told Knight he doesn’t doubt he’s sorry and that this has changed his life, but added his actions after Wilson was stabbed showed a lack of respect for the safety and consideration of another human being.

Knight used the time he spent in jail after his arrest four years ago and the time he’s been behind bars since his arrest last month to serve all but one day of his three-month sentence. After he’s released he’ll be on probation for one year and can’t contact several people including any immediate family members of Wilson.

All other charges he was facing in Sarnia were dropped. This was his first criminal conviction, although he recently also picked one up in London, the court heard.

tbridge@postmedia.com

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