Lac La Biche RCMP officer Desmond Sandboe, who is facing sentencing in relation to the assault of Andrew Clyburn in September 2009, should face a minimum of six months of jail time, said Crown Prosecutor Jason Neustaeter in an Edmonton courtroom last Thursday.
The officer has plead guilty to assault charges for the beating of a man who was being held at the LLB detachment for public intoxication.
Video surveillance in the detachment’s cell block shows Sandboe slamming Clyburn against a wall near the holding cells at the local police station, then dropping Clyburn to the ground and punching his victim several times in the hallway, as an officer in training and civilian guard at the cells look on.
The attack lasts 40 seconds, and is enough for the prosecution to request jail time for the nine-year veteran of the police force.
Sandboe’s lawyer sees sentencing differently and is looking for a conditional sentence for the officer who was transferred to the Lac La Biche posting just months before the assault.
“This incident was not a premeditated occurrence, and the court should take that into account," said defense lawyer Rod Gregory.
Sandboe has already plead guilty to the assault charges, which he told court last week he is embarrassed and ashamed about.
Sandboe is currently suspended without pay.
The officer is expected to be sentenced on February 7 in Edmonton.
