Sexual Abuse Archives - Page 10 of 12 - Halifax Sexual Abuse Claims Blog

June 10th, 2008

Bishop on Trial: Convicted of Covering up Sexual Abuse by Brother

Episcopal Bishop Charles Bennison is on trial in ecclesiastical court facing accusations that he covered up sexual abuse by his brother, who is also a priest, on a 14 year old girl.

The Bishop is not facing criminal charges, nor is he being sued in civil court. The trial is taking place under the rules of canon (church) law. A panel of 5 bishops, 2 clergy and 2 lay members will decide whether Bennsion violated church rules Title IV of the Canons of the Episcopal Church by failing to disclose that his brother, John Bennison was having sexual relations with an underage female parishioner.

The Philidelphia Bulletin has reported that :

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June 5th, 2008

Supreme Court Overturns Conviction of Sex Abuser Who Confessed: 3 Times!

by John McKiggan

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.

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June 3rd, 2008

Repressed Memory of Sexual Abuse a Creation of the Media?

by John McKiggan

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.

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June 3rd, 2008

Mennonite Elder Ordered to Pay for Sexual Abuse: Ontario

by John McKiggan

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.

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June 2nd, 2008

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

by John McKiggan

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.

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May 29th, 2008

Priest Sex Abuser Appeals Conviction: Denies Existence of Repressed Memory

by John McKiggan

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:

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May 14th, 2008

Jury awards victim $8.7 million in Vermont priest-abuse case.

by John McKiggan

A jury has awarded a man who was sexually abused by Roman Catholic priest Rev. Edward Paquette $8.7 million dollars. The Burlington Free press has reported that the jury deliberated for almost five hours before returning with their verdict.

The jury verdict was for $950,000 in compensatory damages (what is typically referred to as compensation for “pain and suffering”) and $7.75 million in punitive damages.

I posted about this case when the trial started last week, and last year when the Bishop of the Diocese of Vermont threatened to sue Indiana’s Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese for failing to disclose prior complaints of sexual abuse against Paquette.

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May 7th, 2008

Psychiatrist Sued for Sex Abuse of Patient: Calgary

by John McKiggan

The Alberta College of Physicians and Surgeons has released a decision that it has revoked the medical licence of psychiatrist Jeremy Roberts.

Roberts was accused of “professional negligence and sexual abuse.” A hearing found he had an inappropriate relationship with a patient that included sexual activity. The woman was not identified. The Alberta College’s policy regarding doctor/patient sexual contact can be found here.

The Calgary Herald has reported that the patient that filed the complaint has filed a lawsuit against Roberts seeking compensation for sexual abuse.

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April 28th, 2008

Austrian Sexual Abuse Case Stuns World

by John McKiggan

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.

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October 5th, 2007

Judge Expands Abuse Claim Time Limits…Catches Up to Canada

by stemwebadmin

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.

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Category: Sexual Abuse