A 22-year-old man who has problems with alcohol and anger was sentenced to three years in prison for a "vicious" and unprovoked assault on a Hamilton cab driver in 2013.

"This was a senseless and extremely serious assault on a cab driver who did nothing more than asked to be paid," said Justice Stephen Glithero Friday in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice when handing the sentence to Zachariah Ristic, who was 19 at the time of the assault.

The beating has forever changed the life of Hamilton cab driver Muhammad Anwar Sajid and his family. Neither Sajid nor his family were in court for the sentencing but through a victim impact statement they told the courtroom that Ristic's actions have irrevocably altered their family's dynamic.

Seven people's lives have been changed forever. - Fehmida Shameem

"Seven people's lives have been changed forever," his wife, Fehmida Shameem wrote. "The life of my husband, my children and my life.

"He is not the same man that I knew," Shameem said in the statement. "He does not like the children or me anymore... The children are afraid of their dad.

During the attack, Sajid was head-butted, punched and kicked in the head, face and upper body, and had his head bashed into the ground by Ritsic who refused to pay his fare over three years ago.

'Mad his friends ditched him'

After a night of drinking, on July 16, 2013, Sajid picked up Ristic, and two other passengers around 11 p.m., according to court documents, and dropped them off outside a townhouse complex on Limeridge Road West.

An account of the incident from an agreed statement of facts filed in court says Ristic's companions left the cab and walked away, under the impression that Ristic was going to cover the fare.

After walking around to the passenger door and getting out his wallet, Ristic said he had no money or cards, and then he left. Sajid got out of the cab and followed him, determined to get the fare. The attack started when they walked in between the townhouse complexes.

"He was mad his friends ditched him and had to pay the $10 fare. He took it out on Sajid," said Crown Prosecutor Stan Dudzic, who says Ritsic's case was unusual because he "exploded so badly."

He has to learn when you get angry about something to put his hands in his pockets not in someone else's face. - Justice Stephen Glithero

Ristic turned and ran at Sajid, head-butting him in the stomach and knocking him to the pavement where Sajid hit his head.

He picked up Sajid and threw him to the ground, punching and kicking him several times in the face, head, and upper body, and said, "I'm going to kill you." At some point, Sajid said he lost consciousness.

Ultimately, Sajid suffered a dislocated shoulder, a dislocated hip, a broken femur, numerous cuts and bruises, and facial injuries. He has undergone numerous surgeries trying to rectify the damage. He has a metal plate in his shoulder already, but his family said the doctors are talking about another shoulder surgery.

He says his life has drastically changed for the worse.

"You can't resort to violence if you don't like something," Glithero said, after delivering Ristic's sentence. "He has to learn when you get angry about something to put his hands in his pockets not in someone else's face."

'Problem with anger and alcohol'

Ristic was 19 at the time he was charged with aggravated assault, and according to a psychological evaluation, he has "a problem with anger and alcohol," aggravated by long-standing substance abuse issues.

"He has a propensity for aggression, propensity for alcohol and a propensity for soft drugs," Dudzic said.

This was a senseless and extremely serious assault on a cab driver who did nothing more than asked to be paid. - Justice Stephen Glithero

Ristic's lawyer, Lauren Wilhelm told the court "the incident was out of character" and provided assurances that over the last three years, Ristic took steps to change his behaviour by finding a job and seeking help for his substance abuse issues.

He completed five sessions of the DrinkWise program and has plans to receive training as an auto mechanic.

Last fall, Ristic pleaded guilty to committing the attack, which the defence says was an effort to take ownership of the crime.

He reiterated this sentiment today, saying there was no excusing his actions.

"I was drinking and I made a bad decision."

But the Hamilton man was late to his 10 a.m. sentencing hearing, and when he arrived at court, he wore ripped jeans and a hoodie, which didn't appear to impact the court's decision because this is his first offence.

Ristic's mother, grandfather, sister and long-time girlfriend were also in the courtroom Friday.

Catastrophic impact on the family

Sajid and his family didn't attend the sentencing hearing, but Dudzic told the court the former cabbie's life "will never be the same."

The father of five grew up in Pakistan before immigrating to Canada. He worked as a cab driver for six years before the attack, but has been unable to work since and is no longer able to support his family.

To cope with the irreversible damage to his body, Shameem says he relies on painkillers, taking up to 16 every day.

The family says it has put incredible stress on them.

"[He] is scared a lot," she adds. "He never wants the children to go out. He makes them feel more scared of the world."

'Taxis are working in fear'

Dudzic reserved his final remarks to reinforce the larger impact this attack has had on Hamilton's taxi community, stating "this kind of behaviour won't be tolerated.

"Cab drivers working at night are vulnerable."

Meanwhile, Hamilton's cab community is still enduring the ripples created by this late-night incident which had a "catastrophic impact on the family and cab drivers.

Many remember Sajid's attack, including Jagtar Singh Chahal, CEO of Hamilton Cab, the company Sajid was working for before he was left bleeding along Limeridge Road.

In a statement obtained by CBC News, Singh Chahal said, "taxis are working in fear."

He added that ever since the incident there has been fewer drivers willing to work the nightshift.

"This is an assault that was of consequence to the victim and the taxi industry," Glithero agreed.