Dad gets 16 months in jail for swinging sword at 13-year-old daughter (Surrey, British Columbia, Canada)

Jeez, we just had a sword-swinging dad yesterday--or was it the day before yesterday? Anyway, dad JAININDER SINGH DUSANJH got peeved and started screaming at his wife because she hired a plumber or something stupid like that, and the 13-year-daughter had the audacity to stand up for Mom. So Dad ordered her to retrieve his sword, the sword the mother had hidden because Dad has an extensive history of domestic violence, drugs, and what-have-you (yea, I'm really surprised, too). So the girl gets the sword, and Dad starts swinging at the daughter. Fortunately he missed on the first couple of swings, and the girl was able to secure herself in her bedroom. Dad's now trying to say he was just trying to "scare" her. But the judge didn't buy that, so now he's doing 16 months in jail. I hope the mother and daughter will be able to ditch sword-swinging dad by then for good--with NO visitation.

http://www2.canada.com/surreynow/news/story.html?id=dbe41907-3423-430f-a36d-3e98e0e1977d

Sword-swinging dad loses appeal of his 16-month sentence
-CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
Tom Zytaruk, Surrey NowPublished: Friday, August 28, 2009

A Surrey man who attacked his 13-year-old daughter with a sword has lost an appeal of his 16-month jail sentence.

Jaininder Singh Dusanjh, 44, had pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon following a preliminary hearing in which he faced a charge of attempted murder, following the April 2008 attack on his daughter, Jenny.

The court heard that Dusanjh returned home after being away several days and got into an argument with his wife concerning some minor renovations she'd hired a plumber to do.

Dusanjh started calling her names and their daughter, Jenny, stood up for her mom. The court heard Dusanjh ordered the child to fetch a sword, which had been hanging on a basement wall before his wife had hidden it from him.

Dusanjh had been in trouble with the law for assaulting his wife and had been convicted of assaults, breaching probation and possession of drugs.

After Jenny and her mom brought him the long, curved ceremonial sword, Dusanjh swung it at the girl and missed, cutting a big chip from a wooden handrail. He swung again, missed, and chopped a thermostat. The mother pulled her daughter away and put her in her bedroom, where she called 911.

Dusanjh claimed he was simply trying to scare the girl but the judge didn't buy it and sentenced him to 16 months on top of the seven months he'd already served.

He appealed, but it was dismissed.

"In my view, taking into consideration the seriousness of the actions of Mr. Dusanjh, directed as they were to his 13-year-old daughter in the home, and considering Mr. Dusanjh's prior criminal record of four convictions for spousal assault, the sentence imposed is entirely fit," Appeal Court Justice Robert Bauman declared.