A 22-year-old man described by Crown prosecutors as a “significant instigator” in the Stanley Cup riot has been given an intermittent jail sentence to be served on weekends.
Lincoln Kennedy Williams was handed the 90-day sentence on Friday in Vancouver provincial court for his role in the mayhem of June 15, 2011. He will serve his time over the course of 30 weeks.
The judge, who took into account that Kennedy Williams turned himself into police the day after the riot, also gave the Delta resident 15 months' probation and ordered that he complete 100 hours of community service.
The young man has already written a letter of apology for flipping over a truck and lighting it on fire outside the Canada Post building on Georgia Street, an area considered to be ground zero on riot night.
He was initially charged with three counts, including arson, mischief and participating in a riot, but pleaded guilty only to the last charge.
Crown prosecutors had asked for a six-month jail sentence, while the defence fought for a six-to-18-month conditional sentence and a ban on social media.
Kennedy Williams’ lawyer argued he was drunk the night of the riot, egged on by a large crowd and that childhood abuse and work stress resulted in uncharacteristic behavior.
Crown prosecutors have laid more than 300 charges against 100 people allegedly involved in the riot, which raged for hours after the Vancouver Canucks lost Game 7 to the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup final.
Authorities predict they will lay more than 700 charges against upwards of 225 people by the time they are finished with the case.
Of the rioters sentenced so far, seven have received jail time, one has received a conditional sentence and one was given a suspended sentence.
