DUNCAN — A Mountie found guilty of aggravated assault after shooting an unarmed man at a traffic stop has been sentenced to two years probation.

Nanaimo RCMP Const. David Pompeo will also have to serve 240 hours of community service within the next 18 months. He was spared the firearms ban that often accompanies conviction for a violent offence.

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The Crown had asked for a sentence of two years less a day in jail.

In his ruling Thursday, provincial court Judge Josiah Wood said the officer appeared to be a responsible RCMP member, but he showed poor judgment when he shot William Gillespie in September 2009. Wood noted that a more severe sentence, such as jail time or a firearms prohibition, would cause Pompeo to lose his job.

At trial, Pompeo testified that he had pulled Gillespie over in Chemainus for suspected drunk driving, and then shot him in the shoulder because he thought the man was going to attack him.

Gillespie, who has launched a civil suit against Pompeo, called the sentence deeply disappointing. “All the time and money the taxpayers have had to pay for this and he didn’t even get a slap on the wrist,” he said.

Wood noted Gillespie suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety and is unable to work because of the injuries he suffered.

“The fact that the bullet still remains lodged in his spine four years later suggests the fact that it will never be removed,” Wood said. “It was only by chance and the greatest of luck” that Pompeo’s shot didn’t kill Gillespie, he added.

B.C. Civil Liberties Association counsel Raji Mangat said the sentencing was troubling.

“If this were a non-police officer and the very same thing had happened, you would expect that individual would be in a lot of trouble,” Mangat said. “Here we see there’s probation and no weapons ban. [It] seems to suggest there may be a double-standard when it comes to sentencing of police officers.

“[Pompeo has] been on the RCMP payroll the whole time and has yet to be internally disciplined. We hope this means the RCMP will finally move forward on that,” she added.

Gillespie has said he intends to pursue a civil action against Pompeo and the RCMP.

Pompeo’s defence has filed an appeal of the conviction. Hearings were scheduled for Feb. 3-4, 2014.

— With files from the Cowichan Valley Citizen