Kelowna attacker pleads guilty to repeated assault – Kelowna News

A notorious Kelowna offender who has repeatedly been in the spotlight for his numerous crimes has pleaded guilty again to assault.

On August 8, Tyler Jack Newton pleaded guilty to assault, a November 2023 case for which he was scheduled to go to trial this week, a representative of the British Columbia Public Prosecution Service said.

He was sentenced to 135 days in jail, in addition to another sentence he was already serving at the time, and was subsequently placed on probation for 18 months. The court dates were subsequently cancelled.

While there isn't much information about the recent charges, Newton's notoriety and ongoing run-ins with the law are well explained.

His most recent foray into the spotlight involved a December 2021 charge of aggravated assault, assault with a weapon and use of an imitation firearm in connection with an incident in West Kelowna.

These charges were eventually dropped, but not before Newton and his freedoms were discussed in Parliament as an example of the problems of a province that is “soft” on crime.

However, Newton became known to Kelowna residents in 2014 because bus passenger Caesar Rosales was stabbed to death there.

In 2014, Rosales was on his way home when Newton, who was in a drug-induced state of psychosis, slit his throat and ran off the bus. Rosales, who had never met Newton, was left on the ground to bleed to death while shocked passengers watched or tried in vain to help him.

He was released from prison in 2020 and faced new charges the following year. A search of his court record currently reveals dozens of charges.

All these trials also provide insight into his problems, most recently made public when his parole documents were discussed in Parliament.

“He is described in parole documents as someone who 'has a consistent disregard for the law, holds criminal attitudes and values, and is a high-risk and distressed offender who has failed to mitigate that risk,'” said Karin Kirkpatrick, Liberal MP for West Vancouver-Capilano in British Columbia.

“(He is) a notorious offender who has blatantly violated prison conditions in the past, but still faces no consequences. He was released under the catch-and-release program of the incoming prime minister, who is lenient when it comes to crime.”