Former prison guard’s trial set for spring 2022

A former guard at the Nova Institution for Women will stand trial next spring on charges of sexually assaulting inmates at the Truro prison.

Brian Lee Wilson, 54, of Shelburne County faces six charges each of sexual assault and breach of trust by a public official and one count of communicating for the purpose of obtaining sexual services.

Wilson elected in February to be tried in Nova Scotia Supreme Court by a judge and jury.

Dates for the trial were set Tuesday, when defence lawyer Derek Sonnichsen and Crown attorney Thomas Kayter participated in a conference call with Justice Timothy Gabriel.

Gabriel scheduled the Truro trial for 10 days in 2022, beginning March 21 and ending April 1.

Truro police allege Wilson committed the offences between May 2018 and December 2018.

They received a complaint from the Correctional Service of Canada in March 2019 that Wilson had had inappropriate sexual relationships with several inmates at the Truro prison. The correctional service had placed Wilson on administrative leave a few months earlier pending an internal investigation.

Wilson resigned from his job in April 2019, about a month before three current or former inmates of the Nova Institution filed a civil lawsuit against the correctional service in Supreme Court, accusing him of sexual assault between 2013 and 2018. Four other women joined the lawsuit later.

Wilson was arrested and charged in May 2020. He was released on conditions and ordered to have no contact with 29 people, including Sen. Kim Pate, an advocate for prison reform.

On Tuesday, Sonnichsen said the issue at trial is going to be credibility. He has requested information from the Crown about the complainants’ criminal records.

Kayter said one of the Crown’s witnesses is a senator, so extra security might be needed for the trial. He didn’t name the politician.

“I urge counsel to give some thought to that and work directly with the court to make sure they’re on top of the situation,” Gabriel said. “It’s certainly an issue that would give one pause at this point to think about. Hopefully, that won’t end up being problematic.”

A Halifax law firm recently launched a class action against the federal attorney general in Supreme Court, alleging the correctional service has failed to protect women from widespread sexual misconduct by prison staff.