Former dog owner Alvin Matthews is waiting to hear today whether he'll be convicted of several serious assault charges coming out of a dog fight in Carcross last summer.

After hearing an hour-long charge from Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale this morning, the jury began its deliberations into Matthews' charges of aggravated assault, assault with a weapon his dog Boulder and assaulting a policeman.

The doggie debacle started late in the evening of last June 23 in Carcross after Matthews walked with his dog Boulder past the home of Shannon Cunningham, who lived with her boyfriend, her daughter, Sarah Kelly, and their eight-month old Labrador cross puppy named Sky.

Though Matthews, Kelly and Cunningham all gave differing evidence on who was initially present, who started yelling and swearing at whom and who broke up the first fight between the two equally-large dogs, all three agreed Cunningham tried to stop a second, more serious fight.

Both Cunningham and her 16-year-old daughter told the court the man told his Labrador-Akita cross dog to 'sic him' or 'get him,' referring to Sky.

Matthews had testified he told his dog 'Watch out, here he comes again,' and his defence lawyer noted that Matthews' speech is slurred both because he's missing a large number of teeth and because he'd had a few beers that evening.

'He doesn't send the dog he loves into a fight,' said defence Malcolm Campbell. 'He tells Boulder to be alert. He's trying to protect his dog.'

The man also said he may have said 'come on' to his dog while Cunningham has prying them apart.

Matthews said he used Boulder to help him listen for moose when hunting in the bush, telling the dog to 'watch him.' He testified he never taught his dog attack commands.

The defence is arguing the Crown must show Boulder was trained to attack and that he followed those commands from his owner.

However, the Crown suggested all the jury needs to determine is that Matthews directed his dog to attack, and that the dog responded.

After seeing her mother bitten, Kelly had stabbed the animal three or four times with a kitchen knife.

'If Boulder did not know those commands, then Boulder was not a weapon,' said Campbell.

Both Cunningham and Kelly also testified that Matthews pushed Cunningham to the ground and sicced his dog on her.

The defence pointed to Kelly's police statement, noting she'd said her step-father had told her about seeing the incident through the living room window.

Prosecutor Kevin Drolet countered with the testimony from Kelly that she'd also seen the command, which she said was accompanied by Matthews pointing as he said 'get him.'

Campbell also suggested Cunningham's recollections were affected by pain, anger and booze.

But Drolet pointed out it wasn't until after the dog bite that Cunningham was in pain, and he stressed that the woman testified she'd had three beer over a six-hour period.

It's the type of traumatic event that a person can later slow down in her mind and recall each detail step by step, the prosecutor continued, noting Cunningham's clear evidence about lying on the ground and seeing Boulder's eyes and teeth and he sunk his jaws into her left shin.

A Carcross nurse testified Cunningham told her at the community health centre she'd consumed six drinks.

Twice in his testimony Matthews described distances as being between the courthouse and various bars in Whitehorse, and that the man had admitted to having a drinking problem that spanned several decades, Drolet said. He questioned whether Matthews only had three beer that day as he'd come into $50 by chance.

Drolet noted there's no evidence of a prior feud between Cunningham and Matthews, and questioned why the woman and her daughter would make up such a story.

The man told the court he'd reached around the woman as she hung onto his dog's collar and swung her away from the dog fight in order to prevent her from being bitten.

He'd testified he knew it was too late when he felt her slump to her left and cry out that she'd been bitten. Though he testified he didn't know which dog bit Cunningham, in cross-examination, he said it was likely the woman's dog did the biting as she had Boulder's collar at chest level when she yelled out.

It defies logic that Boulder would turn his back on an adversary in a dog fight to attack another target, that target being Cunningham, Campbell argued.

The mayhem didn't stop at Shannon Cunningham's front yard that night. Matthews carried his bleeding, dying dog to the Carcross nursing station, arriving shortly before Cunningham.

Kelly, nurse Linda Van Pelt and investigating officer Const. Jeff Monkman all testified they thought Matthews had been drinking.

Matthews accused Monkman of ignoring his pleas to help his dog and using excessive force by raining punches down on him and later slamming his head into the police car as he pushed the older man in.

He also said the arrest was unlawful as Monkman told him he was under arrest for breaching a court-ordered condition he wasn't under at the time.

A person arrested unlawfully has the right to resist that arrest.

Drolet pointed out that though Monkman did initially tell Matthews he was under arrest for the breach, the constable didn't put the cuffs on him then, but instead went back inside the nursing station to talk to Kelly.

The officer was listening to the man, Drolet continued, and was doing his job collecting information and investigating the situation.

The third time Monkman told Matthews he was under arrest, the constable said it was for causing a disturbance in a public place, which Drolet argued Matthews was doing by going back into the nursing station to argue with Kelly after the officer told him to stay outside.

Matthews had testified when he first saw Monkman and asked for help, the constable said 'Your fucking dog is going to die.'

Drolet noted the defence had never put it to the constable that he'd used the expletive.

Earlier in the trial, Monkman apologized after he read out a statement Matthews had made to him that night that included swear words.

In what Drolet called a 'very elaborate conspiracy that Mr. Matthews alleges of Constable Monkman,' Matthews says no one read him his rights, that his injuries were never photographed by police and that 'nothing was done' after he made a complaint to the RCMP against Monkman.

The Crown conceded during closing arguments an old photograph was used by the RCMP when an officer booked the man into Whitehorse detachment cells, but in cross-examination, Matthews admitted he'd had further contact with the RCMP after he made his initial complaint.

When told he'd have to make a formal statement, he simply told the police to talk to his lawyers.

His own defence counsel conceded Matthews isn't a sophisticated man, and probably hadn't realized that when he was asked if he wanted a lawyer, he was being informed of his legal rights.

The court heard Matthews has had numerous theft, break-in and possession of stolen property convictions over the years.

The prosecutor noted a passing motorist testimony confirming Matthews was combative as Monkman tried to put handcuffs on the man, and that the constable punched Matthews three times, momentarily stunning him or knocking him unconscious. Drolet noted that motorist said Monkman seemed calm after he got the cuffs on the older man.

The 165-pound, five-foot-three Matthews said he received cuts, bruises and cracks to his nose and skull from Monkman's handling of him. The 28-year-old officer told the court he's six foot one and weighed 235 lbs at the time.