Sexual Abuse Claims Blog

Newly ordained Pope Francis has certainly started his papacy by making the headlines. He turned down the luxurious Papal housing in the Apostolic Palace in favour of a simple hotel room, he travelled to a juvenile detention centre to wash the feet of the inmates, and he has issued what is seen as a strong statement against sex abusers in the clergy.

Pope Francis, the head of 1.2 billion followers of the Roman Catholic faith, called on the Church to act against clergy sex abuse. He demanded that the Bishops’ conferences around the world need to step up to disciplining the priests and assisting the victims. USA Today reports, :

“This could be an indication that he will move from a strongly centralized government of the church of 1.2 billion people to one that places increased authority locally.”

Right direction?

A strong statement by the Pope, yes, but is it a sign that the Church is moving in the right direction?

I think it might actually be problematic.

In my view, decentralization of authority is one of the factors that allowed the abuse crisis to happen in the first place. Bishops were moving abusive priests around like checkers on a checkerboard and no one was holding the Bishops responsible for their actions.

One of the main players involved in the scandal is the ex-Archbishop of Boston, Cardinal Bernard Law. Cardinal Law, who now lives in Rome, covered up hundreds of incidents of sexual abuse within his Archdiocese in Boston.

Law has indicated that his practice was to refer the priests to psychiatrists and therapists before re-assessment as to whether to return them to practice. It is exactly this kind of decentralized mismanagement that allowed the thousands of abuse cases around the world to take place!

As a sign of how attuned Francis is to the problem the Church faces regarding sexual abuse, one of the first Cardinals the new Pope met with following his election was Cardinal Law. Abuse victims described the Pope’s actions as “rubbing salt into still festering wounds”.

Cardinals Council

Last week the Vatican announce Pope Francis has named a council of 8 cardinals to provide him with advice on reform of the Church. The National Catholic Reporter called it a “signal that major reform may be on the horizon”

I’m not so sure; at least not when it comes to responding to the demands of catholic priest sexual abuse victims around the world.

It took me less than 15 minutes to find statements attributed to 4 of the 8 Cardinals relevant to sexual abuse by priests.

Two of the Cardinals don't appear to understand the magnitude of the problem.

Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga of Honduras

In a May 2002 interview, when he was Cardinal of Honduras, Maradiaga claimed Jews influenced the media to exploit the Catholic priest sexual abuse crisis in order to divert attention from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Cardinal George Pell of Australia

Australian media have noted Pell's "controversial" views on the catholic sexual abuse crisis. Quoting Pell as saying:

"...priest paedophilia and sex abuse scandals are not the greatest issue facing his church."

On the other hand, two of the candidates have made some hopeful statements and have taken steps to address allegations of priest abuse.

Francisco Javier Cardinal Errázuriz Ossa of Chile

In July 2010 Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz, then Archbishop of Santigao asked the Vatican to rule on allegations of sexual abuse against a prominent Chilean priest accused of sexually abusing several teenagers.

Sean Patrick O’Malley of Boston

According to Wikipedia O'Malley has settled more than 100 sexual abuse claims against priests and has a zero-tolerance policy against sexual abuse. The National Catholic Reporter quoted him as saying:

"Quite often, the victims who want to see the bishop are the ones looking for a path to reconnect with God [and] with their faith. Not all of them, but a lot of them are looking for closure. In many cases, when a victim asks to see the bishop, it's because they're looking for a path home."

So what should be done?

The Pope should have issued specific instructions to Bishops to report all abuse allegations to police and to disclose records of all priests disciplined for sexual abuse to child protection authorities.

A problem with the Catholic Church’s approach to the sexual abuse scandal is that they continue to protect the priests and deal with the issue internally. Once an allegation comes to light the Church should immediately involve the relevant authorities.

It appears that at least 2 of the 8 Cardinals tapped to provide advice to Pope Francis have a more enlightened view of the proper response to allegations of priest sexual abuse. It remains to be seen what views the other members of the commission take and whether Francis follows the commissions advice.

What do you think? How should Pope Francis handle the clerical sexual abuse crisis?

Priests Suspended After Alleged Child Abuse

Last week the Archdiocese of Moncton announced that two of it's priests Rev. Yvon Arsenault and Rev. Irois Despres had been removed: “from any ministry whatsoever following allegations of serious sexual abuse on minors on their part.”

Concern Over Failure to Report

After the suspensions were announced a colleague of mine and I expressed concern that the allegations of child abuse had not been reported to authorities: Church had duty to flag allegations: lawyers

Debate Over Legal Obligations

The Archdiocese and it's lawyer deny any obligation to report the allegations to authorities.

So who is right? Is the Archdiocese required to advise the authorities of the "allegations of serious sexual abuse on minors"?

The Atlantic Canada Legal Examiner just published my article Has the Archdiocese of Moncton Broken the Law By Failing to Report Sexual Abuse?.

The article provides some history behind the story, examines the specific law that contains the obligation to report and discusses how the law relates to the Archdiocese.

Please take a look and let me know what you think.

Memories of Abuse
As a lawyer who helps people with sexual abuse compensation claims one of the most common challenges my clients face is dealing with the intrusive effects of the memories of their abuse.

In the text Principles of Trauma Therapy: A Guide to Symptoms, Evaluation, and Treatment the authors John Briere and Catherine Scott identify several areas where memories of childhood abuse may effect psychological function in adults:

Negative pre-verbal assumptions and relational schemata: In other words, children who are victims of abuse tend to have a disproportionately negative self image. As adults, survivors become too defensive, angry or disconnected to have healthy inter-personal relationships.

Conditioned emotional responses to abuse-related stimuli: Certain experiences, words or settings may trigger memories of the abuse resulting in uncontrollable emotional reactions of shame, grief or anger.

Implicit/sensory memories of abuse: Professionals believe that memories of abuse may be stored or coded differently so that when the memories are triggered they bring with them the same physical sensantions the survivor experiences as a child. These "flashbacks" force the survivor to physically re-live the abuse.

Inadequately developed affect regulation skills: Survivors of abuse are often overwhelmed by routine daily situations and relationships. As a result they cope by using "avoidant" patterns (self-medication, self-harm, withdrawal) to decrease the pain of their past abuse.

Controlling Memories?

A new study from the University of Western Ontario may help victims of traumatic experiences like childhood abuse.

The research by Nicole Lauzon, a PhD candidate at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine, suggests that the pre-limbic cortex, one of the most primative parts of our brain, helps control the recall of memories linked to certain experiences. The researchers demonstrated that they were able to suppress the spontaneous recall of memories, without altering the memories.

The researchers used rats in their experiment. They discovered that by stimulating a type of dopamine receptor in the rat’s brain they could prevent the recall of certain memories. Speaking about the potential use of her research, Lauzon says:

“If we are able to block the recall of those memories, then potentially we have a target for drugs to treat these disorders.”

Not Like the Movies

Lauzon explains:

“In the movie, ‘Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind,’ they attempted to permanently erase memories associated with emotional experiences. The interesting thing about our findings is that we were able to prevent the spontaneous recall of these memories, but the memories were still intact. We weren’t inducing any form of brain damage or actually affecting the integrity of the original memories.”

In other words, survivors of traumatic events can access the memories when they need to, but the memories are not triggered spontaneously when the survivor may not be ready and able to cope with them.

Treatment for Abuse Survivors?

The current treatment methods for childhood sexual abuse survivors centers around creating or teaching a means for them to cope with traumatic memories so they become less disruptive over time.

This new study could have huge implications for sexual abuse survivors because it may provide a way to stop traumatic memories from spontaneously occuring and causing distress.

Early Days

Obviously there is a big difference between rats and humans. But I look forward to reading more about Lauzon's research.

A new California law mandates that computer technicians who discover child pornography MUST report it immediately to a specified child protection agency. Laws like this are proven to help catch sexual predators and those who protect them. A recent example is the convictions of Father Shawn Ratigan and Bishop Robert Finn.

Bishop Failed to Report Child Porn

In December of 2010 a computer technician found “alarming pictures” of children on Reverend Ratigan’s laptop. Despite the pictures being shown to Bishop Finn, the Bishop decided not to report Ratigan to police.

Ratigan eventually was caught, charged and convicted of producing and possessing child pornography. But what is perhaps more significant is that Finn became the first Bishop to be convicted of failing to report suspected child abuse.

Had the technician reported the images to police, Ratigan would not have been able to continue preying on children. New laws that require reporting suspicions of child pornography will assist authorities in identifying and apprehending predators.

Nova Scotia Ahead of the Curve

Since 2008, Nova Scotia has had a law in place requiring the reporting of any child pornography to relevant authorities. The Act explicitly states:

“Every person who reasonably believes that a representation or material is child pornography shall promptly report to a reporting entity any information, whether or not it is confidential or privileged.”

The Act goes on to state that every person who fails to report is guilty of an offence and is:

“...liable on summary conviction to a fine of not more than two thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months, or to both.”

Since December 6, 2011 a Federal law has been in place called: “An Act respecting the mandatory reporting of Internet child pornography by persons who provide an Internet service”.

The law requires any person who provides internet access, content hosting (such as social networking sites), or an e-mail service to notify authorities if they have reasonable grounds to believe their service is being used to commit child pornography offences.

The statute specifically states persons must report suspected child pornography if it comes to their attention. The Act sets out a range of fines from $1,000 to $100,000 and also includes the potential of jail time for repeat offenders.

What Can I Do to Help?

If you suspect a child has been a victim of sexual abuse you should immediately call the police in your area.

If you wish to remain anonymous, there is a website available in Canada which is devoted to the reporting of sexual exploitation of children.

The website allows users to post information about suspected child sexual abuse so authorities can be contacted and investigate. In addition, there is a section for internet service providers to allow them to report suspicions of abuse.

Sexual Abuse Was "Friendship"?!

Dr. John Kirby, a Catholic Bishop in Ireland, recently apologized for the role he played in transferring abusive priests from one parish to another. In an attempt to explain his decisions he stated:

“I was unaware of the recidivist nature, or the compulsive nature of sexual abuse and I felt that it was a friendship that had gone astray, and was wrong.”

Kirby's "apology" came after a number of audits were done on different religious congregations in Ireland which uncovered more than 330 allegations of abuse against 146 priests and members of the congregations.

Bishop Kirby said his actions were the standard church response of the time.

Nova Scotians may remember former Antigonish Bishop Colin Campbell's statements about sexual abuse survivors. Campbell suggested that the children could have rebuffed the priests that molesting them, and implied they welcomed the sexual advances and that they “wanted it.”

I think Kirby's admission is important because it confirms what many victims advocates have been saying for years; that the Catholic Church had a policy of hiding complaints about sexual abuse and transferring pedophile priests.

Michael Mernagh, an Augustinian Priest in Dublin, says that the culture of denial is endemic in the Catholic Church. He argues if audits were done of more religious congregations in Ireland, and in the world, many more cases of child abuse and their cover-up would be exposed.

I have written previously about how Secrecy protects the abusers! . That is one of the reasons I titled my book for sexual abuse survivors "Breaking the Silence."

Not Just an Irish Problem

The Irish scandel is just the latest in a series that have rocked varoius institutions around the world.

Canadian child abuse studies have reported some frightening statistics: 1 in 3 females and 1 in 6 males in Canada report experiencing some form of sexual abuse before age 17.

As a sexual abuse claims lawyer in Nova Scotia, I have personally represented hundreds of survivors of childhood sexual abuse over the past 20 years.

Part of the problem is the fact that people in a position to act fail to speak out about the abuse. The culture of denial in the Catholic Church described by Father Mernagh is worldwide. In Canada, there have been a number of allegations that Catholic priests have acted to cover up past incidents of sexual abuse in their community.

Bishops, priests and members of the community who become aware of abuse have a legal and moral responsibility to report the abuse, rather than to cover it up or transfer the offenders to another community where they can easily re-offend.

Not Just a Catholic Problem

Sexual abuse of children, and its cover-up, is certainly not exclusive to the Catholic Church. In fact, one recent example of horrendous sexual abuse cover-up is the Jerry Sandusky scandal at Penn State.

A major part of the problem at Penn State was that officials within the university covered-up and “empowered” Sandusky to continue his abuse. An investigation into the sexual abuse claims has found that Joe Paterno, the legendary football coach, could have done a lot more to prevent the abuse. Investigators determined Paterno did nothing to protect the children from Sandusky’s abuse.

The 267-page report created as a result of the investigation states:

“The most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized.”

Scouts Canada recently admitted it did not report some allegations of sexual misconduct to the police. This is yet another example of an organization protecting its reputation before protecting the rights of sexually abused children.

Conclusion

While the source of the problem is the actual sexual abuse, the inaction of those capable of speaking-up and reporting the allegations allows the problem to grow. If you or anyone you know may have been sexually abused, now is the time to speak-up and Break the Silence. I encourage you to get a copy of my book to help you understand your options.

I was doing some research to write an article about what organizations can do to prevent child abuse when I came across this article written by my colleague Minneapolis attorney, Mike Bryant.

The article is short and to the point and links out to a variety of articles that non-profits, churches and other organizations can use when coming up with policies and guidelines to help prevent child abuse.

How Organizations Can Prevent Lawsuits for The Abuse of Children

Albert LeBlanc a fomer catholic priest from the Yarmouth Diocese pleaded guilty this week to charges that he sexually abused six boys in the 1970's and 1980's. Some of the charges stem from the period when LeBlanc was employed as a priest with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Yarmouth the later charges relate to periods when he was employed as a case worker with Social Services and then a probation officer.

LeBlanc is facing 44 more charges which are scheduled to be dealt with in August.

The Diocese of Yarmouth has already been sued by several of LeBlanc's victims. The potential legal exposure for the Diocese, Family and Children's Services and Probation Services could be enormous.

More Information

Albert LeBlanc pleads guilty to sexual abuse. Will other survivors break their silence?

Sexual Abuse Charges Against Former Priest Albert LeBlanc Raise Interesting Legal Issues

More Criminal Charges Against Former Yarmouth Priest Albert LeBlanc

Date Set for Albert LeBlanc Sex Abuse Trial

Scouts Canada has apologized for not reporting suspected cases of child abuse. They are conducting an internal investigation into hundreds of sexual abuse claims from past cases. See Scouts Canada Admits Not Reporting Abuse Claims.

Now they can add another abuser to their list. Notorious pedophile and former boy scout leader Ralph Rowe has been charged, again, with multiple counts of sexual abuse against young boys.

Media reports indicate Scouts Canada has already been sued for sexual abuse perpetrated by Raph Rowe.

Former Boy Scout Leader Facing More Sexual Abuse Charges

The Kids Help Phone is a non-profit organization that provides a telephone counselling service to youth 24 hours a day, 365 day a year.

Kids Help Phone provides support to youth suffering from a variety of problems including abuse, bullying, suicide, depression and online issues like cyberbullying.

Kids Help Phone doesn't receive any core government funding and relies entirely on the support of individual donations and corporate sponsors.

Did you know?

* 87% of students in grades 8-10 reported witnessing bullying in the past year.

* On average at least one student in every class suffers from an anxiety disorder.

* Researchers have found up to 24% of youth experience at least episode of clinical depression before they turn 18.

* 20% of students report avoiding school due to fear of bullying.

On Sunday, May 6, 2012 volunteers from across the country will be walking to support The Kids Help Phone.

I am proud to support this worthy cause, and I hope you will too. If you want to volunteer, donate or just get more information, you can go to www.walksokidscantalk.ca.

In what has to be one of the most stunning examples in history of government incompetence, the Greek government has decided to expand a list of categories that entitles persons with disability to receive financial support.

I can hear you say..."But wait John, isn't helping persons with disabilities a good thing?"

Yes it is. Extending aid to persons with legitimate disabilities is not the problem. That's something any forward thinking person can agree with, right?

Molest a Child Get Paid By the Government

What is ludicrous, indeed even offensive to persons with real disabilities, is that Greece has decided to define pedophilia as a disability. The decision means sexual deviants who molest children will be entitled to receive financial assistance from the government! Pedophiles will be entitled to receive “disability” pay up to 35% of their “pre-disability” income.

Incomprehensible

Greece’s national confederation of disabled people referred to the decision as “incomprehensible” and warned adding pedophiles (as well as exhibitionists and kleptomaniacs) to the list of people entitled to financial assistance means that there will be fewer financial resources available for persons who are truly disabled and in need.

I rarely post on matters outside of North America. But this decision is just so completely and mind-bogglingly wrong that I felt I had to comment. No wonder Greece is in the economic situation it is in.

What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments.

Sexual abuse victims often struggle for years with memories of the traumatic abuse they suffered as children. In some cases, the experiences are so traumatic that they block out (or repress) the memories.

This week the Minnesota Supreme Court is hearing a motion to determine the validity of repressed memory in sexual abuse cases.

Courts will not allow expert evidence unless the party seeking to submit the evidence can establish that the evidence is reliable.

In Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada in R v. Mohan decided the test to be applied when considering expert evidence. Mohan sets out four specific criteria for the admissibility of expert evidence. They are:

1.Relevance;
2.Necessity in assisting the trier of fact;
3.Absence of any exclusionary rules; and
4.A properly qualified expert.

The Supreme Court recently weighed in on this issue again in R. v. Trochym where the majority of the Supreme Court Justices reiterated that reliablity is an essential component when determining the admissibility of expert evidence.

Is Repressed Memory Reliable?

Determining the accuracy of a plaintiff’s memory in cases of childhood sexual abuse is critical to the success of a plaintiff’s claim.

When considering evidence relating to repressed memory syndrome the court needs to understand how human beings store memories.

Experts agree that there are three components to our memory:

1.Sensory memory;
2.Short term memory; and
3.Long term memory.

The scientific literature generally agrees that although our ability to store and retrieve memories is usually accurate, memories naturally tend to fade over time.

Factors Resulting in Better Memory

Psychologists have found that there are five factors that tend to result in clearer or better memory retrieval over time:

1.Recency;

2.Meaningful memories (you are more likely to remember the details of your marriage twenty years ago than what you had for breakfast a week ago);

3.Emotional events are more likely to be remember than neutral events. (So you are more likely to remember the drive to work where someone almost crashed into your car than the hundreds of other routine commutes you made every other day of the year);

4.Paying attention. Obviously if someone is focused on paying attention to events around them they are more likely to remember the act than if they are not paying attention; and

5.Reviewed after the event. If you are in a car accident and write down what happened or give a statement to the police or an insurance adjuster you are more likely to remember the event because you have reviewed or repeated the event over again in your mind.

Dates are Difficult

Experts have found that specific dates are very difficult to remember unless they can be tied to a specific event or milestone. In other words, you are more likely to remember an event that happened in the past because you remember that it happened after your birthday party than you are to remember an event that happened on a random uneventful day.

Does Trauma Effect Memory?

Sexual abuse lawyers, and experts who treat survivors of childhood abuse, have to consider what effect trauma has on memory. The weight of scientific evidence appears to indicate that the content of traumatic memories are usually accurate and can be retained over very long periods of time.

Traumatic memories appear to be different than ordinary memories. They tend to be very vivid despite the passage of time and often are re-experienced as flashbacks (one of the symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder).

One of the most common differences between traumatic memories and ordinary memories is that gaps in recall or fragmented memories are very common. Memories tend to be disjointed or lack detail.

Fragments?

Psychologists believe in situations of extreme emotion, a victim’s attention may be narrowed, causing fragmentation of their memories.

Victims may dissociate during and after traumatic events.

Finally, victims may repress the memories all together. Psychologists believe that repression of traumatic memories may be a means of coping. The fact that child abuse often takes place secretly means that the events are not likely to be reviewed at a later date (one of the factors which helps increase recall).

What about False Memories?

Defendants in sexual abuse cases often claim the victim is experiencing false memories. See for example:

Priest Sex Abuser Appeals Conviction: Denies Existence of Repressed Memory

Repressed Memory of Sexual Abuse a Creation of the Media?

Can False Memories be Created?

It does appear that false memories can be implanted. The ability to create and implant false memories tends to depend on the importance of the event and the likelihood or plausibility of the memory.

Experts agree that false memories are more likely if the suggested event is believable, plausible or has some basis in reality.

For example, I normally stop at a local drive through for a coffee on my way to work in the morning. Experts suggest that it would be possible to implant a false memory that in addition to my coffee I bought a donut on my way to work. On the other hand, it would be unlikely that I would go to the drive through and buy a watermelon.

Experts have determined false memories for positive events (like a birthday party) and neutral events (wearing a blue baseball cap) are more likely to be produced than false memories for negative events (like sexual abuse).

Amnesia

Can you forget traumatic events?

It is well documented that traumatic events can be forgotten. Studies of war veterans has determined that combat trauma can result in amnesia.

There are well documented studies proving amnesia for victims of childhood physical abuse, rape victims, car accident victims and survivors of natural disasters.

Childhood Sexual Abuse

Studies of victims of documented childhood sexual abuse have shown that between 20% to 60% of abuse survivors are reported having times in their lives when they had no memory of their childhood abuse.

Studies also appear to confirm that recovered memory is as reliable and accurate as continuous memory in studies that compared abuse that was documented in hospital records.

What does it all mean?

Victims of childhood sexual abuse can have periods where the abuse is forgotten and then remembered at a later date.

Traumatic memories may be fragmented or disjointed but generally tend to be accurate.

False memories can be implanted but it is unusual and very unlikely if a memory is of an improbable or unusual event.

Finally, memories can be recovered and corroborated by objective third party evidence.

Continue reading "Court to Rule on Reliability of Repressed Memory in Abuse Case" »

Football fans and Penn State alumni around the world have been shocked by the criminal charges against Jerry Sandusky a former defensive coach for Penn State’s perennial powerhouse football team.

Just Horsing Around?

The criminal charges allege that Sandusky sexually abused eight young boys that he met through a charity that he founded, The Second Mile. Sandusky has denied all the charges, admitting only that he only "horsed around" in the shower with one of the boys that is the subject of some of the criminal charges.

Superiors Failed to Report

It is troubling that Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State Vice President Gary Schultz have been charged with perjury and failure to report sexual abuse to authorities.

Particularly disgusting are the allegations that Second Mile "pimped out" young boys to wealthy Penn Sate donors.

The turmoil has claimed the job of legendary football coach Joe Paterno.

Keeping in mind that at the moment the criminal charges are accusations only and no one has been convicted, the charges raise interesting civil-legal issues.

The charges against Curley and Schultz allege that they were aware of allegations that Sandusky was sexually abusing children on Penn State property but failed to report the disturbing allegations to campus or state police or to state child protection officials.

It appears that the Penn State employees have borrowed the playbook from the Catholic Church. Media reports from around the world have uncovered repeated incidents where officials within the Catholic Church have ignored or covered up allegations of sexual abuse against Catholic priests. See for example: The Catholic Church and Sexual Abuse

Legal Issues

The Penn State allegations raise some interesting legal issues. In cases around North America the Catholic Church has been found liable for sexual abuse by catholic priests. Churches around North America have been ordered to pay compensation to priest sexual abuse victims.

The question this brings to mind is whether Sandusky’s sexual abuse victims (if the allegations are proven to be true) could file civil suits for compensation against Penn State.

Vicarious Liability for Sexual Abuse

In Canada employers were traditionally responsible for acts of employees committed in the course of their employment. For many years criminal acts (including sexual abuse) were considered by the courts to be outside the scope of an employee’s duties. Therefore, employers were rarely found to be vicariously liable for sexual abuse committed by employees.

This changed in 1999 when the Supreme Court rendered its landmark decisions in Bazley v. Curry and Jacobi v. Griffiths.

In those decisions the Supreme Court of Canada set out the criteria for when an employer can be held vicariously liable for sexual abuse committed by an employee.

The Supreme Court said that consideration must be given to:

(1) Policy reasons to determine if vicarious liability should or should not apply; and

(2) Whether the wrongful act is sufficiently related to the employment to justify imposing vicarious liability.

The court went on to explain that vicarious liability is generally appropriate where there is a significant connection between the creation or enhancement of risk and the wrong that flows from the risk. It is not enough that the wrongful act or abuse took place on company property.

Vicarious liability was extended to the Catholic Church by the Supreme Court of Canada in a case known as Doe v. Bennett in 2003.

The Supreme Court of Canada said:

The relationship between the bishop and the priest in the Diocese is not only spiritual but temporal. First, the Bishop provided Bennett with the opportunity to abuse his power.

Second, Bennett’s wrongful acts were strongly related to the psychological intimacy inherent in his role as priest.

Third, the Bishop conferred an enormous degree of power on Bennett relative to his victims.

Should Penn State be held Responsible like the Catholic Church?

Sandusky's alleged child abuse was perpetrated through a charity he founded. His "charity" work were not part of his job duties at Penn State.

Although some of the abuse allegedly occurred on the university property, the SCC's reasoning in Bazley would suggest that isn't sufficient to create liability.

On the other hand, Sandusky's standing in the community and as hea of his charity were due to his reputatiion as one of Penn States coaches.

If it turns out to be true that Penn State was benefiting financially from acts of child abuse, then I think the legal responsibility becomes clearer.

Given the reasoning in the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Doe v. Bennett I think a strong argument could be made that if the abuse happened in Canada, Penn State could be held vicariously liable for Sandusky's (alleged) actions.

More Information

Duty to Report Child Abuse in Canada

Children and Family Services Act (Nova Scotia)

What do you think?

One of my clients sent me a link to a page with a number of videos from last weeks Truth and Reconcilation Commission hearings in Halifax.

Of particular interest is a video montage titled Nora Bernard - Eastern Thunder.

There was a wonderful event Wednesday evening where Nora was honoured for her work on behalf of Residential School survivors. I was delighted to be invited by Nora's family to say a few words about Nora and her contribution to the National Indian Residential Schools class action.

Please take a look and join me in honouring a wonderful, courageous woman, Nora Bernard.

Former Yarmouth priest Albert LeBlanc is facing 50 criminal sexual abuse charges involving allegations of indecent assault and gross indecency.

LeBlanc was scheduled to appear in court yesterday to schedule a date for his trial. LeBlanc did not atend court. Instead Yarmouth criminal defence lawyer Phil Star appeared for LeBlanc to set dates.

The trial has been scheduled to starty May 14, 2012 in provincial court.

The charges span more than 20 years, involving offences that are alleged to have taken place between 1964 and 1985.

Different Employers

Some of the charges relate to the time period that LeBlanc was employed as a priest in the Yarmouth Diocese. After he left the priesthood, LeBlanc worked as a caseworker for Family and Children’s Services in Yarmouth, and then started work as a probation officer in 1975.

Potential Civil Liability?

I have posted an article about the legal issues involved in the LeBlanc case on my Atlantic Canada Personal Injury Lawyer blog. Please take a look and let me know what you think.

Continue reading "Date Set for Albert LeBlanc Sex Abuse Trial" »

I was pleased to see that a class action lawsuit filed by former residents of two institutions for developmentally disabled people has been certified by Justice Horkins of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

The class action was filed on behalf of David McKillop by his litigation guardian Christine Victoria Grace Clarke. The class action against the province of Ontarion involves two schools, Rideau Regional Center in Smith Falls, Ontario and South Western Regional Center in Chatham, Ontario.

Former residents of the institutions claim that they were physically and mentally abused after being placed in the institutions.

The class actions were filed by my colleagues at Kirk Baert and Celeste Poltak at Koskie Minsky. I had the pleasure of working with Kirk and Celeste during the certification hearings for the National Indian Residential Schools class action, Baxter v. The Queen.

You can read a copy of the certification order.

Versatility

This decision proves, once again, what versatile tool class action legislation can be. The proposed class members in these claims, mentally disabled persons who were placed in the care of the government, are among the most vulnerable of potential victims.

Goals

Courts in Canada have enumerated three key goals of class action legislation. One of the goals is "access to justice".

There is no way that the individual class members would ever have been able to successfully enforce their legal rights on an individual basis. The proposed claims are the best way fexample in the way which class actions provide access to justice for Canadians.

I’ll be watching the litigation with interest.

Is the church’s response real action — or window dressing?

Sexual abuse compensation claims have been filed against the Catholic Church in almost every province in Canada — and similar lawsuits are being filed in other countries around the world. But has the Catholic Church, as an institution, taken reasonable steps to address the problem of sexual abuse by priests?

Background

Before he became the current Pope, Bishop Joseph Ratzinger was Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for more than 20 years. The role of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is to “safeguard the doctrine on the faith and morals throughout the Catholic world” and deals with, among other things, priests accused of pedophilia.

Casting Blame

In the recent past, officials in the Catholic Church, including Pope Benedict XVI, have stated that the Catholic sexual abuse crisis was the responsibility of the media, homosexual priests, pornography and even the devil.

Reporting of Sexual Abuse

Sexual abuse litigation in the U.S. has uncovered a letter purportedly from the Vatican’s Cardinal Silvio Angelo Pio to Bishop Moreno of Tucson Arizona, which says in part: “To the second question (‘Should we allow or disallow civil lawyers from obtaining Father’s personnel records from our Chancery files’) we reply that under no condition whatever ought the afore-mentioned files be surrendered to any lawyer or judge whatsoever.”

The letter goes on to say: “Your Excellency should therefore make known immediately and with clarity that no priest’s files will be sent to any lawyer or judge whatever.”

Last year, the Vatican asked a court in Kentucky to strike a lawsuit that claimed Catholic bishops are employees or officials of the Church. Counsel for the Vatican denied the Pope has control over bishops, saying: “The pope is not a five-star general ordering his troops around.”

Liability in Canada

The liability of the Vatican has yet to be determined by a court in Canada. But based on existing case law, there is an argument to be made that, at least in Canada, the Pope would be found vicariously liable for the actions of Catholic bishops.

Supreme Authority

Canon law establishes the Pope as the supreme leader of the Catholic Church, responsible for prescribing what rules are to be followed by the faithful and to take what measures he deems necessary for the preservation and the propagation of the Catholic faith. Under Canon Law, bishops are ap­pointed by the Pope. The Pope is the sole authority over bishops and the only person who has the power to assign bishops to a diocese, remove bishops from a diocese and discipline bishops for misconduct.

In Doe v. Bennett, [2004] S.C.J. No. 17, the Supreme Court of Canada found the Catholic Diocese of St. George’s vicariously liable for sexual abuse by one of its priests, stating: “The relationship between the bishop and the priest in the Diocese is not only spiritual but temporal. First, the Bishop provided Bennett with the opportunity to abuse his power. Second, Bennett’s wrongful acts were strongly related to the psychological intimacy inherent in his role as priest. Third, the Bishop conferred an enormous degree of power on Bennett relative to his victims.”

One would think that the same reasoning would apply to hold the Pope responsible for the acts of bishops, because the Pope grants bishops “an enormous degree of power” over Catholics throughout the world.

Recent Developments

Two recent developments raise questions about whether the Catholic Church is prepared to accept responsibility for acts of sexual abuse by its priests.

Jay Report

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops recently commissioned a report from the John Jay College of Criminology. The report, “The Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010” is almost Orwellian in the lengths it goes to direct attention away from the Catholic Church’s responsibility to abuse survivors.

Redefining Pedophilia

One of the most appalling examples of the report’s manipulation of facts is the researchers’ conclusion that it is inaccurate to describe sexually abusive priests as pedophiles because, according to the report, only 22 per cent of reported victims were under the age of 10. The problem is that according to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the definition of a pedophile is someone who is sexually attracted to children under the age of 14.

According to statistics published in the John Jay report, if the authors used the medically accepted DSM definition of pedophilia, the percentage of so-called “pedophile priests” would increase from 22 per cent to almost 73 per cent of reported cases.

Another example of Orwellian “doublespeak” is where the authors of the report use the word “vulnerability” to describe the Catholic priests who committed sexual crimes against children.

Vatican’s Guidelines

Last month, the Vatican released guidelines to bishops for dealing with claims of priest sexual abuse. Cardinal William Joseph Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said the guidelines were drafted to “facilitate the correct application” of the Pope’s instructions.

The idea that individuals are responsible before their god for their sins and before the law for their crimes is something that is universally accepted — except, it seems, by the Catholic Church. The Vatican stops short of ordering the bishops to comply with laws requiring the reporting of sexual abuse of minors.

The guidelines state: “Specifically, without prejudice to the sacramental internal forum, the prescriptions of civil law regarding the reporting of such crimes to the designated authority should always be followed.” [Emphasis added]

Unfortunately, the Vatican has missed two opportunities to take decisive action to address the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church.

The Jay report identifies “egregious” failures by diocesan leaders to take responsibility for the harms caused by priest sexual abuse and “concerted efforts” to prevent allegations of sexual abuse from reaching law enforcement officials. But the report fails to explore what responsibility the hierarchy of the church has in the priest abuse crisis.

The Vatican’s guidelines recognize that child abuse is a crime. But the Vatican won’t order bishops to report crimes of sexual abuse. By recommending that bishops should comply with laws requiring reporting of crimes against children, instead of emphatically stating that bishops must comply with the law, the Vatican shows that the guidelines are simply a public relations exercise, rather than a legitimate attempt to address sexual abuse by priests.

Power and Responsibility

The Vatican and the Pope have an enormous degree of power over every bishop, priest and Catholic parishioner in the world. Perhaps it is time the Pope accepts the responsibility that comes with that power.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments...

This article originally apeared in the June 24, 2011 edition of Lawyers Weekly Magazine

Continue reading "The Catholic Church and Sexual Abuse " »

Our Court of Appeal has released their reasons in the appeal of L.M.M. v. Attorney General (Nova Scotia).

The appellant/plaintiff L.M.M. was sexually abused by his probation officer, Cesar Lalo. Lalo was convicted of assaulting the boy. As a result of the sexual abuse the trial judge stated:

So I have examined these two life patterns. There is no doubt in my mind that the Lalo "event" generated a significant and lasting change in LM's life plan. And I have asked myself what was the hope and promise of his life before Lalo. Could he have lived even a conventional or somewhat normal life, but for this event? Will he ever get back on the track his life might have taken but for this event? What is the long-term difference between the life he has today and one he might have had, if the probation officer he met was an honourable and decent man. LM's life changed dramatically for the worse after he passed through that sliding glass door into Caesar Lalo's "care" at the age of 13.

The judge awarded L.M.M. $125,000.00 for non-pecuniary damages (“pain and suffering”) and $250,000.00 for pass and future loss of income.

The judge did not order any compensation for ongoing psychological counseling.

L.M.M. appealed the income loss award as well as the judge’s failure to award future care costs. The Province launched a cross-appeal claiming that the award for general damages and income loss were inordinately high based on the fact that the trial judge had refused to accept the evidence of the plaintiff's psychological expert.

The Court of Appeal confirmed the awards for general damage and income loss.

However, the court found that there was uncontroverted evidence that the plaintiff suffered significant psychological problems and had required, and was going to require, ongoing psychological counseling.

The Court of Appeal referred to the trial judges findings:

LM is well aware of his current addiction issues and acknowledges he may now benefit from future counselling. He has even identified psychologist S. C., as someone with whom he made progress.

The Court of Appeal felt that the trial judge's failure to award compensation for cost of future care was an “oversight” and ordered the Province to pay the plaintiff an additional $60,000.00 for past and future psychological counseling.

The case recognizes that general damages and past and future income loss are highly fact specific.

However, the decision also recognizes that the damage caused by childhood sexual abuse can be significant and the treatment necessary to recover from the effects and financial consequences of that treatment can also be significant. I believe this is the largest award in Nova Scotia for future care that is purely for psychological counselling.

The Province of British Columbia was recently held vicariously liable for the sexual abuse of a convicted sex offender who sexually abused a minor hockey player that he was coaching.

Reasons for judgment were recently released by Justice Dley in D.K.B. v. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of British Columbia.

Failure to Notify

The plaintiff D.K.B. was described as a talented 13 year old hockey player. He was sexually abused by his coach, Richard Hall, a convicted sex offender, on two occasions. The Province of British Columbia was held to be vicariously liable for the sexual abuse because Hall's probation officer knew he was coaching hockey and the probation officer failed to notify the Minor Hockey Association that Hall was a convicted sex offender.

Professional Hockey Career

D.K.B. went on to play junior hockey and then professional hockey in the Western Hockey League.

When he was 17 years old D.K.B. was drafted in the eighth round of the NHL draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs. During his 9 year professional hockey career D.K.B. earned about $200,000.00. He claimed that, if it were not for the sexual abuse, he would have gone on to a much more successful and lucrative professional career.

Judges Reasons

Justice Dley concluded that:

“...the abuse likely resulted in an impairment of the plaintiff’s ability to earn income.”

Dley found that D.K.B. suffered from a personality disorder which:

“...caused significant interpersonal problems disrupting the plaintiff’s ability to develop close relationships with his peers.”

No Loss of Scholarship

The court held that D.K.B.'s decision to forgo an NCAA scholarship was not materially connected to his sexual abuse and awarded no damages for that loss.

However, the court was:

“...satisfied that the plaintiff’s disorders, which affected his mental health, had a negative impact on the mental and emotional tools required to fully realize ones potential as a professional hockey player”.

The court concluded that the losses suffered by D.K.B. amounted to the loss of a first contract (a 3 year contract) with an NHL team. The court believed that there was a reasonable possibility that the disorders from the sexual abuse were the cause of NHL teams not offering a contract to the plaintiff.

Loss of Signing Bonus

The court concluded that D.K.B. suffered a loss of a potential $175,000.00 as a signing bonus for joining an NHL team.

Loss of Salary

The court also found that the plaintiff had lost 3 years of salary as an NHL player which totaled $180,000.00.

Lessons Learned

The D.K.B. case points out that not only can sexual abuse have a significant financial impact on persons who are otherwise viewed as successful by the rest of society, it points to the responsibility that members of the justice system have to ensure that sexual offenders are prevented from coming into contact with children and are not provided with opportunities to commit further offences.

Continue reading "Probation Officer Lets Sex Offender Coach Minor Hockey: Province Responsible for Harm" »

Reasons for judgement were recently released in the case of B.M.B v. Fallona et al. .

The plaintiff B.M.B. filed a claim accusing the defendant Fallona, a Roman Catholic priest, of sexually assaulting her.

B.M.B. applied to court for an order requiring Fallona to produce a copy of various physicians’ records who provided mental health services to the priest.

The defendants refused to provide the records.

Lawyers for B.M.B.argued that because she was a minor when she was allegedly sexually assaulted, the defendant priest, Fallona met the definition of a pedophile as defined in the 4th edition of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders.

Therefore, argued B.M.B.'s lawyers, Fallona's mental health records were relevant to her lawsuit.

Justice McDermid reviewed the evidence submitted in support of B.M.B's application.

There was no medical evidence to indicate that the defendant had ever been diagnosed with pedophilia.

Justice McDermid stated in his decision:

“Generally speaking a plaintiff is entitled to disclosure of documents “relevant to any matter in issue in the action that is or has been in the possession, control or power of a party to the action” pursuant to R 30.02. Are Fallona’s medical records relevant to an issue in this action? It is elemental that the pleadings define the issues. There is no allegation in the statement of claim, either directly or inferentially, that Fallona is or was a pedophile at the relevant time or indeed at any time.

Therefore, in my opinion, there is nothing in the statement of claim that puts Fallona’s mental health in issue as between the plaintiff and Fallona. What the plaintiff alleges is that Fallona committed one or more sexual assaults, a physical act, against her. For the purposes of her claim for damages arising from those sexual assaults, Fallona’s mental health is not relevant. Moreover, the statement of defence does not put his mental health in issue.”

Justice McDermid denied B.M.B.'s request for an order requiring Fallona to produce his psychological and psychiatric records.

Lesson Learned?

It is trite to say that the pleadings (Notice of Claim) form the basis of the plaintiff’s claim. The facts alleged and causes if action claimed in the plaintiff’s notice of action form the foundation for all subsequent steps in the legal proceedings.

For the purposes of the motion, the court had to assume that the facts, as pleaded, were true. If B.M.B.'s Notice of Claim alleged that the defendant was a pedophile, or otherwise alleged facts that put Fallona's mental health at issue, it is clear that McDermid J. would have ordered production of the defendant’s mental health records.

Sometimes as lawyers we do not give enough thought at the beginning of a proceeding as to how the claim might develop as the matter proceeds. This decision simply points out that drafting the Notice of Claim is not just the first step in the litigation process; it may be the most important step.

UPDATE

I have been contacted by the plaintiff in this case, B.M.B. and she tells me that she has filed an appeal of Justice McDermid's decision.

I wish her the best of luck and applaud her for having had the courage to come forward.

Continue reading "Accused Abuser Doesn't Have to Produce Psychological Records" »

Father Donald Grecco has been waiting to be sentenced after being convicted of sexual assault charges last year.

He was released pending sentencing on conditions that he reside in Picton while waiting for his hearing.

However he ignored the court order and moved out without notifying the court of his change of address. Police arrested him in October.

Grecco has now pleaded guilty to breaching the conditions of his release. His sentence? Time served.

Think this guy has learned any lessons?

Last year a man that was sexually abused by notorious sexual abuser, Cesar Lalo was awarded $375,000.00 in compensation for sexual abuse committed by Lalo when the man was just 13 years old. See Lalo Sexual Abuse Victim Awarded $375,000.00

Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Heather Robertsion ordered that the province of Nova Scotia pay the man because the abuse happened when lalo was employed as a probation officer. Lalo used his power over the boy to commit his sexual assaults.

Lalo was declared a long-term offender as a result of his multiple sexual abuse convictions, and his failure to accept responsibility or show remorse for his actions.

Now CBC news has reported that the abuse survivor, who can only be identified as L.M.M. has filed an appeal of his compensation award, claiming it is too low. The province of Nova Scotia, not surprisingly, has filed an appeal claiming the award was too high.

Robertson J. awarded the victim $125,0000.00 for non-pecuniary damages for "pain and suffering" and $250,000.00 for past and future income loss.

I have been representing victims of childhood sexual abuse for 20 years. there is one thing that I am very clear about before I agree to represent any abuse victim. No amount of money is enough to compensate someone for being sexually abused. no amount of money will erase what happened or make them forget their abuse. Financial compensation is simply the only means that the courts have to provide some measure of justice.

That being said, it will be interesting to see what the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal does with this appeal. The median damage award for non-pecuniary damages for sexual abuse across Canada is roughly $125,000.00. Which is just what L.M.M. was awarded. Income losses are fact specific to each case and depend almost entirely on the assumptions made by the economic experts put forward by the parties.

The issue of the province's vicarious liability wasn't really at issue in this case. So I look forward to seeing what error of law the parties will point to for the basis of their respective appeals.

Yarmouth RCMP have charged former Roman Catholic priest, Father Albert LeBlanc with 40 criminal charges of sexual abuse including 11 charges of indecent assault and 29 charges of gross indecency. The alleged assaults involve 3 male victims who were between seven and 11 years of age when the assaults are alleged to have occurred.

The Yarmouth Diocese is already facing compensation claims by victims of three other priests, Father Raoul Deveau, Father Adolphe LeBlanc and Father Edouard (Eddie) Theriault.

Continue reading "More Sexual Abuse Charges against another Yarmouth Priest: Father Albert LeBlanc" »

I saw an interesting article in the Toronto Star last weekend.

Reverend William Hodgson (Hod) Marshall is facing 2 dozen criminal charges of sexual assault and indecent assault involving 16 boys (now men) who say they were sexually abused by Marshall while he was teaching in Catholic schools in Windsor, Toronto and Sudbury.

The current Roman Catholic Bishop of London Ontario is Ronald Fabbro. The article traces the relationship between Fabbro and Marshall.

What Did The Bishop Know?

It is clear that Fabbro knew as far back as 1996 that Marshall had faced allegations of sexually assaulting his students.

How many allegations Fabbro became aware of, and what the church did in response to the allegations, is not clear.

More Survivors Continue to Come Forward

I have been contacted by a number of persons who allege they were victims of Hod Marshall.

If you would like more information you can contact me, confidentially, by emailing me through this blog.

Toronto police are urging anyone with information to contact them at (416) 808-7474 or you can contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at (416) 222-tips (8477).

Anyone in the Windsor, Ontario area can contact the Windsor Police Special Victims Unit at (519) 255-6700 (ext. 4310).

Perhaps it goes without saying, but childhood sexual abuse is a world wide problem.

Lat week I posted about Oprah's show about male survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

Since the show aired there have been a number of news stories about Canadian men who survived childhood sexual abuse who participated in the show.

Here is a story from The Citizen Newspaper: Ottawa Sexual Abuse Survivor Confronts Past on Oprah Winfrey Show.

The CBC reported on a gentleman from Prince Edward Island: Oprah Talks to P.E.I. Abuse Survivor

I wanted to take a moment to applaud the courage of these men and all the others who participated in the show.

The first step to stopping childhood abuse is to talk about it. To acknowlege that it happens. Only then can we as a society take steps to prevent it from happening in the future.

"Learn from yesterday. Live for today. Hope for tomorrow." Albert Einstein

My wife is a big fan of Oprah Winfrey. She is certainly one of the most influential people in North America (Oprah, not my wife). So I was pleased when my wife told me that Oprah had devoted two days to a show about male survivors of sexual abuse. The first part aired last week. Part two is scheduled to be aired today.

The show is about the stories of 200 adult men who were molested as children. I applaud Oprah’s efforts to encourage male survivors of sexual abuse to come forward.

Disclosure Painful

I have been representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse for almost 20 years. Having represented literally hundreds of survivors of sexual abuse I can say for a fact that male survivors of sexual abuse find it more difficult to talk about what happened to them than the female survivors that I have helped.

The First Step

The first step to stopping childhood sexual abuse is to talk about it. Talking about the reality of childhood sexual abuse will help reduce the stigma for survivors. It will help educate the public about the effects of childhood sexual abuse. It will teach parents, family and friends what to look for so you know when it is happening.

I cannot tell you how many times survivors of sexual abuse have said to me: “I thought I was the only one…”.

You Are Not Alone

If there is one thing male survivors of sexual abuse need to know is: You are not alone!

Resource Guide

Survivors often have a difficult time finding someone they can trust to talk about what happened to them. So I have prepared a resource guide for survivors of sexual abuse that lists counselors throughout Atlantic Canada who specialize in helping sexual abuse survivors. You can get a copy by contacting me.

Continue reading "Oprah Sheds Light on Male Childhood Sexual Abuse " »

Plea to Abuse Survivors

Montreal police are investigating complaints of sexual abuse at Collège Notre-Dame à Montréal during the 1960s and 1970s. They are asking students who were victims of sexual abuse while attending the College to contact them to file a formal complaint.

Ignored Abuse Complaints for Twenty Years?

The appeal follows news that cited an internal report indicating the Congrégation des Frères de Sainte-Croix ignored complaints of sexual abuse at the College for over two decades.

Ontario Priest Charged With More Sexual Abuse Crimes

Catholic Priest Rev. William Hodgson Marshall a former Windsor high school principal is facing two criminal charges of indecent assault in Toronto when Marshall was teaching and coaching basketball at St. Michael's College school in 1953.

More Charges
Today Windsor police announced that Marshall has been charged with six additional charges of indecent or sexual assault for incidents alleged to have occurred in Windsor during the 1950s and '80s.

Marshall taught at Assumption College school from 1954-56 and Holy Names high school from 1985-89.

Toronto police Const. Tony Vella said there may be more victims in Toronto.

"We believe there will be more charges...We're urging anyone that may have been victimized by the man to come forward."

Tip of the Iceberg?
I have been representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse for almost twenty years. I have represented hundreds of victims of priest sexual abuse. In all that time, I have had only ONE case where there was only ONE documented victim.

The sad fact is that the victims that have come forward so far are just the tip of the iceberg. If there is one victim of sexual abuse, there are likely dozens. Sexual abusers cannot be cured. They continue to prey upon their victims until they are caught. Even after receiving "treatment" sexual offenders have a high rate of recidivism (risk of re-offending).

Follow-up studies of sexual offenders typically find sexual recidivism rates of 10%-15% after five years, 20% after 10 years, and 30%-40% after 20 years.

Sexual abuse survivors can help each other by speaking out about their abuse. Silence only protects the abusers and allows them to continue their predations.

Tellthe police. Tell a counsellor. Tell a family member or friend. But tell someone!

A new class action has been filed in Quebec alleging sexual abuse by priests.

The class action names the Community of the Clerics of St. Viateur in Montreal and the Raymond-Dewar Institute (also known as the Institute for the Deaf and Dumb) as defendants.

The representative plaintiff, Serge D’arcy says he was a victim of sexual abuse by priests while attending the institute between 1967 and 1972. D'arcy states that he was subjected to physical and sexual abuse by priests who were members of the religious group who taught and worked at the Dewar Institute.

I applaud Mr. D'arcy's courage in coming forward on behalf of himself and other victims.

I am pleased to see that class action legislation is being used as a tool to help more victims of childhood abuse. I had the pleasure of being invited to present on this issue at The Canadian Institute's 9th Annual summit on Institutional Liability for Sexual Assault & Abuse.

Ron Martin's sexual abuse class action against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish was a groundbreaking claim. The landmark settlement achieved in that class action will provide accountability, closure, and fair compensation to victims who would never be able to speak publicly about what happened to them.

Pope Begs Forgiveness - But Doesn't Apologize

I posted earlier today that the Pope has begged for forgiveness from survivors of priest sexual abuse. Unfortunately, the statement did not contain an apology or any acknowlegement that the Vatican or the Catholic Church were to blame for the tidal wave of priest abuse claims that have crossed the Atlantic from North America and swept across the U.K. and Europe.

Blame Everyone - Admit Nothing

The Pope has been quick to cast blame for the priest abuse crisis. See for example:

Can the Pope Learn a Lesson From Spiderman? Vatican Claims Bishops Not Employees of Church :

In fact officials in the Catholic Church have pointed the finger pretty much everywhere else including the media, gay priests, and pornography.

The Pope's fingerpointing would be almost laughable, if the problem of child sexual abuse by priests wasn't so serious.

But today The Los Angeles Times reported that in the same speech where he begged forgiveness from victims, the Pope blamed the priest abuse crisis on...get this...The Devil!

Come on! Really?

Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of being invited to present at the Canadian Institute's 9th Annual summit on Institutional Liability for Sexual Assault & Abuse.

The two day conference brought together plaintiff and defence counsel from across the country to discuss emerging issues in the law pertaining to liability for child abuse.

This is the third time I have been invited to speak by the Canadian Institute. I was asked to make two presentations. I presented on the use of class actions as a tool for the resolution of institutional sexual abuse claims.

My presentation: "Safe to Say You're Sorry (The Psychology of Apology)" was a review of a trend across Canada where provinces have introduced legislation preventing apologies from being used against defendants in court, as well as a discussion on the effective use of apologies in litigation.

I have been advised that part of my Apology presentation has been posted on the Canadian Institute's website. You can watch the presentation by clicking on the link.

A man who was 13 years old when he was sexually abused by former probation officer Cesar Lalo has been awarded $375,000.00 in compensation by Supreme Court of Nova Scotia Justice Heather Robertson.

Lalo has been convicted of sexually abusing 29 boys while working as a probation officer for Department of Social Services in Nova Scotia.

Justice Robertson awarded the plaintiff, identified as L.M.M., $125,000.00 for compensation for pain and suffering and an additional $250,000.00 for past and future lost income.

The decision isn't online yet. I will post a copy when it's available.

I have been invited to speak at the Canadian Institute’s Ninth National Summit on Institutional Liability for Sexual Assault and Abuse.

My presentation is Overcoming Key Hurdles in Bringing and Defending Child Sexual Assault and Abuse Claims.

The conference is taking place in Toronto April 7-8, 2010.

You can register, or get more information, here.

The Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bathurst has asked the Vatican to laicize a former priest from the Diocese, Father Levi Noel, who has been sentenced to eight years in jail for 22 sex related criminal offences.

Father Wesley Wade, spokesperson for the Diocese of Bathurst has told CBC news that the request is in the hands of the Vatican.

Laicization is a penalty imposed under the Code of Canon Law (Church law) where a priest is stripped of the right to perform priestly duties.

The penalty is rarely imposed. The Code of Canon Law says the penalty can only be imposed "for the gravest reasons". In fact depite the fact that 3 priests from the Diocese of Antigonish were convicted of sexually abusing dozens of children over a period of many decades, not one of them were laicized by any of fomer Bishops of Antigonish.

The Diocese of Bathurst has taken the first step towards proper accountability. It remains to be seen what efforts the Diocese will take to make amends to Levi Noel's victims.

Continue reading "Bathurst Diocese wants to Defrock Sex Abuser Levi Noel" »

This months cover story in Canadian Lawyer magazine is about Ron Martin's class action against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish.

You can read the story online.

Justice Normand Glaude has released his report in the Cornwall Inquiry into allegations of sexual abuse.

Justice Glaude said during a press conference that:

“Institutions were ill equipped to deal with allegations about their own employees…institutions tend to try to find a way out, allowing individuals to stay under ineffective conditions that failed to protect the vulnerable.”

More Concerned About Reputation Than Child Safety

In a statement that rings true Justice Glaude says that institutions were:

“Less concerned about victims than about public embarrassment.”

I have been representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse for more than 18 years. In almost every case of institutional abuse we have investigated, we have found that persons in authority were aware, or should have been aware, of the abuse.

But the institutions failed to report the abuse rather than face the public embarrassment or stigma that public revelations might cause.

This problem has been particularly rampant within the Catholic Church, which appears to have perpetuated a “code of silence”; failing to acknowledge sexual abuse by it's priests or the harm it causes to the victims.

Progress Being Made?

One can only hope that progressive steps like Justice Glaude’s report, and recommendations contained therein, and the recent class action settlement by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish will provide a path for the future and other institutions facing allegations of sexual abuse.

Continue reading "Cornwall Inquiry Finds “Systemic Failures” to Blame for Historic Sexual Abuse" »

Priest Convicted of Sexual Abuse 20 years Ago

More than 20 years ago Father James Hickey was convicted of sexually abusing a number of alter boys in the Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Johns, Newfoundland.

Since then, the boys, now men, who were sexually abused by Hickey, have been fighting the Catholic Church in Court seeking compensation for their injuries.

The St. Johns Telegram has reported that the Diocese has finally agreed to settle one of the lawsuits for $200,000.00.

I have reported before of the efforts of the Church to fight the claims of abuse survivors.

Why the Antigonish Diocese Sexual Abuse Class Action Settlement is the Right Thing to do.

Perhaps this survivor can move forward with his life, now that the Diocese has been held accountable for the abuse he suffered.

Continue reading "Newfoundland Diocese Agrees to $200,000.00 Sex Abuse Settlement " »

Pope Benedict XVI has issued a statement saying he"shares the outrage, betrayal and shame felt by so many of the faithful in Ireland (over) these heinous crimes," over reports that church leaders in Ireland covered up sexual abuse by priests for decades.

Just a Few Bad Apples

The Pope’s statement expressed his “profound regret” at the actions of “some members of the clergy”.

Church Not to Blame?

In other words, this isn’t the fault of the Church; it’s not the responsibility of the Pope or the Vatican. The decades long cover up involving four consecutive Archbishops who covered up thousands of cases of sexual abuse by priests is just another isolated case of "some members of the clergy" who betrayed the trust placed in them by the victims, their families and their parishioners.

The statement indicates that the Pope intends to write a pastoral letter to Catholics in Ireland indicating what steps the church intends to take in response to the abuse allegations.

Lesson to be Learned

Perhaps the Pope should take a lesson from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish.

The Diocese of Antigonish has fully accepted responsibility for the sexual abuse perpetrated by priests of the Diocese and has created a program to compensate survivors of sexual abuse by its priests.

What do you think? Is the Irish abuse scandal the result of a few misguided priests or evidence of a systematic cover up by the Catholic Church?

Class Action Deadline

December 4, 2009 was an important deadline under the class action settlement agreement reached with the Diocese of Antigonish. If anyone opted out of the class action settlement on or before December 4, 2009, the Diocese had the right to pull out of the class action.

Similarly, if more than 70 people came forward before December 4, 2009 indicating that they wanted to pursue a claim against the Diocese, Ron Martin had the option to pull out of the class action.

Tremendous Support for Class Action
There has been overwhelming support for the class action from survivors. The feedback that we received from the survivors who have contacted us have unanimously supported Ron Martin and the class action settlement.

I think one of the survivors put it best:

“I survived so many years thinking I was alone, and it was my fault, with no one to turn to. I give all my support to Ron Martin and the class action.”

Some People Have Opted Out
I have been advised by counsel for the Diocese that the Diocese has received some opt out forms from people who do not want to be part of the class action settlement.

Therefore, under the terms of the settlement agreement conditions were met that would have allowed either the Diocese or Ron Martin to pull out of the class action.

Parties Have Agreed to Move Forward

I am pleased to announce that the Diocese and Ron Martin have agreed NOT to exercise their option to pull out of the class action. Therefore the Antigonish Diocese Class Action Settlement is now final and will proceed as planned.

Historic Day

This is a historic day. This is the first time that the Catholic Church has acknowledged its responsibility to survivors of sexual abuse. This is also an important day because Ron Martin has finally been able to fulfill the promise that he made to his brother to ensure that he, and everyone else who was sexually abused by a priest of the Antigonish Diocese, would be able to receive accountability for what happened to them.

Thank You

On behalf of Ron Martin, I would like to thank all of the class members who have supported Ron Martin in his efforts. It has been a long and difficult road to this day. The Class Members and the parishioners of the Antigonish Diocese will now be able to move forward so that survivors can receive compensation and, more importantly, accountability. It is also my hope that for some survivors this process will provide some measure of reconciliation with the Catholic Church.

Continue reading "ANTIGONISH CLASS ACTION TO MOVE FORWARD!" »

Sex Abuse Class Action Certified

I am pleased to announce that on September 10, 2009, Justice David MacAdam of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court certified Ronald Martin’s class action lawsuit against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish.

Settlement Approved

Justice MacAdam also approved the settlement agreement which sets up a private and confidential compensation process for victims of sexual abuse by priests of the Diocese of Antigonish.

Landmark Decision

Justice MacAdam’s decision is extraordinary because it marks the first time that the Catholic Church has ever been successfully sued in a class action lawsuit. It also marks the first time that the Catholic Church has agreed to set up a compensation program specifically to provide compensation to survivors of sexual abuse by priests.

There are three important deadlines for class members to be aware of:

Notify Class Counsel: Class members should notify me on or before December 4, 2009 if they want to participate in the class action settlement. You can do so by contacting me by email at dioceseclassaction@apmlawyers.com.

Opt Out: If a class member does not want to take part in the class action settlement, and wants to file an individual lawsuit at their own cost, they must file an opt out form with the lawyers representing the Diocese on or before December 4, 2009.

Claims Deadline: Class members have until March 10, 2010 to submit a fully completed claim form requesting compensation. Claim forms are available by contacting my office or on the class action website www.dioceseclassaction.com.

Trigger Dates

There are two “trigger dates” in the settlement agreement. If anyone opts out of the class action, the Diocese has the right to pull out of the class action settlement.

Similarly, if more than 70 survivors come forward indicating that they want to file a claim for compensation, Ronald Martin has the right to pull out of the settlement agreement. The deadline for making this decision is December 4, 2009.

Congratulations and Thanks

Ron Martin is to be congratulated for all of his efforts in bringing forward this landmark claim on behalf of all of the sexual abuse survivors of the Antigonish Diocese.

I am honoured to have been able to assist Ron Marin in this landmark case. I want to thank him for trusting me with this important claim.

More Information

You can find out more about the terms of the class action settlement on my website www.novascotiaclassaction.com

Continue reading "Antigonish Diocese Sexual Abuse Class Action Certified and Settlement Approved!" »

I am pleased to announce that Ronald Martin’s class action against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish on behalf of persons who were sexually abused by priests employed by the Diocese has been settled.

Settlement Agreement

At a press conference today, Ron Martin and Bishop Raymond Lahey signed a settlement agreement to resolve the class action lawsuit.

13 Million Dollars

The Diocese of Antigonish has agreed to a fund of up to 13 million dollars to compensate anyone who was sexually abused by a priest that was a member of the Antigonish Diocese.

Private Compensation Process

The settlement also creates a private process where survivors claims can be evaluated in a private, confidential manner and receive fair and reasonable compensation.

You can find out more about the terms of the class action settlement on my website www.novascotiaclassaction.com

You can read a copy of the official Court Notice announcing the terms of the settlement.

Approval Hearing in September

The class action is still subject to approval by the court. Justice David MacAdam of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court will hold a hearing on September 10 and 11, 2009, to determine whether the class action can be certified and to review and approve the Settlement Agreement.

If you or a family member were sexually abused by a priest that was a member of the Antigonish Diocese between 1950 and 2009 you may be eligible for compensation under the class action settlement. You can contact me for more information or call my assistant Sarah Winfield toll free in Atlantic Canada at 1 (877) 423-2050 to arrange an appointment.

Media Reports

N.S. diocese makes $13M sex-abuse settlement

Settlement reached in lawsuit against N.S. diocese over alleged sex abuse

Canadian diocese pays millions to abuse victims

N.S. diocese reaches $13-million settlement in abuse case

N.S. diocese to pay $13M to sexually abused victims

The sexual abuse scandal in catholic schools in Ireland has documented a “substantial level of sexual abuse” in Catholic run schools in Ireland.

Now, TV3 has produced a documentary called “Abuse of Trust: Sins of the Fathers” which documents some of the horror stories of sexual abuse by priests who were part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin.

The documentary uncovers a pattern that has been repeated time and time again in countries around the world. Roman Catholic Priests sexually abusing children and persons of authority within the church covering up the allegations and moving sexually predatory priests from parish to parish.

I represent Ron Martin who has filed a proposed class action against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish on behalf of victims who were sexually abused by priests who were employed by the Diocese of Antigonish. If you or a family member were victimized by a priest who was part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish you can contact me through this blog, or by calling toll free 1-877-423-2050, for more information.

After ten years of investigations a government inquiry into sexual abuse in Catholic run schools, orphanages and hospitals has released an exhaustive and damning report.

Abuse Endemic
The inquiry commission uncovered:

...a substantial level of sexual abuse of boys in care that extended over a range from improper touching and fondling to rape with violence.

Corporal punishment in girls’ schools was:

pervasive, severe, arbitrary and unpredictable.

Church Knew About Dangers

The Commission determind that:

The recidivist nature of sexual abuse was known to religious authorities.

Church Concerned About Reputation, Not Risk to Children

Time and time again we have seen how the Catholic Church values it's reputation more that the lives of the children under it's care. The same pattern repeated itself in Ireland:

The risk was seen by the congregations in terms of potential for scandal and bad publicity should the abuse be disclosed. The danger to children was not taken into account.

If you have been a victim of sexual abuse by a priest, or any person in authority, please, please please tell someone. Silence only protects the abusers and the institutions that harbour them.

I have represented hundreds of victims of childhood sexual abuse in claims for compensation. As a public service I have prepared a resource guide for survivors of sexual abuse in Atlantic Canada. The guide contains a list of support groups throughout the Maritimes for survivors of sexual abuse.

You can receive a free copy of The Survivor's Guide to Abuse Compensation Claims by contacting me through this blog, or my website at www.apmlawyers.com or by calling toll free in Atlantic Canada 1-877-423-2050.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of London, Ontario has agreed to pay Lou-Anne Soontiens $1,745,000.00, plus legal costs to compensate her for years of sexual abuse she suffered as a child at the hands of Father Charles Sylvestre. The total value of the settlement is thought to be more than 2.2 million dollars.

Sylvestre, one of Canada’s most notorious pedophiles was convicted of sexually assaulting Sootiens.

CBC's Fifth Estate aired a documentary about Sylvestre called "The Good Father". As you will see from watching the documentary it is apparent that persons of authority within the Catholic Church knew about Sylvestre’s sexual abuse but did nothing to protect his victims.

I have posted about Sylvestre's predatory abuse in the past. See also, Sex Abuse help Fund Doubled.

The effects of childhood sexual abuse can be devasting. Although the scars my not be visible, the damage caused to the victims can be totally disabling. Because of the psychological effects of their abuse, many victims are not able to bring forward their claims on their own behalf.

My client Ron Martin has filed a class action against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish on behalf of persons that suffered sexual abuse by priests that who were members of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish.

If you or a family member were a victim of sexual abuse by a priest from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish you can contact me, or take a look at my website for more information about the class action.

Continue reading "Victim of Priest Sexual Abuse Receives 1.75 Million Dollar Settlement" »

In two related decisions released last month, Justice Walter Goodfellow has ruled that the plaintiffs' claims for compensation for assault and negligence as a result of childhood sexual abuse were statute barred. However, Goodfellow J. allowed the plaintiffs' claims for compensation for breach of fiduciary duty to continue.

Robert Lawrence Borden and Leonard Anthony Smith were both former residents of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children.

Borden and Smith have filed a proposed class action on behalf of all former residents of the school seeking compensation for assault and negligence as a result of sexual abuse they allege happened while they were residents were living in the Home for Colored Children.

With respect to Borden’s claim, Justice Goodfellow determined that the "undisputed" facts were that Borden knew what had happened to him was wrong and had provided full disclosure to friends (and strangers) about what had happened to him at the home many years before he filed his lawsuit.

Similarly, Justice Goodfellow determined that the undisputed facts were that Smith was also aware that what had happened to him in the home was wrong and that there was a causal connection with his experiences in the home and the harm that he had suffered. He had clear memories of the abuse which he disclosed to his wife and to an author who was writing a book about the Home. He also disclosed his experiences to a potential employer when applying for jobs as a youth counselor.

Justice Goodfellow determined that the claims for assault and negligence were statute barred under Nova Scotia's Limitation of Actions Act.

However, Justice Goodfellow confirmed that, in accordance with the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal’s decision in Milbury v. Nova Scotia (Attorney General) (another claim arising from the Home for Colored Children) there is no limitation period (at least in Nova Scotia) for a claim for breach of fiduciary duty.

Therefore, all of the claimants’ claims based on assault and negligence were struck as being statute barred. However, the claimants’ claims based on breach of fiduciary duty were allowed to proceed.

Childhood sexual abuse can cause lasting and disabling psychological injuries. However, these decisions point out the difficulty that survivors of childhood abuse may have when seeking access to justice through the courts. The decisions confirm that survivors of childhood sexual abuse should consult with legal counsel as soon as possible when they become aware of the connection between their childhood abuse and the disabling effects of the abuse later in life.

Childhood abuse can permanently change the way your genes fight stress, leaving victims of childhood abuse more vulnerable to stressful events throughout their life.

Abuse Alters Gene Function

Researchers at Montreal’s McGill University have published a study which suggests that childhood abuse can have, not only long term psychological effects, but can physically alter the way abuse victim’s genes function.

The study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience found that childhood abuse alters hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) function, increasing the risk of suicide in survivors of childhood abuse.

Researchers compared the brains of suicide victims who had a history of childhood abuse with those who died from suicide (but no history of childhood abuse) and persons who died from natural death.

Abuse Inhibits Production of Anti-Stress Hormones

The study found that the abuse victims underlying DNA was not changed. However, the HPA genes effect was decreased, causing the brain to produce fewer calming hormones which made it more difficult for abuse victims to deal with subsequent stressful events.

Sexual abuse lawyers, and persons who work with survivors of childhood abuse have known for decades that child abuse is one of the highest risk factors for different types of psychiatric disorders.

However, this research appears to be one of the first indicators that childhood abuse can actually cause physical changes to the body which can have an impact on the survivor’s life which spans decades.

It is still early, but perhaps this research may lead to a cure for some of the lasting effects of childhood abuse.

Watch an interview with Patrick McGowan, head of McGill's research team.

Last week the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador ruled that the Roman Catholic Church in St. John’s was responsible for the sexual abuse of eight former altar boys by disgraced priest, Reverend James Hickey.

Priest Convicted of Abusing Alter Boys

Hickey was criminally charged ten years ago with sexually abusing the boys while he was a parish priest on the Burin Peninsula. He was convicted and spent five years in prison.

Church Fights Victims for 10 Years

Despite Hickey’s criminal conviction the Roman Catholic Church has fought the victim’s claims for compensation tooth and nail for almost 10 years.

Destroyed Faith in God

Gregory Stack, who represented the abuse survivors, told CBC News that the sexual abuse didn’t just destroy the victims physically or psychologically, the sexual abuse destroyed their faith in God.

“The boys…generally came from the more devout catholic homes. The more devout, the more religious parents that pushed their children to become altar boys, and these were the boys who were victimized by the parish priest.

It is the whole coupling of that- the sense that god has abused them. And that’s what they believed in those small communities. By in large, the parish priest was a god-like figure”

This is just another sad example of how the Catholic Church is prepared to fight to it's last penny rather than acknowledge it's responsibility to the victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests.

Supreme Court Rules Church Responsible for Sexual Abuse

Six years ago the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Roman Catholic Church is responsible (vicariously liable) for sexual abuse by it's Priests. In Doe v. Bennett (another priest abuse case from Newfoundland) the court ruled that the Roman Catholic Church was responsible for the sexual abuse perpetrated by it's priests because of the power and authority over parishioners that the Church gave to it's priests.

The Supreme Court of Canada stated that:

“The relationship between the bishop and the priest in the Diocese is not only spiritual but temporal.

First, the Bishop provided Bennett with the opportunity to abuse his power.

Second, Bennett’s wrongful acts were strongly related to the psychological intimacy inherent in his role as priest.

Third, the Bishop conferred an enormous degree of power on Bennett relative to his victims”

The Catholic Church’s refusal to acknowledge its responsibility to Hickey’s victims simply perpetuates the view that the Catholic Church cares more about its reputation than it does about protecting vulnerable and innocent children from sexual abuse.

Related Posts:

Do Myths About Child Abuse Explain The Church Sex Abuse Scandals?

Sexual Abuse: Not Just a Catholic Problem?

Does the Catholic Church Attract Sexual Abusers…or Create Them?

Supreme Court of Canada Clarifies Burden of Proof for Sexual Abuse Victims

The Vatican has issued guidelines for psychological screening of new priests. The Associated Press has reported that the guidelines were issued in response to sexual abuse scandals that have cost the Roman Catholic Church hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements for victims of sexual abuse.

Weeding Out Psychopaths

According to AP, the guidelines are supposed to help church leaders weed out candidates with "psychopathic disturbances."

Scapegoating Homosexuals?

The BBC has reported that the voluntary tests should also aim to vet for those with "deep-seated homosexual tendencies". Of course being homosexual has nothing to do with whether someone is more likely to commit sexual abuse. Needless to say, Gay rights groups have denounced the guidelines as unfairly targeting homosexuals.

Is It Enough?

SNAP (The Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests) has responded by claiming that the screening guidelines do not go far enough. SNAP has called for an end to what SNAP calls the church's "virtually unchanged culture of secrecy and unchecked power in the hierarchy" that left dangerous priests in parishes.

Is the Catholic Church the Problem?

I have posted before about research that suggests that the way in which the Catholic Church educates/trains it's priests may actually create sexual abusers.

Only the First Step

Screening out people who may be potential sexual abusers is a good first step. But the screening, which is now voluntary, needs to be mandatory.

But the bigger problem, one that the Church has so far failed to address, is the culture of secrecy that still permeates the Church. There are persons in authority throughout the catholic Church that will do anything to protect the reputation of the Church. Even at the expense of innocent victims of sexual abuse.

Continue reading "Vatican Issues Guidelines for Psychological Screening of Priests: What took so long? " »

Yesterday the Supreme Court of Canada restored a finding of civil liability for sexual assaults committed by an Oblate Brother against a former Indian Residential School Student decades ago and confirmed the burden of proof that victims of historical sexual assaults must meet if they pursue civil claim for compensation.

In F.H. v. McDougall the Supreme Court of Canada upheld a finding of civil liability against Ian Hugh McDougall, a former teacher at the Meares Island Indian Residential school. McDougall was originally found liable in B.C. Supreme Court, but the judgment was overturned by the B.C. Court of Appeal.

The B.C. Court of Appeal ruled that the testimony of adult victims about sexual assaults that happened during childhood require independent corroboration.

“[t]o choose one over the other . . . requires . . . an articulated reason founded in evidence other than that of the plaintiff”

The judgment of the Supreme Court of Canada was delivered by Rothstein J. He considered whether there was a shifting burden of proof in Canada or if allegations of criminal misconduct should carry a higher burden of proof similar to the burden in criminal prosecutions.

Justice Rothstein emphatically laid the debate to rest:

"...I would reaffirm that in civil cases there is only one standard of proof and that is proof on a balance of probabilities. In all civil cases, the trial judge must scrutinize the relevant evidence with care to determine whether it is more likely than not that an alleged event occurred."

With respect to the supposed requirement for corroborating witnesses, Rothstein J. said:

"Corroborative evidence is always helpful and does strengthen the evidence of the party relying on it as I believe Rowles J.A. was implying in her comments. However, it is not a legal requirement and indeed may not be available, especially where the alleged incidents took place decades earlier. Incidents of sexual assault normally occur in private."

The McDougall decision is incredibly important for those of us that represent victims of childhood sexual abuse.

Had the B.C. Court of Appeal ruling not been overturned it would have created huge barrier for victims of childhood abuse to receive justice. Childhood sexual abuse is a crime of secrecy. There are rarely any witnesses to childhood sexual abuse and to require independent corroboration from witnesses would, effectively, deny the rights of victims to pursue justice in the civil courts.

You can read more about the burden of proof in civil claims on my website www.apmlawyers.com.

Continue reading "Supreme Court of Canada Clarifies Burden of Proof for Sexual Abuse Victims" »

The special prosecutor who has been asked to investigate the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints community in Bountiful, British Columbia plans to ask the RCMP to reopen their criminal investigation into the polygamous religious community.

The Globe and Mail reported that Vancouver lawyer, Terry Robertson says that:

"The law says it is an offence for a person in a position of authority over another to sexually touch someone if they are under 18,"

Women who have left the community of Bountiful have said that girls as young as 14 have been married to men more than 20 years older, who are elders in the religious community.

Robertson also intends to look at whether the law against polygamy breaches the freedom-of-religion provision of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

I posted almost a year ago that the BC government had decided not to lay criminal charges over the polygamy in Bountiful: B.C. will not charge Polygamists with Child Sexual Abuse

At that time the prosecutor refused to lay charges on the basis that the children had "consented" to the marriages and were therefore not sexual assaults under the law.

Given the control that some religious leaders can have over the members of their communities (and I am not just talking about the Church of Latter Day Saints) , isn't it a bit naive to just assume that a child's "consent" is genuine? Is it not possible that the "consent" was coerced?

What do you think?

The Supreme Court of Canada has overturned the conviction of 73-year-old who confessed (three times!) to sexually abusing three children.

In a stinging indictment of the police that investigated the crimes, the Court unanimously ruled that police "knowingly and deliberately" used information that had been illegally obtained in order to obtain the confessions.

The Globe and Mail has reported that police in Kamloops interrogated Dieter Helmut Wittwer three times. Each time he confessed to sexually assaulting 3 girls between the ages of five and six years old.

But the first time police had failed to advise Wittwer of his right to counsel. The second time they interrogated him, police advised Wittwer of his right to counsel, but failed to give him the opportunity to call a lawyer.

After being told by a Crown prosecutor that the first two confessions were probably inadmissible the police tried a third time.

Wittwer confessed again! But only AFTER being confronted with his previous, unlawfully obtained, confessions.

Justice Fish, writing for the unanimous court stated that the police conduct was:

"...sufficient to taint the subsequent statement and to cry out for its exclusion ... To hold otherwise is to invite the perception that the police are legally entitled to reap the benefit of their own infringements of a suspect's constitutional rights. And this, in my view, would bring the administration of justice into disrepute."

Some people may be outraged that a sexual abuser who confessed THREE TIMES will have his conviction overturned.

But I am more outraged by the incompetence of the police that investigated these charges. Three young girls were sexually abused and the pedophile that assaulted them now has another chance at being found not guilty, because the police did not respect the rules.

What do you think?

You can read the entire decision here.

The media has been full of reports over the outrage caused by disgraced priest and convicted sex abuser Paul Shanley's appeal based on the (supposed) unreliability of "repressed memory".

I posted about the story last week Priest Sex Abuser Appeals Conviction: Denies Existence of Repressed Memory .

Today I read an interesting post by Tim Lytton on the PrawfsBlawg about the issue. He makes the point that the media attention surrounding the various priest sexual abuse scandals has perhaps over estimated the incidence of repressed memory in historical sexual abuse cases.

Lytton points out that:

First, since claiming recovered memory is one way to overcome statute of limitations problems, clergy sexual abuse litigation makes the frequency of recovered memory among victims appear to be greater than it actually is. Second, most plaintiffs seeking to avoid dismissal of their claims under the statute of limitations do not allege recovered memory but rather delayed discovery of injury--claiming that, although they never forgot the abuse, they did not identify the damage that it caused or they did not attribute that damage to the abuse. Third, most lawsuits and prosecutions for clergy sexual abuse are supported by independent evidence of guilt.

I couldn't agree more.

I have represented hundreds of victims of historical sexual abuse and in not one of them did my client, claim to have "repressed" the memory of the abuse.

In most cases the victim was aware of the fact of the abuse, but did not realize that their ongoing psychological problems were a product of their childhood.

Furthermore, in almost every single case we have been able to find independent evidence to corroborate my clients claims.

So perhaps the furor over repressed memory has been caused, in part, by the media. What do you think?

Continue reading "Repressed Memory of Sexual Abuse a Creation of the Media?" »

A founding member of a Mount Forest Mennonite community has been ordered to pay compensation to a man that he sexually abused as a child.

CTV news has reported that 84 year old Amsey Bearinger is currently serving a two year sentence after being convicted of sexually abusing 17 children over two decades.

Bearinger, an Elder in the Mennonite Church, has been ordered to pay compensation to a man who was just 8 years old when Bearinger began to sexually assault him.

The amount of the settlement is confidential. You can watch a video of the news story here.

In a decision released last week, the British Columbia Court of Appeal has found a probation officer and the mother of a boy who was sexually abused, equally responsible for sexual assaults on the boy, by a paroled sex offender.

The Court of Appeal confirmed that the province is vicariously liable (legally responsible) for the negligence of a probation officer who allowed a convicted sex offender on parole to live with a family with two young children.

You can read the full decision here.

JH was sexually assaulted by Kline, who was on probation for sexual offences against boys. He was on parole and under an order not to have unsupervised contact with children.

Despite the terms of the probation order, Kline's probation officer gave him permission to live in a suite in the same house as JH, and his sister and mother.

Kline became friendly with JH's mother, DH (a single mom). He actually TOLD her that he was not allowed to have contact with children under the age of 18. (Although he told her it was because he had been convicted of having sex with a 17 year old prostitute).

When the probation officer learned that Kline was living in the same house as two young children, he warned the mother DH not to allow Kline to be alone with her children but he did not tell her that Kline had been convicted of assaulting young boys.

DH lied to the probation officer and said that Kline had no contact with her children.

In fact, Kline spent lots of time with JH, babysitting him, watching movies, teaching him how to fish and ride a bike. He sexually assaulted JH over a nine month period.

The trial judge found that the probation officer was negligent and held the Province of British Columbia vicariously liable for his negligent acts. The trial judge also found the mother, DH 5% responsible for leaving JH with Kline when she had been warned not to do so.

The province appealed the finding of vicarious liability. DH appealed the finding that she was partly responsible.

The Court of Appeal confirmed the finding of the probation officer's negligence:

The probation officer was clothed with the responsibility to approve the residence of Mr. Kline, and was the only reliable channel of information to residents living near Mr. Kline as to the danger he posed, and to whom.

The province argued that it should be immune from vicarious liability because:

...the decisions or actions in issue in this case were taken in the exercise of public discretion and therefore a duty of care should not extend to such discretionary decisions for reasons of public policy.

The Court of Appeal rejected the argument:

...the probation officer’s task was management of the parameters already put in place by the sentencing judge. As such, I do not view Mr. Gill’s function in relation to J.H. as reaching the high policy level contemplated by the authorities as required before immunity from liability is assured at this stage of the analysis.

The Court overturned the trial judge's ruling that DH was only 5% responsible, finding instead that DH was equally to blame for the sexual assaults and split liability (fault) 50-50 between DH and the province.

...D.H. contends that she is not at all at fault. I do not agree. D.H. was advised of the term of the probation order. Although she chose not to comply with it on the basis she did not know the underlying offence was a sexual assault against a person of her son’s profile, that is not an answer to her election to permit her children to be with Mr. Kline contrary to that order. Nor does she have a good answer to the falsehood told to the probation officers that Mr. Kline did not have contact with her children.

Some people may have a problem with holding a mother responsible for the sexual assaults of a convicted sex offender. Hasn't the family suffered enough?

I have to say I agree with the balancing act by the Court of Appeal in this case. The mother was told that Kline wasn't supposed to have contact with children. She knew he had been convicted of sexual assault. Frankly, what parent in their right mind would allow a convicted sex offender to be alone with their children?!

Continue reading "Province & Mom Responsible for Sexual Assault on Child by Sex Offender: B.C. Court of Appeal" »

Paul Shanley the notorious defrocked priest and convicted sex abuser that was the center of the Boston priest sexual abuse scandal has appealed his conviction on charges of repeatedly raping and fondling a boy at a Newton parish in the 1980s.

Shanley claims that his lawyer at his trial did not do a good enough job challenging the admissibility of the victim’s “repressed memories” of the childhood sexual abuse.

The District Attorney who prosecuted Shanley, Gerry Leone was quoted as saying:

"The concept of recovered memory by victims of abuse has been accepted by both the scientific and legal communities, as well as the jury who convicted Mr. Shanley after hearing the full evidence in this case," Leone said. "We remain confident in the jury's verdict."

Repressed Memory: What is it?

It is common for us to consciously repress unpleasant memories. In other words, we know what happened, but we chose not to think about it.

Repressed memory is the memory of a traumatic event that has been unconsciously repressed. In other words, the victim of a traumatic event has no conscious memory of a traumatic event because his or her subconscious has repressed the memory. Repressed memories can be recalled after being triggered, usually by another traumatic event.

Does Repressed Memory Exist?

There is mixed scientific opinion about whether repressed memory really exists. Some professionals deny the existence of repressed memories. Some are sceptical despite peer-reviewed studies and clinical studies that continue to document the phenomenon.

So What's the Answer?

The reality is that the validity of repressed memories may have a great to do with the way in which the memories were recovered. You can read an interesting examination of the issue from the University of Washington: The Reality of Repressed Memories.

I have been representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse for more than 15 years. I have no doubt that traumatic memories of something as horrifying as childhood sexual abuse can be repressed by the unconscious mind as a protection mechanism.

That is not to say that I think all repressed memories are true. But in my experience a careful examination of all the facts surrounding each particular case usually provides evidence to corroborate the accuracy of most victims’ repressed memories.

What do you think? Have you ever experienced the recovery of a repressed memory? Do you think repressed memories even exist?

Continue reading "Priest Sex Abuser Appeals Conviction: Denies Existence of Repressed Memory" »

In an Editorial published today in The Montreal Gazette the authors point to the apparent epidemic of sexual abuse in schools.

...it is impossible to know how large the problem of sexual predators in schools is, but there is, definitely, a problem. A 2001-2005 investigation in the U.S. last year by Associated Press found more than 2,500 cases of teachers who were either sanctioned by their schools or, in half the cases, convicted of a crime of sexual misconduct.

The authors conclude:

The seriousness of child sexual abuse cannot be overstated. Victims talk of lives ruined. They are unable to work, form relationships, enjoy friendships or accomplish what they hoped to in life.

The justice system seems to be the one realistic hope of putting an end to a predator's career.

I couldn't agree more. I have been representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse for more than 15 years. Criminal charges provide the justice system with a chance to punish sexual predators. Civil claims for sexual abuse hold the institutions that allow sexual deviants to prey on child accountible for the lives destroyed by sexual abuse.

If you have been a victim of childhood sexual abuse you can contact me for a free report about childhood sexual abuse claims and a manual of Atlantic Canadian resources for survivors of sexual abuse.

Just a quick post to let you know about The National Children's Advocacy Center's 9th annual National Conference on Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention.

The conference is taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana between August 26-28, 2008.

If you are in Toronto on June 1 and want to support an end to child sexual abuse, consider joing the Walk to Stop Child Sexual Abuse.

The walk is being organized by Youth Out Loud.

Here are some more details.

A preliminary inquiry has started for Bernard Cloutier, a Roman Catholic priest charged with sexually assaulting several young boys over a decade at various parishes in Northern Ontario.

It is alleged the incidents involving Bernard Cloutier began in 1974 and continued until April 1983. He has pleaded not guilty to the 22 charges he is facing.

The preliminary inquiry will determine if there is sufficient evidence for the charges to proceed to trial.

The North Bay Nugget reported:

Bishop Jean-Louis Plouffe, the spiritual head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Ste. Marie, said Cloutier, like other priests facing or convicted of charges of sexual misconduct in the diocese, is now only allowed to say mass privately.

I first posted about the charges against Cloutier almost a year ago.

You can read more here and here.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Vermont has been sued over allegations that the Bishop ignored previous allegations of sexual abuse when the Diocese hired Rev. Edward Paquette.

In a trial that started this week, Monsignor John McSweeney, who was chancellor of the Vermont diocese and handled details of hiring priests for then-Bishop John Marshall in the 1970s, testified that he did not know about such allegations until he reviewed church documents recently.

The documents, which chronicle the steps the Vermont diocese took while considering whether to hire Paquette in 1972, include several mentions of the alleged misconduct in letters from out-of-state church officials to McSweeney.

"Wasn't that a red flag for you to say the diocese ought to take a look at this," plaintiff lawyer Jerome O'Neill asked McSweeney.

"In retrospect, yes," McSweeney said.

You can read more about the trial here.

I have mentioned this case before. In a stunning example of hypocrisy, the Diocese of Vermont had threatened to sue Indiana's Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese for failing to disclose prior complaints of sexual abuse against Paquette. The response from Indiana was: "We told you so, and you hired him anyway."

Testimony this week apparently confirms that Paquette's history of sexual abuse allegations had been disclosed to the Diocese of Vermont when Paquette was hired.

I don't normally blog about abuse cases outside North America but this horrible case just cannot go unmentioned.

Unfortunately, this case is just so profoundly disturbing, and so incredibly sad, that I cannot put how I feel about this into words.

You can click here or here for a time line.

Here is some of CNN's coverage.

May God have mercy...

Perry Dunlop told the judge in charge of the inquiry into sexual abuse claims in Cornwall Ontario that:

"I will never go to that public inquiry in Cornwall even if you put a gun to my head,"

CBC news has reported that lawyers for Ontario's attorney general and the inquiry commissioner offered Dunlop one last chance to testify before the inquiry on Monday, but he refused.

We've written about Dunlop's opposition to the inquiry before:

Cornwall Sexual Abuse Inquiry Wants Former Police Officer held in Contempt

Former Police Office Arrested for Failing to Testify at Sexual Abuse Inquiry

Dunlop uncovered allegations of sexual abuse that triggered a four year police investigation resulting in more than a hundred sexual abuse charges but only one conviction.

So what do you think? Without his testimony can the inquiry ever get the full story?

A child who suffers from a form of autism called Asperger's Syndrome was jailed, sexually abused and subdued with stun guns while he was in the custody of provincial authorities. The New Brunswick government is now being sued over its alleged failure to properly care for the boy.

A recent report by Child and Youth Advocate Bernard Richard, that I wrote about last week found gaping holes in the province's support system for troubled children.

The lawsuit alleges that the boy was taken from his parents when he was 14 and placed in the protective care of provincial authorities.

"They thought they had no choice, but they also thought Family and Community Services would take good care of the child," said the boys lawyer

"They now realize they were wrong."

Because of his autism, the boy was bullied and isolated at group homes, as a result his behaviour deteriorated and led to police intervention.

The child was arrested when he turned 15. He was placed in a holding cell in a jail where he was repeatedly sexually abused by a guard. The guard was convicted of sexual assault.

On two other occasions, police used stun guns to bring the boy under control.

The province has denied all of the allegations in the lawsuit.

Richard's report, Connecting the Dots is an indictment of the state of mental health services for youth in New Brunswick. Unfortunately mental health services has not been a priority for many governments and it remains to be seen what steps the province of New Brunswick will take to implement the 48 recommendations in the report.

What do you think? Will the government act on the recommendations? Or are lawsuits and the threat of further litigation the only option?

A class action lawsuit on behalf of former students of St. Andrew's College in Ontario who say they were sexually abused has suffered a set back. Students who say they were sexually abused by former teacher John Bradley have filed a class action seeking compensation.

In a highly unusual move, the proposed lead plaintiff applied to the court for an order requesting immunity from costs. In other words, if the proposed class action is not certified , or if the claim is not successful at trial, the lead plaintiff does not want to be responsible for paying costs (legal fees) to the Defendants.

Under the Ontario Class Proceedings Act an award of costs is solely within the discretion of the court.

In considering the request, Justice Lax stated:

Costs awards can be used as a powerful tool for ensuring that the justice system functions fairly and efficiently. They can promote settlement, encourage efficiency in the conduct of litigation, and sanction improper conduct. Danier, Okanagan and Little Sisters, all very recent decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada, send a strong collective message that it is the exceptional case that will warrant preferential treatment with respect to costs and that the general rule that costs follow the cause has not been displaced in litigation, even in issues of public importance. It follows that there must be very compelling reasons to immunize a litigant in advance from an adverse costs award.

Justice Lax ultimately denied the plaintiff's motion saying:

What P.M. seeks is an order that he pay no costs in any event of the cause. Such an order is rare. In the context of a proposed class proceeding where a significant portion of the costs are associated with the motion for certification (estimated by SAC to be approximately $380,000 on a substantial indemnity basis), it would not only be contrary to well-established principles for awarding costs, but unfair.

You can read the whole decision here.

The former premier of the Northwest Territories, Joe Handley, has been accused of covering up allegations of sexual abuse of Inuit students in isolated Arctic schools.

The Globe and Mail has reported that lawyer Geoffrey Budden represents 69 Inuit who say they were victims of convicted sex offender Ed Horne when they were between six and 17 years old. Mr. Horne was their teacher in the 1970s and 1980s.

Budden claims:

"Rather than the school reporting it to the police, the teacher being fired and investigated and charged, the practice seems to have been to allow the teacher to resign or perhaps transfer,"

Premier Handley has been linked to the abuse claims because Budden has filed a motion claiming there is evidence that the government, like the Catholic Church, had "policies or procedures" that treated child sexual abuse by teachers as an internal matter.

The allegations of systemic abuse in the NWT lawsuit are similar to the widespread physical, sexual and racial abuse that took place in Canada's Indian Residential Schools. The Residential Schools class action settlement is the largest class action settlement in Canada and, to date, the largest abuse claims settlement in the world. I posted details here and here and here.

A Portland Oregon man has sued the Boy Scouts of America and its local Cascade Pacific Council for more than $3 million, alleging sexual abuse by two troop leaders in the mid-1970s.

The Plaintiff's lawyer, Kelly Clark was quoted in a story reported in The Oregonian as saying:

"We also intend to prove that the Boy Scouts were well aware, by at least the 1960s, that they had a serious, institution-wide infestation of child abuse, stretching across the country, involving hundreds of predators and thousands of children."

There have been sexual abuse lawsuits filed against the Boy Scouts here in Canada, see for example S.C. v. Boy Scouts of Canada . There have also been dozens (perhaps hundreds) of successful lawsuits across Canada where the perpetrator was affliated with the Boy Scouts and used this to prey on his victims.

However, I am not aware of any successful claims alleging systemic problems in the Boy Scout organization.

This suit in Oregon will be an interesting one to watch. If Clark is successful in proving a national cover up, we are likely to see a flood of lawsuits similar to those being filed against the Catholic Church and those suits are likey to also be filed here in Canada.

Judge John R. O'Malley denied the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph summary judgment Friday, after hearing arguments based on Powel v. Chaminade, which added new wording to how the statute of limitations can be applied in sexual abuse claims. The ruling allows a court to consider when a plaintiff not only recalled the alleged abuse, but recognized the harm it inflicted.

O'Malley's decision allowed the lawsuit to proceed to a jury verdict. The Diocese settled within days.

The ruling means Missouri's law is now similar to Canada. The 1992 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, M (K) v M (H), removed a major barrier to lawsuits by ruling that provincial limitation periods do not begin to run until the plaintiff is reasonably capable of discovering the wrongful nature of the defendant's acts and the nexus between those acts and the plaintiff's injuries.

Nova Scotia became the first Province to amend its Limitation of Actions Act to provide that the limitation period for sexual abuse cases does not start to run until the victim is aware of the full extent of the abuse and the injury suffered. In 1994, British Columbia amended its Limitation Act to eliminate all limitations for causes of action 'based on misconduct of a sexual nature' or 'based on sexual assault'. The rest of the Provinces enacted similar legislation shortly thereafter.

Frank Douglas has posted another interesting article about the Los Angeles priest abuse settlement on his Voice from the Desert blog.

He highlights an important part of the Los Angeles settlement (perhaps the most important part); the requirement for the Archdiocese to release to the public documents about it's knowlege of the predatory habits of the Archdiocese's sexually abusive priests.

Sexual abuse thrives on secrecy. Sexual predators manipulate their victims through shame and guilt. The article points out that:

when the predators' names come out, other victims of the same perpetrator are often empowered to come forward.

Unfortunately, in some cases the names come out too late. In one case I am currently involved in David Martin took his own life because he could no longer deal with the pain of the sexual abuse he had suffered at the hands of Father Hugh Vincent MacDonald. His suicide note disclosing the abuse launched a police investigation that uncovered dozens of MacDonald's sexual abuse victims, most of whom I now represent. Unfortunately MacDonald died before he could be tried and convicted, robbing his victims of the opportunity to hold him accountable.

I read an interesting story comparing myths and facts about child sexual abuse. The author points to research which suggests one reason why the Catholic Church has had such difficulty coming to terms with the reality of sexual abuse by it's priests:

Males are less likely to believe victims complaints - particularly when sexual abuse is involved. Female respondents were more likely to believe victims who speak up. Males were more likely to believe children who made allegations of physical abuse. Men were not so likely to believe allegations of sexual abuse.

This is an interesting finding that needs more investigation. It could explain why it was so difficult to convince predominantly male law enforcement of the pervasive nature of this problem in our society and why it was so hard for the male leadership of the church to believe that their male colleagues were abusing children.

I have represented hundreds of victims of childhood sexual abuse and dozens of victims of priest sexual abuse. In most of those cases I was not convinced that the "male leadership of the church" did not believe the victim. On the contrary, the allegations were believed but the sexual offender was simply shuffled off to a different parish to continue his predations.

However I agree wholeheartedly with one of the authors conclusions:

None of us is immune to making assumptions. It is important to note, however, that these perceptions can and do influence treatment, investigations and community responses. Raising our awareness about these perceptions can help us be open to dealing with the situations that arise before us with integrity, compassion and empathy.

When we do that, we open the door to those who are suffering in our midst to speak up and tell us about their pain. That is the beginning of healing.

Take a look at the rest of the story here.

For the first time, in Louisiana, a man has been convicted and sent to prison for creating sexually grahic child pornography. Jerry Lucas was sentenced to 21 years in prison for sexually exploiting a child via the creation of sexually graphic images.

Lucas appeared in the 14 pictures that FBI agents found during a search of his home. Agents also recovered his laptop computer, Polaroid camera, digital camera and other items related to his sexual predation. The federal prosecutors relied on laws that prohibit possession or creation of child pornography on computers "manufactured outside the state of Louisiana and transported in interstate and foreign commerce," as counsel put it.

In case anyone is under the mistaken impression that sexual predators are a problem that is limited to the Catholic Church, Justice Stach of the Ontario Supreme Court recently released his decision convicting Anglican priest Ralph Rowe, who was charged with 56 counts of sexual abuse against more than 25 boys between 1975 and 1987.

Rowe was an Anglican priest, an organizer and leader of boy scout and choir groups, and a pilot in remote aboriginal communities in Northern Ontario. Rowe was convicted on charges of indecent assault and sexual assault including sexual fondling, digital penetration and anal rape.

The entire decision is reported at R. v. Rowe, [2007] O.J. No. 2971. You can read the decision here.

A Grade 7 teacher from Park West school in Clayton Park in Halifax has been charged with sexual touching, and sexual assault against two boys. Scott Gordon Comeau has worked for the Halifax Regional School board since 1996.

More details here .

The Supreme Court of British Columbia just released a decision assessing damages for W.B., a victim of sexual abuse by his adopted father J.B.

W.B. was sexually abused by foster siblings when he was 8 years old. When he was 10 he was placed for adoption in the B household where he engaged in sexual relations with his adoptive siblings. When his "adopted" father J.B. learned of the sexual contact, he began to sexually abuse W.B. for more than a year.

W.B. became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and was convicted of armed robbery. The psychologist who testified on W.B.'s behalf stated:

…this man suffered significant emotional, physical and sexual abuse as a child while in care. It has left a profound mark on him. It has limited his ability to form stable interpersonal relationships. It has limited his ability to form friendships. He is left in a situation where he has great difficulty trusting other individuals. He suffers from emotional instability with periods of depression and anxiety. This, in my opinion, is directly related to the abuse and neglect that he suffered as a child. He has strength of character to the extent that he has been able to establish himself in a career and also to be in a stable relationship and to function with a family despite the very real deficits that are present.

It is my opinion he is at risk for further emotional problems in the future. There is a relative emotional instability present that in a stable supportive environment he can deal with. However, should that environment change to any great extent, I believe he would be very vulnerable to developing a Major Depression, which would make it very difficult for him to function in society at the level he currently does. I believe he may benefit from counselling, but only to a limited extent. I believe he would have difficulty in trusting a counsellor and opening up and discussing the very real difficulties he has experience in life. He has in the past been able to discuss this to a certain extent with the psychologist he saw before and he may well be able to do so again in the future . . .

The court was concerned with distinguishing between the effects of the prior abuse and referred to the Supreme Court of Canada's decision in Blackwater v. Plint, [2005] 3 S.C.R. 3, 48 B.C.L.R. (4th) 1 where McLachlin C.J. stated:

Untangling the different sources of damage and loss may be nigh impossible. Yet the law requires that it be done, since at law a plaintiff is entitled only to be compensated for loss caused by the actionable wrong. It is the "essential purpose and most basic principle of tort law" that the plaintiff be placed in the position he or she would have been in had the tort not been committed…

J.B.'s non-pecuniary (emotional pain and suffering) damages were assessed at $60,000.00. The court also awarded him two years of lost income, $50,000.00 for the time he spent in jail.

The full decision is reported at W.B. v. J.B., [2007] B.C.J. No. 1564.

This interesting article was written for teachers to assist them in investigating allegations of sexual abuse. While it contains some helpful information including a "validity checklist" to assess children's statements, I thought the best advice in the entire article was contained in one sentence:

"…education staff are not in a position to investigate possible abuse, and child protection procedures should always be followed when a child discloses abuse."

I have been representing victims of sexual abuse for almost two decades. I have found that in most cases, persons in authority who were charged with "investigating" the allegations, simply did not take the allegations seriously, or worse, ignored or covered up the allegations.

It bears repeating that sexual abuse is a serious crime and ANY allegation of abuse must, by statute, be reported to the appropriate authorities.

Today I saw a story in the Arizona Republic by E. J. Montini commenting on the case of a 26 year (female) teacher charged with sexual abuse of one of her teenage students. The teacher was described by the prosecutor as having a "relationship" with the victim.

Here's the full story: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0506montini0506.html

As an attorney with a special interest in representing survivors of childhood sexual abuse I agree wholeheartedly that there is a double standard with punishment received by female sex abusers. One only has to look at the statement of the judge who sentenced 43 year old teacher Pamela Moore, who was convicted of sexually assaulting one of the 13 year old boys in her class:

"I really don't see the harm that was done here, and certainly society doesn't need to be worried. I do not believe she is a sexual predator. It's just something between two people that clicked beyond the teacher-student relationship."

Can you imagine the howls of outrage from the public if a judge said a male teacher (or a priest) wasn't a sexual predator because he had "clicked" with a thirteen year old girl? Sexual abuse of a child is a crime and whether the abuser is male or female the trauma caused by the abuse can destroy a child's life.

1. Listen to your child and believe what they tell you. When your child tells you he or she doesn't want to be with someone, pay attention!
2. Participate in your child's activities and get to know your children's friends and their parents.
3. Get to know the people where children gather in a community like Churches and sports facilities.
4. Never leave your child unattended, especially in the car.
5. Be open when your child asks questions about sex. Make sure the answers age appropriate. Be alert for any talk that shows premature sexual understanding.
6. Pay attention to changes in your child's behavior or attitude.
7. Pay attention when someone shows what seems to be greater than normal interest in your child.
8. Make unannounced visits to your child's babysitter, day care or school. Make certain they will release your child only to you or someone you officially designate.
9. Check to see if your child's school includes sex-abuse prevention training.
10. Let your child express affection on their own terms. Do not insist that your child hug or kiss people.
11. Pay attention when an adult uses social occasions to focus on befriending your child or taking your child away for private time that seems out of the ordinary.
12. Do not allow your child to go alone on vacation, drive around or spend the night with anyone that has not proven to be trustworthy.
13. Do not assume that a person is trustworthy because of their position, title or because they work in a place where children gather.
14. Trust your instincts.
15. Pay attention!

Here's a link to the National Clearinghouse on Family Violence, a publication of the Public Health Agency of Canada:

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ncfv-cnivf/familyviolence/html/nfntsxagrsex_e.html

The article contains some frightening facts:

• The most extensive study of child sexual abuse in Canada was conducted by the Committee on Sexual Offences Against Children and Youths. Its report indicates that, among adult Canadians, 53 percent of women and 31 percent of men were sexually abused when they were children.
• Most offenders are not strangers to their victims. In most cases, they are well known to their victims.
• Some offenders have abused more than 70 children before any of the victims disclosed the abuse. In cases in which one offender has abused a large number of victims, the abused children are more likely to be male.

The article contains good advice about abuse prevention, support services as well as recommended reading.