A 63-year-old man charged after police said kids at a Southwestern Ontario Christmas event were chased by a baseball bat-wielding person who also flashed a knife has been cleared of the charge after agreeing to a peace bond.
Officers were called Dec. 2 to the Christmas In The Village event in Port Stanley to investigate a possible assault, Lambton OPP said at the time. Officers were told a group of young people were chased by a person with a baseball bat on Monk Street that Saturday morning. The same person brandished a knife while interacting with the kids, police said.
Arthur Shura, 63, of Point Edward was charged with assault with a weapon.
But the charge was recently dropped by the Lambton Crown attorney’s office after Shura agreed to sign a peace bond. The one-year, common-law bond bans Shura from contacting the complainant, Brodie McLeod, going where he lives, works or goes to school, and from weapons.
“There was an interaction between two male parties, Mr. Shura and Mr. McLeod, that caused Mr. McLeod to fear for his safety at that time,” assistant Crown attorney Sarah Carmody explained to the judge.
A common-law peace bond can be imposed when the court is satisfied the complainant has a reasonable apprehension the accused may breach the peace, according to a law firm’s website.
It does not mean the accused has committed a criminal offence and it is not a criminal conviction.
Justice Mark Poland agreed to impose the bond and, at the request of Shura’s lawyer, included an exception to the weapons ban for large knives while working as a chef.
“This issue arose in this instance because he had a large knife on his belt that apparently caused the complainant to feel threatened,” lawyer Brenda Sandulak said. “Therefore we are asking for an exclusion so that there are no misunderstandings about him carrying large knives for work purposes.”
Shura used to own the now-closed Ozwelds Diner Co. on Plank Road in Sarnia, according to profiles in Morton Food Service and Hashtag Local Sarnia-Lambton.
Aside from the incident involving police, hundreds attended last year’s edition of Christmas In The Village, which featured horse and buggy rides, a gingerbread decorating contest and other Christmas-themed activities. Held in the Sarnia-area community’s downtown, it also offered face-painting, Christmas caroling and snacks.
The event was created in 2010 and returned in 2022 after a pandemic-related hiatus.
-with files from Tyler Kula