Man accused in Hamilton murder pleads guilty to other charges
Jason Long, who is facing a first-degree murder charge in Hamilton, has been sentenced to three years in prison for an unrelated break-in and a jailhouse assault.
He pleaded guilty Thursday to assault cause bodily harm, break and enter and failing to comply with probation.
The assault on another inmate at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre happened Dec. 5, 2020 after a dispute about taking the wrong tray from the meal cart, said assistant Crown attorney Ayushi Kiran. The inmate was punched and kicked on the ground by two inmates, including Long, and suffered a broken nose and blurred vision.
Long, who appeared in court virtually from a different southern Ontario detention centre, said he could only admit his own role in the assault. He also admitted to breaking into a house on Huxley Avenue South sometime overnight between Jan. 5 and 6, 2021.
Kiran said Long smashed a sliding door to access the home and left drops of blood and a fingerprint in the basement that identified Long. He stole $10,500 worth of goods, including baseball hats, shoes, an air soft gun and jewelry.
By the time the DNA and fingerprint results came back Long was already in custody, charged with first-degree murder.
The 27-year-old is among four people charged in the murder of 30-year-old Tommy Hoang, who died after being confined, robbed and repeatedly stabbed in a Main Street East apartment Feb. 10.
Long was arrested after an hours-long standoff Feb. 23 at a Barton Street East apartment where police alleged he was trying to break through a wall into a neighbouring apartment. Hoang died in hospital Feb. 27.
In court Thursday, Long's lawyer, Gloria Dykstra, said long struggles with undiagnosed mental health issues and addiction has been a huge driver of his criminal activity.
He has an extensive criminal record.
Long asked that none of his pretrial custody be credited in his sentence for the two charges Thursday. Court heard he's been bounced around to various provincial detention centres. He asked to be transferred to a federal penitentiary to serve his three-year prison sentence.
He wishes to get these charges behind him and move forward," Dykstra said.
No trial dates have been set in the murder case.
Nicole O'Reilly is a Hamilton-based reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Reach her via email: noreilly@thespec.com