Daniel Shaw was once a hulking, cocaine-using menace who helped a local thug known as Rhino collect drug debts.

But the former logger is a shadow of his former self. He can hardly stand up to his full 6’4” height and requires the assistance of a wheelchair due to a painful and debilitating back condition.

On Oct. 30, Shaw appeared in Campbell River provincial court to be sentenced after pleading guilty to two counts of break and enter, uttering threats, possession of cocaine, resisting arrest and breach of a court undertaking.

With shaky deliberation, Shaw hoisted himself from the wheelchair, braced his hands on the table in front of him and listened silently as the judge sentenced him.

“These are serious charges as I’m sure you’re aware...(but) I do not see you as a risk to the community,” said Judge Eldon Iverson, who gave Shaw a 15-month conditional sentence to be served in his home.

Shaw would have likely gone to jail if it were not for a pre-sentence report which documented his positive turnaround from his previous existence.

Helped the ‘Rhino’ terrorize addicts

On the morning of Feb. 2, 2008, Shaw was tagging along with Ryan “Rhino” Watson, a well-known drug dealer and strong-armed debt collector who supplied Shaw with cocaine.

Their first stop, around 8:30 a.m., was a 19th Avenue residence in Campbellton to harass a couple over a drug debt. Watson ordered the male to go out and steal in order to repay the debt and then left along with Shaw.

But the two men returned half an hour later. Watson kicked in the door and threatened the residents with a machete while Shaw stood nearby.

“This was drug debt collection initiated by Mr. Watson in which Mr. Shaw participated,” said Crown prosecutor Bruce Goddard.

Inside the residence, Watson stabbed the walls with the machete, threatened to cut off the man’s arms, and then punched the man’s brother in the face, before leaving again.

Later that day, around 4 p.m., Watson and Shaw broke into a 10th Avenue residence to collect another debt. Once again, Watson issued the threats while Shaw stood in the kitchen fiddling with a large knife and appeared to be under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

They left and promised to return a half hour later to collect the drug debt, but instead the male resident called police. Watson and Shaw were arrested within minutes after police stopped their pickup truck.

Arrest prompts life-change

Shaw was released from custody on a $1,000 surety and ordered to abide by a curfew, but in the early morning hours of March 7, 2008, he was stopped after police spotted a pickup leaving a well-known drug house on 19th Avenue.

At first, Shaw asked the officer to give him a break, but then took off running. He didn’t get far though and was arrested after a 100-metre foot chase.

He was later released again on bail, but since then he’s taken steps to change his life. He stopped using drugs and started going to rehab and counselling sessions.

Changing his life, for his son

Shaw even went so far as to pay for independent testing to show his former girlfriend, and the mother of his child, that he was drug-free in order to re-establish a relationship with his son.

“He did well for so long...then began using drugs and his life unravelled,” said defence lawyer Al McGarvey. “He has limited recollection of the (drug collecting) events due to heavy cocaine use...he’s now remorseful of his actions and he regrets missing out on his son’s early years.”

Judge Iverson noted that Shaw’s pre-sentence report was far more positive that the ones usually seen in court.

He handed Shaw a 15-month conditional sentence with conditions that he abides by a curfew for the first six months and cannot consume any illegal drugs or alcohol.

In addition, Shaw must provide a DNA sample to the national police registry and cannot own or possess any firearms for 10 years. He was also ordered to have no contact with the people involved in the drug debt collection incidents.

Watson was held in custody following his arrest on Feb. 2, 2008, and received an 18-month jail term for his crimes in July 2008.