GIRLFRIEND TESTIFIES IN BID TO GET HELP FOR CRACK ADDICT

Father of Eight-Year-Old Pleads Guilty to Robberies

Gordon Brown's girlfriend didn't want to testify against the father of
their eight-year-old daughter.

But Cynthia Phinney made herself do it so Brown would get help for his
crack cocaine addiction and become a better father, a Kitchener court
heard yesterday.

Phinney told police that Brown admitted committing two robberies in
Elmira last July.

Superior Court Justice Donald Gordon yesterday sentenced Brown to 15
more months in jail for the crimes. His total sentence, once pretrial
custody was taken into account, was 30 months.

He pleaded guilty to robbing a Mac's store on Arthur Street in Elmira
the morning of July 17, and to grabbing a night deposit from a Royal
Bank deposit box on Church Street on July 13.

A female clerk from a Kwik Mart in Elmira had just made the deposit
when Brown ran out from some bushes, reached in the box and grabbed
the bag. He made off with $370.

The cash and cigarettes he stole in the Mac's robbery were worth $165.
Brown clutched a large kitchen knife during that holdup. His image was
captured on store video, but Brown's lawyer, Hal Mattson, said his
identity could not have been determined from the poor quality video.

Brown, however, admitted the heists to a roommate and his girlfriend,
court heard. He spent the money on drugs. At the time, he was
unemployed and about to be evicted, court heard.

Mattson said Phinney testified against him at his preliminary hearing
"reluctantly."

"You could tell she was questioning whether she'd done the right
thing," Mattson said.

"She was very torn emotionally. She decided it was best for him
because of his addiction. She was so distraught about the future of
her daughter that she didn't want to see this man go downhill."
Brown, 30, had a long criminal record from his younger years, fuelled
by substance abuse, Mattson said.

"It looked like he was going to be a lifer," the lawyer
said.

But he cleaned up his act and hadn't had a conviction for 12 years.
With his Grade 9 education, he'd been doing factory work and paying
child support.

While on probation for two years, Brown must take drug counselling and
make restitution to the two stores. His father hugged him before he
was led into custody.