A machete-wielding attacker will spend the next 10 months behind bars after he slashed a woman’s hand open and damaged her vehicle.

Trevor W. Schamehorn, 35, appeared in St. Albert Provincial Court Monday via closed-circuit television from the Fort Saskatchewan Correctional Centre where he pleaded guilty to assault with a weapon and mischief causing damage over $5,000.

Schamehorn was identified as a resident of the St. Albert area.

Crown prosecutor John Donahoe told the court that on Dec. 28, 2012 at roughly 6:30 a.m., RCMP received a phone call in which a woman was heard screaming in the background.

“You slashed me. Why are you cutting me with a machete?” the woman yelled.

Police located the woman in her vehicle outside of Schamehorn’s residence.

Schamehorn admitted to waiting in a bush outside his home armed with a machete as he waited for the victim to arrive.

“This was a culmination of stress, fear as well as the drugs and alcohol he consumed that day,” said lawyer Tara Hayes, adding her client and the victim were involved in a tumultuous break-up at the time of the offence and he feared for his safety.

Donahoe said Schamehorn jumped out from the bushes when the victim arrived and began hitting the passenger side of the car. He damaged the front windshield, smashed the passenger window, opened the door and began swinging the machete inside the vehicle before holding the weapon up to the victim’s neck.

Schamehorn noticed the blade had slashed the victim’s hand and proceeded to take off his shirt and wrap it around her hand before exiting the vehicle and returning to his residence.

“I’m real sorry about the whole situation,” Schamehorn said. “Real sorry.”

Prior to the incident, Schamehorn sent the victim several threatening text messages.

“If you call police, as soon as I get out of jail, I’m coming for you,” one of the messages read.

Schamehorn was sentenced to one year behind bars but was given credit for two months served in pre-sentence custody. He will spend 18 months on probation, and is ordered to attend counselling, abstain from drugs and alcohol, provide breath and urine samples when required to do so and have no contact with the victim and her three children.

He was also handed a 10-year weapons prohibition and a lifetime prohibition of restricted weapons. Schamehorn must also provide a sample of his DNA for the national databank, as well as pay $11,900.49 in restitution to the victim.

Donahoe withdrew four counts of threats to cause death and a single charge for possessing a weapon dangerous to the public.

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