FORMER COP LIKELY TO SURVIVE AFTER NEAR-FATAL PRISON STABBING

A former Vancouver police officer jailed for selling marijuana almost
lost his life in a prison stabbing Monday.

Peter Hodson was sentenced to three years in federal prison in
September, after pleading guilty last December to breach of trust and
trafficking in marijuana, both on and off duty.

Hodson's lawyer, Vince Michaels, said Hodson was stabbed in the neck
by another inmate.

"It looks like he'll recover. It was a very serious injury. It missed
his carotid artery by a millimetre. It could easily have been fatal,"
Michaels said Thursday.

"We are very concerned that Corrections do everything they can do to
ensure his safety. He is a likely target as a former police officer,
and before the attack Mr. Hodson had communicated concerns about his
safety, specific concerns about his safety, and they clearly weren't
taken seriously," Michaels said, noting that Hodson told him he had
received threats from inmates while in prison.

The stabbing took place about 7: 50 p.m. Monday at the Regional
Reception and Assessment Centre at Pacific Institution in Abbotsford.
The federal prison went into lockdown and inmates were searched after
the attack.

Assistant Warden Samantha Cater said following the incident that one
inmate had stabbed another with a piece of broken glass from a microwave plate.

Michaels said that Hodson, a father of four, was taken to Royal
Columbian Hospital, where he underwent surgery.

Hodson is now in stable condition in prison hospital. His alleged
assailant has been isolated from the general prison population.

The former police officer was "badly shaken up," as was his family,
his lawyer said.

His family visited him in the civilian hospital, but were prevented
from visiting him in the prison hospital, Michaels said.

The lawyer wants his client securely placed away from the general
prison population, or placed in a facility with lower-risk inmates.

"We'll be doing everything possible to make sure Corrections takes
this very seriously and that they guarantee his safety and prevent
further attacks," he said.

Correctional Service Canada said it is investigating the incident at
the multiple-security level prison, where Hodson was awaiting
assessment for placement.

Hodson was fired last April. Hodson, labelled a "rogue" officer by his
peers, was caught in an undercover surveillance operation run by his
colleagues after one of the addicts Hodson was supplying reported him.