‘It felt like a lifetime’

Court hears testimony in Elmer Franklin Weeks sexual assault trial

A P.E.I. woman who says a man held her down and put his hands inside her shirt her while she was at his home in Pleasant Valley took the stand during a trial this week in Charlottetown.

Elmer Franklin Weeks, 68, appeared before Chief Judge Nancy Orr in provincial court where he is facing a sexual assault charge after an alleged incident involving the woman.

During her testimony, the woman told the court she was sitting at the kitchen table in Weeks’s home when he went behind her, held her down with his arms and put his hands down her shirt.

She testified she was in shock and didn’t know what to do as Weeks continued to touch different parts of her body, including her breasts, thighs and vaginal area through her pants.

The woman also testified Weeks tried to make her touch him.

At one point during the woman’s testimony she sobbed and wiped tears from her eyes before apologizing as she appeared to struggle to speak.

The complainant told the court that while Weeks touched her under her bra, he asked her if she liked it and if she wanted to go to the bedroom with him.

She said she kept repeating that she had to go and told him to stop.

The entire incident lasted about 20 minutes, the woman said.

“It felt like a lifetime.”

The woman testified that whenever she had the chance during the alleged assault, she sent messages to people she knew using her phone to try and get someone to call her as she sought help.

Some of those messages were presented in court, including several to a cousin who also testified and confirmed she called the complainant.

As she talked about using her phone and trying to get people to call her during the alleged assault, the complainant said she had no idea what to do in that situation.

“They don’t teach it in school,” she said.

The complainant said when her cousin called, she was able to away and left the house.

Later that night, the complainant went to the RCMP detachment near Summerside to file a report.

She also said she went to the hospital about a week later where she was diagnosed with a severe pulled muscle she says was caused by Weeks pulling her arm back.

Several witnesses testified Tuesday that the complainant told them the day of the alleged incident that Weeks sexually assaulted her.

That included the cousin who said the complainant told her on the phone once she was out of the house.

After all of the Crown witnesses testified Tuesday, Orr adjourned the trial until Aug. 9 when the defence will call its witnesses.

A publication ban prevents the release the of any details that could identify the victim.