An Abbotsford man who stabbed his ex-girlfriend up to 20 times in front of their 18-month-old son has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Troy Alexander Perrin, 26, previously pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in relation to the violent incident that occurred in April 2014 at a home on Blackham Drive.
Perrin, sentenced last Thursday in Abbotsford provincial court, was given two years' credit for the time he has served in prison since the incident, leaving him with an additional three years of jail time.
The court heard that Perrin and the victim had been in an on-off relationship for seven years and had one child together.
At the time of the attack, the pair were separated, and Perrin was under court orders not to have any contact with the woman.
During Perrin's sentencing hearing, Crown lawyer Corinne Schmidt detailed the assault.
At about 8 a.m. on April 14, 2014, the woman left her baby in another room while she went to have a bath.
She heard the front door open, got out of the tub and walked into the room, where she saw Perrin, who immediately attacked her without saying a word.
The victim felt what she thought were punches on both sides of her torso, but she then realized she was being stabbed.
"Stop! Don't!" the woman screamed at Perrin several times.
Schmidt said Perrin continued to stab the woman 15 to 20 times, striking her in the torso, head, face and hands. He didn't say a word during the entire assault, Schmidt said.
The victim tried to escape several times, and was finally able to lock herself in the bathroom and call 911.
Meanwhile, Perrin escaped with the couple's baby, resulting in a massive search by police.
He was found with the baby in the backyard of a nearby residence. The six-inch steak knife that had been used in the assault was found on the property.
The victim, who lost almost a litre of blood, was airlifted to Royal Columbian Hospital, where she was treated for serious injuries, including a collapsed lung, a severed nerve on the left side of her face and about 20 wounds that required suturing.
Schmidt said the woman, who chose not to be in court or to provide a victim impact statement, still has nerve damage on her face but has, for the most part, "recovered remarkably well," both physically and emotionally.
Schmidt said that at the time of the attack, Perrin had been smoking and snorting crystal meth and had not slept for nine days.
Defence laywer Darrel Schultz said Perrin has a history of drug use and mental health issues, and was "psychotic and delusional" during much of his time in prison since his arrest.
However, Schultz said Perrin has recently been prescribed new medication that has resulted in a "remarkable change" in his behaviour, including him wanting to take responsibility for the attack.
Schultz said Perrin is "one of the most pleasant young men you would ever talk to in your life" and is saddened by what occurred.
Perrin presented a letter in court that was passed to the judge for her consideration in sentencing. The letter was not read in court, but Schultz said it included an apology to the victim, who will receive a copy if she wants one.
In sentencing Perrin, Judge Edna Ritchie said she was disappointed that Perrin's letter seemed to blame his drug addiction for all his actions.
"You are lucky, sir, that you didn't kill (her)," Ritchie said of the victim.
Perrin was also convicted of two counts of breaching court-ordered conditions that he not contact the victim. His 90-day sentence on these charges will run concurrently (at the same time) as his main sentence.