A 15-year-old girl stared blankly at the courtroom floor Wednesday as the Crown recounted how she allegedly beat a senior citizen with metal table legs in what appears to be a random, yet violent attack.
The young girl, who can't be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, sat stone-faced as Crown attorney Bob Nisbet described how she and two other teens allegedly chased the 66-year-old woman on a dark city walkway, saying nothing as they repeatedly struck her.
"It was a meaningless bit of violence," Mr. Nisbet said in court as the accused, a baby-faced teen with long, dark hair, fiddled with her hands and glimpsed occasionally at her mother. "She received numerous blows."
Silvia Bortignon of Halifax suffered a broken arm, bruises, and possibly cracked ribs before the attack ended when someone scared the girls off and pursued them down a street.
The incident is the latest in a rash of violent crimes involving young people in the Halifax area, which in addition to horrifying residents have sparked demands for tougher sentences for young offenders.
Ms. Bortignon was walking home on the Halifax Common at about 9:20 p.m. Monday when she apparently saw the girls running toward her with what she thought were shiny metal pipes.
When she asked what they wanted, Mr. Nisbet said one of the girls struck her and sent her falling to the ground.
Mr. Nisbet said one of the girls lost a sneaker as she fled. The shoe was later matched to one of the girls when they were arrested as they strolled on a downtown street some time before midnight.
The mother of one of the girls said in court that she spoke to her daughter shortly before the alleged attack and asked her where she was since she was under a court-ordered curfew to be home from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
But the woman failed to notify police that her daughter was not at home and was only informed of her whereabouts when the police called to say she had been arrested.
"It shocked me when I heard about it," she said in court. "She knows better than to go outside and hurt old ladies."
Judge Pam Williams denied bail for the girl who has been charged with prior offences, saying "it's obvious the allegations are serious and are escalating."
Another 15-year-old charged in the attack was remanded into custody, while the third was released pending a future court date.
The bail hearings come just as Nova Scotia Premier Rodney MacDonald urged Ottawa to toughen Canada's Youth Criminal Justice Act in the wake of a spree of brutal attacks by young people.
"It absolutely sickens me when I see some of the crimes that have been committed during the past number of weeks," the premier told reporters Wednesday.
In addition to the incident allegedly involving the girls, a 16-year-old boy was charged with attempted murder after four security guards were stabbed during a brawl at an alcohol-free event.
In both cases, the teens have been charged with breaking court-ordered conditions, including ignoring curfews.
"I grew up in a community where you can leave your door open," said Mr. MacDonald. "That to me is what we want to see in Nova Scotia. People should feel safe.... Senior citizens should feel safe in walking down the streets."
Justice Minister Murray Scott, a former police chief, voiced his frustration with a lack of federal action to tighten provisions dealing with pre-trial detention in order to deal with youth who are a danger to the community.
Pressed by reporters, Mr. Scott said the public is paying the price because courts tend to release some young offenders rather than detain them.
"We see people being hurt every day," he said.
Nova Scotia is particularly sensitive to the issue and has taken several steps to comply with recommendations put forward by the inquiry into the death of Theresa McEvoy.
The Halifax teacher's aide and mother of three was killed in October 2004 when her car was broadsided by a stolen vehicle driven by Archie Billard, then 16.
Mr. Billard had been released from custody just two days prior to the accident despite facing 27 charges for a string of car thefts.
A subsequent inquiry led by former justice Merlin Nunn made seven recommendations specific to the Youth Criminal Justice Act, including giving more discretion to judges to detain youth caught in a "pattern of offences."
A call to the federal Justice Department wasn't returned Wednesday. Ottawa is in the process of preparing a consultation paper on pre-trial detention.
Chris McNeil, Halifax's deputy police chief, said that the Nunn commission pointed out a "road map" to how minor changes to the act could make significant changes to public safety.
But Mr. McNeil, who has long championed the issue, doubts there's the political will in Ottawa to make changes.
He said that recent events illustrate that conditional releases don't work with a "small group of incorrigible kids the act fails to address."
"If the premise is that we need to check on you every hour just to make sure you are abiding by those conditions, then you don't need a cop, you need a guard, and guards are found in correctional facilities not in the community."
Meanwhile, Mr. Scott said the province is considering the use of electronic surveillance systems such as ankle bracelets to monitor young offenders on conditional release.
His department is currently looking to see if there are any constitutional limitations to the idea.
"It has to be court ordered and we want to make sure we have the ability through the courts to have a youth wear a bracelet," said Mr. Scott.
Mr. Scott added that he would continue to press for change during a federal-provincial ministers meeting in Ottawa in October.
Dawn Sloane, a Halifax councillor, also voiced her frustration Wednesday with the country's youth laws.
"It was an act of violence. It wasn't a robbery. It has no sense to it whatsoever," she said during an appearance on a radio call-in show.
"(How could) these kids even think of taking metal table legs to that lady? We've got to change this youth justice system. We have to make it so that it works."