A Hamilton man convicted in the Coco Bongo Lounge stabbing two years ago has had his sentencing postponed after his lawyer requested the judge order and consider a cultural assessment report on him because he is Black.

Last October, a jury found Samson Aristor, 31, guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Reald Vercani, 33, of Toronto.

Vercani died after he was stabbed in the chest with a large combat knife outside the York Boulevard club around 3 a.m. on Sept. 10, 2017.

Aristor was to have been sentenced on Friday, but his lawyer Kim Edwards asked Justice Harrison Arrell for an adjournment until a cultural assessment of Aristor can be prepared.

Outside court later, Edwards said a cultural assessment - if ordered - will be a first in Hamilton. The assessments are fairly new and have been considered in only a few cases so far in sentencings for people of colour.

Edwards likened it to a Gladue report that is used in sentencing Indigenous offenders. That report details their background and take into account their special cultural considerations.

Similarly, a cultural assessment report "describes an offender's background and personal history, including their experiences of anti-Black racism in education, social services and the legal system," according to Legal Aid Ontario. The report "factors in how systemic discrimination has impacted the offender."

In Aristor's case, the court had also already screened each juror, before they were chosen, with a question asking if they had any problem with impartiality because Aristor is Black.

Edwards said Aristor warrants a cultural assessment report because he has been through a lot of difficult transitions in his life. His family fled Haiti to France, then fled France to the U.S., and eventually to Canada, she added.

In Aristor's trial, he testified during his two week trial that he feared for his life after an earlier run-in with the victim and his friends.

Edwards, his lawyer, argued Aristor waved his knife to keep attackers away and didn't know the blade had hit anyone until he got home. Crown prosecutor Steve Kim argued it was not self-defence, but retaliation for the earlier run-in.

Aristor is due back in court on Dec. 20.

cfragomeni@thespec.com

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