Prolific Penticton offender Levi Jo Kamps will spend another year in jail for multiple assault convictions.
Kamps, well known to the public, appeared via video in Penticton’s provincial court on Oct. 16 to be sentenced to assault and assault with a weapon.
He will be in jail for 269 more days and spend another 18-months under a probation order when he is released.
The first case involved an assault on July 24, 2022, and a second incident on Nov. 20, 2022.
Kamps had previously appeared before the court on March 16, 2023 to plead guilty to relatively less serious thefts and public defecation from 2021.
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In July, Kamps had approached a 73-year-old woman as she was returning to her car from doing some shopping, asking her for spare change.
Her car alarm abruptly went off, and Kamps suddenly charged, pushing her over “with all his might” according to a witness. The victim missed hitting her head on the bumper of her car, but still suffered injuries to her arm and leg, including a wound on the leg that bled profusely and left scarring behind.
“She said when he attacked her, she could see his eyes glaze over,” the judge said.
Kamps was arrested nearby shortly after and was then released on conditions.
The November incident involved Kamps being interrupted while inside a parked truck. A neighbour, who had been in her own vehicle, contacted her husband after seeing Kamps.
The husband saw Kamps inside the truck, and attempted to keep the door closed and Kamps trapped until the police could arrive. A struggle ensued, during which Kamps bear-sprayed his victim and escaped, running off with the truck’s dash camera before being arrested.
Since the November 2022 arrest he has been in custody, for which he received credit for time served.
Kamps’ long history of substance abuse and the damage it has caused him was discussed at length by counsel and the pre-sentencing report. He reportedly has overdosed over 100 times, and began using substances at age 13.
His family had attempted to help over the years, but due to him continuing to steal from them to feed his addiction and violent behaviour they could no longer house him.
“It is a grave concern to the Crown and a great concern to Mr. Kamps’ sister that his offending has been so prolific and so downright foolish,” said the judge. “His sister indicated that he’s even broken into the vehicles and stolen things from gang members and gang members I think by definition are people who don’t actually care about the rule of law and are quite prepared to take matters into their own hands.”
Attempts to get Kamps treatment in the past, even getting into the Burnaby Centre for Mental Health and Addiction, have been unsuccessful and he told the pre-sentence report writers that he doesn’t plan to stop using drugs.
Kamps’ sister spoke to the courts and expressed that he has reportedly been substance-free since being taken into custody, and that recent conversations have seen him the most clear-headed he has reportedly been in years.