Court to decide if victim's statement will be heard
Judge to decide next week if remarks prepared for sentencing stage admissible
A Quebec Court judge will hear arguments next week on whether a woman's victim impact statement can be admitted into evidence, in connection to a case where a man she knew was convicted of sexually assaulting her.
The case involves Chad Ofter, a 25-year-old Beaconsfield resident who, on Sept. 2, was found guilty on one count of sexual assault. During the trial, the young woman testified that Ofter forced her to perform oral sex on him during what she thought was their first date. Ofter testified in his own defence and said he thought the night they spent together was a “booty call.”
Ofter and the victim knew each other previously and, in January 2017, she agreed to watch a hockey game with him at his parents' home. While they watched the game in the basement of the home they began kissing. The woman testified that she hesitated at first but then agreed to continue kissing Ofter on his bed. She said she grew concerned when he began to do things such as pulling her hair and grabbing her wrists very tightly.
According to Judge Yvan Poulin's decision delivered in September, the victim, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, began to say no when Ofter tried to remove her clothing.
“At a certain point, as she was feeling that it was `too much,' the complainant stopped kissing the accused and explicitly told him that she didn't want to sleep with him as she wasn't comfortable to do this on a first date,” Poulin wrote in September when he convicted Ofter. “It is following those clear and unambiguous words that the accused would have forced her to give him oral sex.”
The victim also testified that she had difficulty when she decided to file a complaint with the Montreal police about six months later. She said she went to a police station and, according to Poulin's decision, felt the officer at the counter was “not very welcoming.”
“Given that there was no private room available to write her complaint, the police officer suggested that she do so at the counter in the area accessible to the public, which made her very uncomfortable,” Poulin wrote. “The police officer was also unable to provide her with other basic procedural details.”
After Poulin's judgment was made public in September, the Montreal police said they already had taken steps to address what happened when the woman initially tried to file her complaint. In a statement sent to the Journal de Montréal, they wrote: “We regret the way in which this victim was treated when she made her complaint. A specific follow-up was done at the police station that was involved.”
Poulin has yet to hear arguments on what might be an appropriate sentence for Ofter, but during a hearing at the Montreal courthouse on Monday, the judge was informed about questions raised over a written victim impact statement the woman prepared for the sentencing stage of the case.
While nothing from the statement was read into the court record on Monday, it appears the woman was very critical of many aspects of the justice system and what she experienced before Ofter was found guilty.
Prosecutor Annabelle Sheppard said the victim does not want to read the statement in court and suggested that the document could be redacted.
“But in no way do we not want her voice to be heard,” Sheppard said.
Defence lawyer Vincent Rose said he wanted to consult with his client first, but suggested he might contest whether the statement is admissible at all.
“There are a lot of irrelevant statements in there,” Rose said while noting that the first version of the victim impact statement included criticisms of Quebec's office of criminal prosecutions (DPCP).
“Relevancy is fundamental here.
“There are matters in that statement that were not brought up at trial.”
Poulin replied that the victim
“should be able to have her day in court.”
“I will make the final determination on what is relevant,” Poulin said.
The judge will hear arguments on the issue on Dec. 9.
Ofter has filed an appeal of the verdict.
We regret the way in which this victim was treated when she made her complaint. A specific follow-up was done at the police station that was involved.