House arrest for 10 years of sexual abuse
Elderly Southampton man given conditional sentence for decade-long sex offence; prosecution sought six years in prison, but judge opted for community-based sentence
Warning: This report contains graphic details of sexual crimes against minors.
A Southampton man who sexually abused his granddaughter for 10 years won’t serve any time behind bars, as a judge imposed house arrest given the elderly offender’s poor health.
Court of King’s Bench Justice Thomas Christie found the 74-year-old man guilty after trial earlier this year of touching his granddaughter for a sexual purpose.
Testimony at trial showed the abuse started in April 2006, when the child was only four years old, and continued until she was 14.
There’s a court-ordered publication ban protecting the victim’s identity, so the Fredericton Independent can’t name the offender, given the family relationship.
The elderly offender was back at the Burton Courthouse on Tuesday for his sentencing hearing.
The proceedings opened with the victim reading her impact statement before the court by way of a video-conference link, as she no longer resides in New Brunswick.
‘I had 10 years stolen from me’
“You will never understand the amount of suffering I have gone through,” the girl said, directing her comments to her grandfather.
“You made it so I cannot even trust a single person in my life.”
The victim said the offender was supposed to care for her and guide her through life, but instead, he took advantage of her vulnerability.
“I had 10 years stolen from me,” she said.
“Most of all, you took my voice. You silenced me … The silence was killing me, and that’s why I am here today.”
The girl said her grandfather kept telling her to be quiet, that what they were doing wasn’t wrong.
“You have made it so I don’t know how to love and be loved by others,” she said, noting she doesn’t want to have children because of what could happen to them.
“I felt like your property, your object. I felt used.”
The girl said she realized no one should have been subjected to such abuse, and she’s determined to survive what was done to her and the pain.
“I now have a voice, and I’m using it loud and proud,” she said, adding she now asks herself why she didn’t speak out sooner.
“I feel guilty because now I must live with the fact that I tore this family apart.”
Some family members claim her parents put her up to reporting that her grandfather kept touching her, she said, while others claim she only did it to get attention.
“But it’s not my fault,” she said. “I am the last person you will ever touch and control.”
The victim said she decided to speak out to help others, though she regrets she didn’t do so sooner.
She struggles, she said, with post-traumatic stress disorder, and she has trouble sleeping.
Crown prosecutor Gwynne Hearn said the offender’s abuse of a young child, the prolonged period over which it took place, the victim’s young age and the breach of a position of trust all merited a prison sentence of six years.
Defence lawyer Edward Derrah said there are other factors the court has to consider in crafting an appropriate sentence.
“[The offender] is 74 years of age and not in good health at all,” he said.
“[He] testified he had very little memory of these incidents … There are certainly cognitive issues here.”
The defence lawyer said any notions of deterrence is hindered given the memory issues here.
“It’s hard to punish someone for something they don’t even remember doing,” he said.
‘To what degree do I concern myself with his health?’
Court heard the offender is taking a long list of medications for varied health issues, including high blood pressure, kidney failure, elevated cholesterol and high risks of heart attacks and strokes.
Derrah recommended a conditional sentence of two years less a day - the maximum length for such a community-oriented sentence.
Hearn opposed a conditional sentence, arguing it wouldn’t sufficiently denounce the crime or deter others from committing similar offences.
“To what degree do I concern myself with his health while incarcerated?” Christie asked the prosecutor.
“I’m concerned about what to do with that.”
Hearn said the offender’s health isn’t a factor for the court to consider.
There’s no evidence the federal prison system can’t address the offender’s medical needs, she said.
“I would argue it doesn’t play a role in the court’s crafting of a sentence,” the prosecutor said.
While the offender has memory issues due to vascular problems, he nevertheless stood by his assertion he hadn’t committed the crime of which he’d been committed.
“I know it never, ever happened,” he said, noting he stepped up to care for his grandchildren when their parents fell short.
“I brought them up in my home all alone … She was always happy.”
He said he worked hard his whole life, and he ended up getting sick - and then accused of sexually abusing a family member.
“And this is where I end up,” the offender said, standing in the courtroom prisoner’s dock.
“I’m always there for my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren, and I always will be … I love them all.”
The elderly man had also been charged with counts of sexual assault, invitation to sexual touching and sexual interference, alleging he sexually abused his niece in June 2008.
But Christie had acquitted him of those charges, noting that inconsistencies in her statement to police, testimony at the preliminary inquiry and testimony at trial left him with some uncertainty about its reliability.
The judge said it wasn’t a matter of believing or disbelieving her.
“I do not have sufficient trust in her evidence as a whole to convict,” he said earlier this year.
Trying to balance the scales
Christie clearly struggled Tuesday with arriving at an appropriate sentence. He reviewed the long-term, unsettling abuse the elderly man visited upon his granddaughter.
He touched the child’s breasts, put his penis in her mouth while she slept and put his penis between her legs, the judge said, all on the many nights she slept over at his home, which was a regular occurrence over the years.
He robbed the victim of the ability to trust, Christie said.
The judge said a prison term was merited, but instead, he asked the lawyers for guidance on conditions that would be as restrictive as possible for a sentence to be served in the community.
“What can we do to ensure this is essentially prison in his own home?” Christie said.
“In my mind, I’m picturing a scenario where he doesn’t get visitors.”
The judge called a recess to give the lawyers on both sides to discuss recommended conditions for a conditional-sentence order.
Afterward, Christie accepted the recommended conditions, imposing a conditional sentence of two years less a day.
During that time, the offender will remain at his home 24 hours a day, seven days a week or within 300 metres of the structure, except for medical emergencies, medical appointments pre-authorized by his sentence supervisor and Fridays from noon to 4 p.m. for personal business such as grocery shopping.
He’s to have no visitors except those approved by his supervisor, allow police and other officials access to his home to ensure compliance with the order, abstain from alcohol and non-prescribed drugs, and have no communication with the victim and the complainant from another related charge for which he was acquitted.
Following that two years, he’ll be on probation for another three years, during which he’ll be subject to a curfew of 10 p.m.-6 a.m. and will remain under a no-contact order with the complainants.
Christie also ordered him to submit a DNA sample for inclusion in a criminal database, prohibited him from possessing firearms and other weapons for 10 years, and to register as a sex offender for 20 years.
The judge also imposed an order under Section 161 of the Criminal Code of Canada, barring the offender from attending public parks, pools, community centres and other places where children can be expected to be present, and to have no contact with minors under the age of 16 unless supervised.
That order is in place for life.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.
That will teach him. Your criminal injustice system at work.