Ex-Baffin Correctional Centre guard sentenced for assault on 'child-like' inmate

A former corrections officer at the Baffin Correctional Centre was sentenced Thursday to 30 days in jail for a "cowardly and gratuitous act of violence" against an inmate who has cognitive impairments.

Michael Bracken was convicted of assault for attacking the inmate twice in the span of a few minutes inside BCC on Oct. 26, 2014.

The victim, who was not identified in a reason for judgment released Friday by the Nunavut Court of Justice, had asked Bracken for a cookie in the mess area of the jail.

• Read the judgment here

Bracken, a 31-year-old Iqaluit-born resident, refused, and began to open the door to the hall. The victim placed his foot against the door and Bracken immediately punched him in the face then wrestled him to the ground.

The incident happened in front of several inmates and caused another guard to worry a riot might break out.

Guards stepped in and moved the victim to a secure hallway. Bracken followed, and when the victim saw him, became agitated.

He was taken to the ground by guards and handcuffed. Bracken stepped in, wound up and kicked him in the head, driving it into the wall.

'Cowardly and gratuitous act'

In his judgment, Justice Paul Bychok called the attack a "cowardly and gratuitous act of violence unleashed against a helpless victim."

"The offender was a prison guard responsible for the safety and well-being of his victim. The offender's cowardly and violent assault of the victim was a brazen and flagrant abuse of his position of authority and the public trust," he said.

The first incident was caught on security cameras. The second assault was in an area with cameras, though it was not available as evidence in a two-day trial.

"The Court was not provided with a satisfactory explanation as to why a video recording of that assault was not available as evidence," Bychok said. 

Bracken was found guilty of assault following the trial in which five guards testified, describing the victim as being "child-like" and "low-functioning."

Guards' evidence troubles judge

"The evidence painted a troubling backdrop of a perception by the witnesses that management does not provide them with appropriate training and support," Bychok said in the judgment.

"If their evidence is to be believed, the institution also fails adequately to educate their staff in the unique cultural, economic, and mental health related circumstances of their overwhelmingly Inuit inmate population."

The judge was also critical of the evidence provided by the guards, calling it greatly troubling, finding them evasive and non-responsive to questions put to them by the Crown.

"Each one of the witnesses called by the Crown attempted to excuse the offender and justify his actions," Bychok wrote.

"The offender's former supervisor also backtracked in his evidence and also offered alternate explanations for the kick which had absolutely no air of reality."

Bracken is no longer working at BCC.

"The sentence which this court imposes must be not only just, it must be meaningful," Bychok said.

"This Court wishes to send a message to all Nunavummiut, and to all who are put in authority over them, that the dignity of each and every one of us is inviolable."

In addition to 30 days in jail, Bracken was ordered to take anger management counselling and to pay a $100 victim fine surcharge.