Coquitlam ICBC Lawyer: Hells Angels’ found liable: Personal Injury Law & Violent Assaults.

As we have noted in our previous blogs and on our website, a victim of a violent criminal assault may also seek justice through civil jurisdictions. To do so, he/she would have to sue the individual in the Civil Courts of BC for damages (aka financial compensation).

A recent example of the above is the case of Thatcher v Lowe, 2021 BCSC 590. In this case, on November 2, 2016, the named defendants were charged with assaulting the plaintiff, Ryan Thatcher, uttering threats to Mr. Thatcher, uttering threats to Mr. Thatcher’s family, possessing weapons for a dangerous purpose, and conspiring to assault and utter threats to Mr. Thatcher (all contrary to the Criminal Code). The two defendants plead guilty to their criminal charges. The events, in short, that occurred transpired as follows: while the Plaintiff was surrounded by the Defendants, the Defendants struck him repeatedly with their fists, their feet, batons, baseball bats and other weapons. The Trial Judge in the civil case held the Defendants’ liable for the torts of assault, battery and false imprisonment. In outlining the law on the aforementioned torts, the Trial Judge stated as follows:

[46]      By entering their guilty pleas, Mr. Lowe and Mr. Mansfield admitted they were part of a group of men who surrounded Mr. Thatcher’s vehicle to frighten and intimidate him by way of their words and actions.

[47]      Assault is the intentional creation of the apprehension of imminent harmful or offensive contact, even if contact never actually occurs: Khan v. School District No. 39, 2021 BCSC 49 at para. 17. This tort is established, at minimum, by the named defendants surrounding Mr. Thatcher’s car in a menacing fashion.

[48]      Battery involves the infliction of unlawful force on another person. In finding non-negligent battery, the court must conclude that the defendant intended to, and did in fact, make physical contact, and that this contact was harmful or offensive: Khan at para. 18. This tort is established by one of the named defendants slapping Mr. Thatcher’s cell phone out his hand and at least one member of the named defendants punching him.

[49]      The elements of false imprisonment are: (1) the plaintiff has been totally deprived of their liberty; (2) against the plaintiff’s will; and (3) the imprisonment was caused by the defendant: Huang v. Silvercorp Metals Inc., 2015 BCSC 549 at para. 37, aff’d 2016 BCCA 100. This tort is established by eight to ten men, including the named defendants, surrounding Mr. Thatcher’s vehicle and confining him there for ten to fifteen minutes.

[50]      The elements of intentional infliction of mental suffering are: (1) conduct that is flagrant and outrageous; (2) calculated to produce harm; and (3) resulting in a visible and provable illness: Young v. Borzoni, 2007 BCCA 16 at paras. 24, 35-39. Generally, a visible and provable illness requires proof of a recognizable psychiatric illness: Young at paras. 35-38. The threats made to Mr. Thatcher provide some foundation for this tort. However, the finding of the sentencing judge that Mr. Thatcher suffered psychological or emotional harm was not based on expert evidence and, in my respectful opinion, falls short of establishing that Mr. Thatcher suffered a “visible and provable illness” as contemplated by the authorities.

If you have been a victim of an assault and would like to seek to legal recourse, please contact us immediately. Please know, that you have two years from the date of the assault to file a lawsuit in the BC Courts.