Man charged in Sarnia library slashing just got out of jail for theft with a knife

Man charged in Sarnia library slashing just got out of

The man charged Monday after Sarnia police said a man was slashed during a fight near Sarnia’s downtown library recently finished a four-month sentence for theft and weapon offenses, court records show.

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Officers responded to a reported stabbing outside the Christina Street South library Monday afternoon, Sarnia police said. One person was treated by paramedics for slash wounds from a large knife after two men who knew each other fought.

Officers recovered a knife and arrested a suspect in the area, police said.

Judson Brown, 36, is charged with assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm, possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose, breaching bail, and three counts of breaching probation, police said. He was held in custody and ordered not to talk to four people, including the complainant, at a brief hearing Tuesday. He returns to court July 31.

In January, Brown pleaded guilty to the lesser but included offense of theft valued at less than $5,000 – he was initially charged with robbery – carrying a knife for a dangerous purpose, and uttering a threat to cause bodily harm in an Oct. 30 incident at the Circle K convenience store at Exmouth and Capel streets.

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A man showed a knife on his belt and threatened a clerk, who told him he had to pay for items as he tried to leave the store about 5 am that Monday, police said at the time. The man fled, but was arrested a few blocks away soon after.

It was one of two back-to-back but unrelated Sarnia convenience store robberies police announced at the time.

“Your actions likely scared the bejesus out of this store clerk,” Justice Paul Kowalyshyn told Brown during his theft sentencing. “It’s no way to treat another individual.”

Judson Brown of Sarnia
Judson Brown (Facebook)

In addition to his four-month jail sentence, Brown was ordered to stay away from the clerk, the store, and to pay $43 in restitution. With credit for pre-plea custody, he was expected to be released in late January.

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Brown was previously sentenced to two months in jail for an assault with a weapon conviction in June 2023 after striking a person with a pipe outside Vidal Variety.

Defense lawyer Terry Brandon told the judge in both cases his client had been doing well for several years after a 2009 uttering threats conviction, but has struggled in recent years with issues linked to his health, drug addiction, homelessness, grievance, and his family.

Brown’s younger brother, Noah Brown, was just sentenced to seven years in prison for manslaughter for his role in the 2021 fatal stabbing of a Sarnia senior in his Devine Street home. His co-accused will be sentenced for second-degree murder later this year.

The latest charges against Judson Brown have not been tested in court.

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