Three youths were sentenced here to prison terms ranging from one to three years for an unprovoked assault against a synagogue youth group during a ball game and picnic on Toronto’s Center Island.
In passing sentence, Magistrate Donald Graham called the incident a case of “gang violence” against innocent persons minding their own business. Judge Graham said the victims were “deliberately set upon and beaten unmercifully by armed hoodlums.” The victims were members of the Beth Sholom Youth Organization of Toronto.
Paul D. Little, 17, identified by two witnesses as the person who broke a baseball bat over the head of one of the Jewish teenagers, received a term of 18 months plus a six-month suspended sentence. James W. Brunswick, 18, who admitted swinging a plastic hose in the attack, received a term of 15 months plus a six-months suspended sentence. Maurice Thibeault, 25, was sentenced to nine months plus a three-month suspended sentence. The magistrate dismissed charges against three other youths.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
