Report on sex-assault case reveals systemic failures
An independent report into the jailing of an Edmonton sex assault victim has denounced systemic failures of the justice system in a case that was a “complete breakdown of legal protections.”
The woman, who cannot be named because of a publication ban, was shackled in the courtroom and held for five nights at the Edmonton Remand Centre while giving evidence against her attacker, Lance David Blanchard.
She was taken to the courthouse in the same van as Blanchard, the man later convicted of violently sexually assaulting her in 2014.
The woman later died in an unrelated incident.
An independent investigation ordered last year by Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley and released Friday found the woman’s “voice was repeatedly ignored” throughout the proceedings and that the Crown should not have sought to incarcerate her.
Crown prosecutor Patricia Innes made the request to remand the woman and provincial court Judge Raymond Bodnarek approved it.
The Alberta Judicial Council review found there was no misconduct on the part of Bodnarek, that “there was a factual and legal foundation for the remand order” and that while he could have “undertaken an independent inquiry regarding the need for such restraints, his decision not to do so is not judicial misconduct.”
Innes said in a statement Friday she is unable to comment on the report “given my ethical obligations as a member of the Law Society of Alberta.”
Winnipeg criminal defence lawyer Roberta Campbell, who penned the 32-page report, did not believe anyone deliberately engaged in racist or discriminatory actions toward the victim, a message Ganley reinforced at a news conference.
“When victims come forward to tell their story, we need to ensure that not only are they heard, but they are treated with compassion and respect throughout every step in the process towards justice,” Ganley said.
The report makes 18 recommendations, including the creation of a centralized victim services unit with dedicated staff in each jurisdiction. Access to those services should be made a right by amending the Victims of Crime Act.
The unit, made up of Indigenous victim services and court workers, would operate at arm’s length from police, RCMP and Alberta Crown Prosecution Services.
Procedural changes have already been made within the Alberta Sheriffs Branch, which had no specific policies related to witnesses or victims or to their shackling, Ganley said.
In every instance, officers should use the least restrictive means, particularly for a witness or a victim, Ganley said.
Campbell had been told that “the shackling of incarcerated witnesses is common” in the Edmonton jurisdiction and that even though physical restraints were only to be used when necessary, “comments from the sheriffs indicate that this policy may not be followed in practice.”
Corrections officials have also amended procedures to ensure staff are aware when an individual is being held as a witness and also if the accused the witness is testifying against is also in custody.
The report also recommended that all parties be provided with cultural competency training, specifically concerning Indigenous victims and witnesses.
A dangerous offender hearing is currently underway for Blanchard.