(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

A Chase man missed the birth of his own child after he was sent to prison for stabbing the family dog to death and assaulting two women, including his partner.

Isaac Willard doesn't remember the incident, but the court heard his then-girlfriend's three children will hold on to the memory for years to come. The oldest was 12 when he heard the dog's cries from his bedroom, afraid to look out the window.

Willard's girlfriend was pregnant at the time, expecting a child in November. He remained in jail in the months after the incident, which continued after he was sentenced in October.

Willard, a 31-year-old Neskonlith Band member, was drinking with his partner and her friend at his home in Chase in March 2023.

Willard and his girlfriend, who isn't named in the decision, got into an argument and as he became agitated, he slid a knife into his waistband, according to the recently published provincial court decision.

Provincial court judge Raymond Phillips said that caused a "commotion" between them, as Willard then went outside and started "pounding" on his girlfriend's car window. He then threw a plant at the window and started rummaging inside the car.

The friend tried to intervene, but Willard pushed her to the ground. His girlfriend also tried to intervene, but he pushed her down too.

At some point, his girlfriend went back inside, but the family dog, Mercy, was outside with Willard.

Willard grabbed the dog, pulled the knife from his waistband, and stabbed it 14 times.

His girlfriend's three children were inside the house the entire time. The two youngest, aged five and nine, didn't wake, but her 12-year-old son listened to Mercy's cries, afraid to look out the window, according to the decision.

"They started loud and ended in a whimper," the decision reads.

Willard's girlfriend also hear the cries. She went outside to find him covered in the dog's blood.

She fled the house with her children. Willard was later arrested, found passed out inside. He's remained in custody since April 20.

Although just one child had to hear the killing, a video of the killing circulated in town and they were questioned about what happened when they went to school, according to the decision.

"Unfortunately this is something that will never leave their minds," their aunt told the court.

Willard's defence sought a time-served sentence of around six months, followed by 18 months of probation.

Phillips, however, sided with the Crown and sentenced Willard to 12 months jail for killing the dog. Concurrently, he will serve 60 days in jail for assaulting the two women and for possessing a weapon with a dangerous purpose.

The judge noted Willard has a criminal past with two previous assault convictions, one against a previous romantic partner.

His 18-month probation order will include an order that prohibits his contact with his former girlfriend and mother of his child, with some strict exceptions. One of those exceptions allowed him to video call her during or after the November birth of their child.

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