Would Justice Robert Beaudoin have let the rapist off if his daughter was one of the women raped? Ontario Crown serves Paul Batchelor notice of appeal, claims trial judge made errors. Errors or misogyny?

“Just” how rampant is racism, misogyny, dishonesty and abuse in Canada’s legal system? To find out, read rulings and listen to the bullshit some judges say in court. Warning, you’ll want to rage and throw up – not because of what the rapists/frac’ers and enablers did, but because of what the judges said and did, and worse, get away with.

Appears the same in court rooms across Canada.

“Unf*ck the system.” Alberta’s Neanderthal “Justice” system assaults sexual assault victims. “The judge in this troubling case was none other than former Deputy Justice Minister Ray Bodnarek, a PC loyalist appointed as a judge by former PC Justice Minister Jonathan Denis who himself resigned under troubling allegations of domestic violence.” Commenter: “So who exactly is the crown protecting by blocking the publication of the victim’s name?” Another commenter: “My guess…..the ‘system’. It stinks and it’s all because of the judges & lawyers.”

2017: Unprecedented yet far too late: 7 police agencies in Canada will let experts in sexual violence study uncensored case files on unfounded or inactive sexual assault investigations, “Right now, there is a bit of crisis across the country concerning victims’ confidence in the criminal justice system.” Surely they jest! “Justice” System? What “Justice?” There’s no confidence in Canada’s civil legal system either! Who’s going to investigate that?

Accused Ottawa rapist investigated in another sex assault case 15 years ago by Gary Dimmock, July 23, 2019, Ottawa Citizen

Fifteen years before accused rapist Paul Batchelor was put on trial for rape in Ottawa earlier this year, he was investigated for another sexual assault by police in rural Ontario. The former insurance salesman pleaded guilty to common assault in that case and received a conditional discharge, according to a court record.

The 2004 case against Batchelor is hard to track. According to people familiar with his case, Batchelor was also granted a pardon, however the pardoned conviction is unknown.

Batchelor, 34, won acquittals in two rape cases on June 21, and the Ontario Crown attorney’s office served him with a notice of appeal last week, claiming the trial judge made errors that warranted new trials.

Batchelor took the stand in his own defence and Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin accepted his evidence that he had consent in both cases, a claim that differed wildly from the accounts the women told at trial. They detailed horrific accounts of sexual assault in 2015 at Batchelor’s Sandy Hill apartment, just a few minutes walk from the University of Ottawa, where he studied economics at the time.

The judge described the accused rapist as a polite gentleman in the face of an aggressive cross-examination by Assistant Crown Attorney Sabrina Goldfarb.

Though the judge in both cases sided with the accused’s version of events, he acknowledged that Batchelor’s credibility was “seriously challenged” when he told Ottawa police that he had never been questioned about sexual assault in the past.

“It was then put to him that he had been pardoned for having committed sexual assault,” the judge told court.

But the judge said Batchelor’s explanation for the omission was “credible.” Beaudoin said he believed Batchelor’s story that he thought he was accused of common assault, not sexual assault. The judge noted that Batchelor was only 19 in 2004, and his excuse that he had “blocked it out of his mind is credible.”

Beaudoin also told court that Batchelor pleaded guilty in the 2004 case and received a conditional discharge. The judge said there was no evidence presented in court that he was charged with sexual assault in 2004.

Batchelor is on bail awaiting scheduled trials for three more sexual assault cases. Since this newspaper reported on his two rape acquittals in June, four more women have complained to the Ottawa Police Service’s sex-assault unit about him. None of the women in any of the cases know one another.

On the other side of the river, Gatineau police are investigating Batchelor on accusations that he threatened to kill a woman on July 11. According to police, Batchelor is also being investigated for impaired driving and breaching bail conditions on the same day. Batchelor has not been formally charged and the Quebec allegations are far from being tested in court.

At his recent rape trials, the first woman testified that she was too intimidated to say no, but the judge didn’t find her testimony reliable.

“Given her combative answers on the stand, her statements that she suddenly became this intimidated person are not reliable,” Beaudoin told court.

The judge found that the woman gave “long speeches” on consent.

“I find that she gave long speeches on consent and gave contradictory answers to many questions. She was very assertive and it is difficult to accept her evidence, as contradictory as it was, that she felt she had no choice but to comply with his demand for oral sex.

“She identified no behaviour on his part that would have resulted in a change from the pleasant man she had met in the pub and in the drive in the car to this forceful, controlling man she described once they got into his apartment,” Beaudoin told court.

As for the alleged rape and “rough sex,” the judge said he found it difficult to accept the complainant’s “increasingly dramatic descriptions of the violent rape she claims to have ultimately endured when the photographic evidence and the hospital reports are reviewed.”

The woman testified that she screamed, “no!” loudly and pleaded for him to stop.

Beaudoin told court: “Curiously, no one seems to have heard her cries.”

The judge sided with Batchelor, saying: “It is difficult to accept that he would have continued assaulting (the woman) with his knowledge that her very loud screams could be heard.”

Batchelor was also acquitted in the second rape case involving a University of Ottawa student. In that case, the judge said, the most significant challenge to the woman’s credibility was that her timing was off by an hour or so.

Defence lawyer Oliver Abergel told court it was simply a case where the sexual activity started to go further than what the complainant originally intended, and, when she realized Batchelor wanted to have intercourse, she decided against it and left his apartment.

In both cases, the judge said Batchelor had consent for all of the sexual activity and noted consent could be given through actions without speaking a single word. Both women testified they did not remain silent, but rather protested against the sex attacks they described.

Judy Bryson

People need to understand that many victims of sexual assault do not report. The justice system and facing a gruelling trial is horrific. I do not speak from personal experience but have spoken with many women who have gone through it.

I hope he gets convicted otherwise we could have another Bernardo.

Deirdre Sims

Appalling. Judge Beaudoin is a dinosaur. He describes PB as being a ‘polite gentleman’ – a polite gentleman who faces multiple accusations of sexual assault. His dismissal of both womens’ testimony reveals his ignorance about sexual assault and about consent. Is this 2019 or 1919?

Crown appeals rape acquittals of Paul Batchelor by Gary Dimmock, July 16, 2019, Ottawa Citizen

Weeks after Paul Batchelor won stunning acquittals in two rape cases, Ontario Crown attorneys have served the former insurance salesman a notice of appeal, claiming the trial judge made errors that warrant new trials.

Batchelor, 34, took the stand in his own defence and was acquitted twice on June 21.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin accepted Batchelor’s evidence that he had consent in both cases, a claim that differed wildly from the stories the women told at trial. They detailed horrific accounts of sexual assault in 2015 at Batchelor’s Sandy Hill apartment, just a few minutes walk from the University of Ottawa, where he studied economics at the time.

Batchelor is on bail awaiting scheduled trials for three more rape cases next year and, since his acquittals in June, four more women have complained to the Ottawa Police Service’s sex-assault unit. None of the women knows any of the others.

Gatineau Police are investigating accusations that he threatened to kill a woman on July 11. According to police, Batchelor is also being investigated for impaired driving and breaching bail conditions. Batchelor has not been formally charged and the Quebec allegations are far from being tested in court.

Batchelor was living in Gatineau until last Thursday, but is now residing back in Ontario.

At his recent rape trials, the first woman testified that she was too intimidated to say no, but the judge didn’t find her testimony reliable.

“Given her combative answers on the stand, her statements that she suddenly became this intimidated person are not reliable,” Beaudoin told court.

The judge found that the woman gave “long speeches” on consent.

“I find that she gave long speeches on consent and gave contradictory answers to many questions. She was very assertive [!!!! If only all women were ALL THE TIME~!] and it is difficult to accept her evidence, as contradictory as it was, that she felt she had no choice but to comply with his demand for oral sex.

“She identified no behaviour on his part that would have resulted in a change from the pleasant man she had met in the pub and in the drive in the car to this forceful, controlling man she described once they got into his apartment,” Beaudoin told court.

As for the alleged rape and “rough sex,” the judge said he found it difficult to accept the complainant’s “increasingly dramatic descriptions of the violent rape she claims to have ultimately endured when the photographic evidence and the hospital reports are reviewed.”

The woman testified that she screamed, “no!” loudly and pleaded for him to stop.

Beaudoin told court: “Curiously, no one seems to have heard her cries.”

The judge sided with Batchelor, saying: “It is difficult to accept that he would have continued assaulting (the woman) with his knowledge that her very loud screams could be heard.”

Batchelor was also acquitted in the second rape case involving a University of Ottawa student. In that case, the judge said, the most significant challenge to the woman’s credibility was that her timing was off by an hour or so.

Assistant Crown Attorney Sabrina Goldfarb described Batchelor as an opportunist who had been seeking his own gratification.

Defence lawyer Oliver Abergel told court it was simply a case where the sexual activity started to go further than what the complainant originally intended, and, when she realized Batchelor wanted to have intercourse, she decided against it and left his apartment.

In both cases, the judge said Batchelor had consent for all of the sexual activity and noted consent could be given through actions without speaking a single word. Both women testified they did not remain silent, but rather protested against the sex attacks they described.

Fourth woman files complaint to Ottawa police about accused rapist Paul Batchelor by Gary Dimmock, July 12, 2019, Ottawa Citizen

Another woman has filed a complaint with Ottawa police about accused rapist Paul Batchelor, making her the fourth woman to come forward since the former insurance man was acquitted in two unrelated rape trials in June.

Batchelor, 34, took the stand in his own defence and was acquitted twice on June 21.

Batchelor is on bail awaiting a scheduled trial for three more rape cases next year. Those cases are unrelated to the four women who came forward after this newspaper reported on the June rape acquittals.

None of the women from any of the separate cases know one another.

In acquitting Batchelor, Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin accepted the accused’s evidence that he had consent in both cases — a claim that differs wildly from the stories the women told at trial. They detailed horrific accounts of sexual assault in 2015 at Batchelor’s Sandy Hill apartment, just a few minutes walk from the University of Ottawa, where he studied economics at the time.

Batchelor met one woman at a pub and the other at a study room on campus in 2015.

The first woman told court she was too intimidated to say no, but the judge didn’t find her testimony reliable.

“Given her combative answers on the stand, her statements that she suddenly became this intimidated person are not reliable,” Beaudoin told court.

The judge found that the woman gave “long speeches on consent.”

“I find that she gave long speeches on consent and gave contradictory answers to many questions. She was very assertive and it is difficult to accept her evidence, as contradictory as it was, that she felt she had no choice but to comply with his demand for oral sex.

“She identified no behaviour on his part that would have resulted in a change from the pleasant man she had met in the pub and in the drive in the car to this forceful, controlling man she described once they got into his apartment,” Beaudoin told court.

As for the alleged rape and “rough sex,” the judge said he found it difficult to accept the complainant’s “increasingly dramatic descriptions of the violent rape she claims to have ultimately endured when the photographic evidence and the hospital reports are reviewed.”

The woman testified that she screamed, “no!” loudly and pleaded for him to stop.

Beaudoin told court: “Curiously, no one seems to have heard her cries.”

The judge sided with Batchelor, saying: “It is difficult to accept that he would have continued assaulting (the woman) with his knowledge that her very loud screams could be heard.”

Batchelor was also acquitted in the second rape case, this one involving a University of Ottawa student. In that case, the judge said the most significant challenge to the woman’s credibility was that her timing was off by an hour or so.

Assistant Crown Attorney Sabrina Goldfarb described Batchelor as an opportunist who had been seeking his own gratification.

Defence lawyer Oliver Abergel told court it was simply a case where the sexual activity started to go further than what the complainant originally intended, and, when she realized Batchelor wanted to have intercourse, she decided against it and left his apartment.

In both cases, the judge said that Batchelor had consent for all of the sexual activity and noted that consent could be given through actions without speaking a single word. Both women testified they did not remain silent, but rather protested against the sex attacks they described. One woman likened it to torture.

Three more women file complaints to Ottawa police about accused rapist by Gary Dimmock, June 28, 2019, Ottawa Citizen

Paul Batchelor was acquitted in two cases of alleged sexual assault and faces trial on three more charges.

Days after insurance salesman Paul Batchelor was acquitted in two rape trials, three more Ottawa women have complained to police about the accused rapist.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin acquitted Batchelor in two rape trials on June 21.

The judge accepted the accused rapist’s evidence that he had consent in both cases — a claim that differs wildly from the stories the women, who didn’t know one another, told at trial. They detailed horrific accounts of sexual assault at a Sandy Hill apartment, just a few minutes walk from the University of Ottawa, where Batchelor studied economics.

Batchelor, 34, met one woman at a pub and the other at a study room on campus in 2015.

The judge said the first woman’s testimony that she was too intimidated to say no was unreliable.

“Given her combative answers on the stand, her statements that she suddenly became this intimidated person, are not reliable,” Beaudoin told court.

The judge found that the woman gave “long speeches on consent.”

“I find that she gave long speeches on consent and gave contradictory answers to many questions. She was very assertive and it is difficult to accept her evidence, as contradictory as it was, that she felt she had no choice but to comply with his demand for oral sex.

“She identified no behaviour on his part that would have resulted in a change from the pleasant man she had met in the pub and in the drive in the car to this forceful, controlling man she described once they got into his apartment.

As for the alleged anal rape and “rough sex,” the judge said he found it difficult to accept the complainant’s “increasingly dramatic descriptions of the violent rape she claims to have ultimately endured when the photographic evidence and the hospital reports are reviewed.”

The woman testified that she screamed, “No!” loudly and pleaded for him to stop.

Beaudoin told court: “Curiously, no one seems to have heard her cries.”

The judge drew from the accused rapist’s testimony, noting that his apartment was in an older building where noise from his unit could be heard by neighbours who would have been around at that time of night.

The judge sided with Batchelor, saying: “It is difficult to accept that he would have continued assaulting (the woman) with his knowledge that her very loud screams could be heard.”

Batchelor was also acquitted in the second rape case, this one involving a University of Ottawa student. In that case, the judge said the most significant challenge to the woman’s credibility was that her timing was off by an hour or so.

Assistant Crown Attorney Sabrina Goldfarb described Batchelor as an opportunist who had been seeking his own gratification.

Defence lawyer Oliver Abergel told court it was simply a case where the sexual activity started to go further than what the complainant originally intended, and, when she realized Batchelor wanted to have intercourse, she decided against it and left his apartment.

In both cases, the judge said that Batchelor had consent for all of the sexual activity and noted that consent could be given through actions without speaking a single word. Both women testified they did not remain silent, but rather protested against the sex attacks they described. One woman likened it to torture.

Batchelor is scheduled to go on trial for three more rape cases next year. Those cases are unrelated to the three women who came forward this week after this newspaper reported on the acquittals.

They do not know one another.

Batchelor is on bail awaiting his next three trials.

Canada: man acquitted of rape as judge says accuser ‘combative’ in court, Paul Batchelor, 34, found not guilty in two cases in Ottawa, Judge: ‘Consent can be given without a word being spoken’ by Tracey Lindeman, 27 Jun 2019, The Guardian

An accused rapist in Canada has been acquitted in two cases after a judge found one alleged victim to be “combative” on the stand and the other to be unreliable because her timing was off by one hour.

Paul Batchelor, 34, had been facing two counts of sexual assault and two of forcible confinement.

In handing down his decision, Justice Robert Beaudoin sided with the defence’s explanation that the women had requested rough sex. “Consent can be given without a word being spoken,” Beaudoin told the court, as reported by the Ottawa Citizen.

The encounters happened in May and June of 2015. Both women’s names are protected by a publication ban.

Batchelor is still facing three other, separate accusations of rape, to be tried in court next year.

In Friday’s acquittal, Beaudoin also told the court he didn’t believe one of the women’s claims she was too intimidated to say “no” because she had been “combative” while on the stand.

Julie Lalonde, an Ottawa educator and women’s rights advocate, took issue with the judge’s comments.

“The idea that because you get agitated while you’re being cross-examined in a courtroom, that you must be an assertive person 24/7, is a really damaging myth to put out into the world,” said Lalonde.

A second alleged victim told the court that she met Batchelor for a drink and later went with him to his apartment, where he anally raped her. She testified that she screamed and pleaded for Batchelor to stop.

The judge questioned why, if the woman had screamed, none of Batchelor’s neighbours intervened. Beaudoin referred to the accused’s description that his apartment was in an old building with thin walls.

“Curiously, no one seems to have heard her cries,” Beaudoin told the court. “It is difficult to accept that he would have continued assaulting [the woman] with his knowledge that her very loud screams could be heard.”

In the other case, the complainant said she met Batchelor in a study room at her university then went with him to his apartment. She said he forced oral sex on her, but that she was able to kick him and escape before it escalated further.

The judge doubted her account because her timing of the events differed from Batchelor’s by about an hour. Meanwhile, she said the incident lasted no more than 10 minutes, while Batchelor countered that it had lasted 40 minutes.

Lalonde said the judge’s comments appeared to be poorly informed.

“I’m a big supporter of a trauma-informed legal system, which would mean [recognizing] that trauma deeply impacts memory,” she said, explaining that the neurobiology of trauma inhibits the ability to see a timeline from a linear perspective.

“The fact that [Batchelor] had a very linear, precise schedule of what happened and she didn’t, and that was used to discredit her, should actually be used to add credibility to her claims,” Lalonde said.

Batchelor is scheduled to stand trial next year on other sexual assault charges in Ontario superior court.

A few of the comments:

Christina Dobre Reply to @Martin G:

The testimony from the two victims, shows that Batchelor is a calculating and controlling aggressor, who preys on young university students. Its a good thing that more women are coming forward. I hope the first victims file for appeal.

Tori Dohn Capela

The things this judge said made me absolutely sick, I had to read this article in two separate sittings because I was so angry. I know this guy is a piece of **** and exactly how the girls described — just wait, because there are going to be more girls testifying … my friend also had an encounter with him, and we have messages as proof of his character. Although this judge seems to think no evidence is enough anyway!!!!

Also , I hope this judge loses his job and is not the one overlooking the next case!!!!!!! Furious.

Martin G Reply to @Tori Dohn Capela:

On the contrary, the judge’s comments appeared to have been carefully thought out and reasonable, unlike your emotionally-charged diatribe. It’s a good thing you’re not a justice professional or we’d have innocent people locked up for no legitimate reason.

Christina Dobre Reply to @Tori Dohn Capela:

The judge seems to be an old fashioned misogynist.

Hopefully Batchelor’s next trials are not with him as judge.

Christina Dobre Reply to @Judy Bryson:

I agree with you Judy. The judge seems to be old school and doesn’t see how a man can be kind and charming in public, but disgusting and controlling in private. I have no idea why the judge equates a woman’s behaviour at the stand, to have any correlation to how she behaved in private, when she was scared. The judge seems to be more interested in disciplining the victims for speaking out, than to be focusing on the actual incidents of assault.

Amanda Teske

“Consent can be given without a word being spoken,” the judge told court.

But apparently actually SAYING the word NO and physically struggling doesn’t revoke consent?

No. You should have to ASK and COMMUNICATE VERBALLY with anyone you are trying to form ANY kind of relationship with, even if it is just a ‘hook-up’. There is an immense difference between ‘rough sex’ and rape….that difference is COMMUNICATION and RESPECTING BOUNDARIES. He did not do this.

And as for a woman being intimidated in one situation, then angry about that same situation later seems like it would be entirely appropriate? This is absolutely ridiculous. I’ve been in situations where I have been assaulted and unable to do anything…then I have been so mad once released from the situations I have cracked a knuckle punching a tree.

It is ridiculous to think that someone’s behaviour should be the same in court as it was during a traumatizing event OR that the memory of a traumatizing event would be perfectly precise down to the minute.

I sincerely hope that the next round of trials brings justice to all the victims.

Jean-Michel Laprise Reply to @David Reeve:

You do realize that most people manage to go through life without a single sexual assault accusation lodged against them, whereas this man has been the subject of five separate complaints in the last four years from victims who don’t know each other? You’d have a better chance of winning the lottery than of being falsely accused five times of sexual assault by unrelated victims for no reason.

Christina Dobre Reply to @Martin G:

I actually did read the article, and the judgement in its entirety. The victims were all around the same age group, (university aged students) and Batchelor tended to meet them on ‘dates’ or ‘study meetings’ in order to lure them to his apartment. This man is a disgusting rapist.

Christina Dobre Reply to @Martin G:

You need a lesson on Consent.

When a woman screams and says “no” that does not mean “yes”

Christina Dobre Reply to @Lee Donovan:

Unfortunately, many victims confuse Crown attorneys as defense attorneys. Many victims of crime do not hire their own defense counsel, and rather depend on the Crown to also act as their defense lawyer. Always always hire your own legal team, even though the government will pay for a crown to defend you. a Crown attorney is not a defense lawyer

Patrick Moore

This judge should be removed from the bench immediately. 5 sexual assault charges and the judge finds for the accused. Unbelievable.

Christina Dobre Reply to @Patrick Moore:

I agree, the defense should ask for Jury trial, or a different judge. They should argue bias for a fair trial.

Tricia Foley

We have seen in other cases that someone who has been through a trauma does not have the best of memories – I would imagine that they relive those moments over and over again in their nightmares and details change – our memories change especially after a trauma. From what I have read here it seems that the victims in this case were made combative by the judge and the lawyer. So now these women have been victimized twice – once by the rapist and then again by our justice system. No wonder so few women report assault. Perhaps someone should remind this judge that the girls who were murdered by Ted Bundy went willingly too – at first.

Tricia Foley Reply to @Stan Cohen:

Have you ever been raped or victimized? That helpless feeling could very well return in a court situation where you feel that you have no control of yourself or what is being done to you. Go watch Deliverance and then tell me in all honesty given those exact same circumstances if you as the victim would be able to maintain a semblance of composure – I am not a crier or emotion in public situations but when I have to talk about something that causes me deep pain I will cry – I will try not too but no matter how hard I try the tears will come.

Martin G Reply to @john newman:

It takes two to tango, John .

Christina Dobre Reply to @Martin G:

No buddy, rape only takes one assailant. Rape is not a two way street.

[Too many judges think rape is a two way street]

Refer also to:

Halifax cartoonist’s response to Kavanaugh hearing goes viral

No wonder Canadian “justice” is so often misogynistic, racist &/or abusive. Looking in the mirror: Harassment in legal workplaces

The trend remarked upon by the DHC is mirrored in the International Bar Association’s (“IBA”) May 2019 report, “Us Too: Bullying and Sexual Harassment in the Legal Profession.” The report details the results of a 2018 survey conducted by the IBA that received responses from almost 7, 000 legal professionals in 135 countries, including Canada. The responses came from a variety of legal workplaces, including law firms, government and in-house.

Among the results [!!!!]:

  • One in two female survey respondents and one in three male survey respondents reported experiencing bullying in the workplace.
  • One in three female respondents and one in fourteen male respondents reported experiencing sexual harassment in the workplace.
  • Fifty-seven percent of those who experienced bullying and seventy-five percent of those who experienced sexual harassment never reported it.

[No wonder so many of those who experience sexual harassment/assault, even in the legal profession (imagine the irony of that), never report it!]

How prevalent is racism (and misogyny) among Canadian lawyers & judges?

“The [legal] system’s not broken; the system was built this way.” Of course it was! Just like it was built to piss on the poor, women, the environment and the Rule of Law itself

What’s with so many judges not keeping their lips together? Protecting rape & pedophilia rings? How are citizens to trust & respect judges with so many bad lips on the bench? “That judge didn’t care about me,” Julie Kirby, 23, one of Keith Vallejo’s victims said Friday. “He only cared about the person he was convicting, and I think that is really kind of despicable.”

Enabling sexual predators? Enabling Canadian judges revictimizing sexual assault victims? Enabling Canada’s demented abusive legal system? Threatening sexual assault victims to keep silent? Galling, throw-women-back-into-the-cave statements to Criminal Lawyers’ Association by Canada’s Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin

The Chief Justice’s speech only exacerbated the crisis of confidence afflicting the courts she symbolically speaks for.

By now, it is well known that only three in every 1,000 sexual assaults result in a conviction. No one can rationally call this an acceptable level of service to sexual assault survivors. It is instead a profound failing. Chief Justice McLachlin could have addressed this serious problem in constructive ways, but she missed the boat.

….Chief Justice McLachlin implicitly denigrated thoughtful reformers, endorsed an indefensible status quo, and skated around the vexing question that those thoughtful reformers are already pondering: How do we dramatically – yet fairly – improve sexual assault outcomes?

Chief Justice McLachlin’s foray into this important social issue was problematic in another respect as well. She suggested the national debate is too polarized and hostile to be helpful. This sounds like code for “anger is inappropriate here.” But wait a minute. Nobody on the offender side of the ledger is angry about a 99.7 per cent success rate in escaping liability for sexual violence. So the Chief Justice’s coded disparagement of anger is really directed only at sexual assault survivors. This shades uncomfortably close to victim-blaming.

Ugly as this truth may be, sexual assault survivors and their loved ones have every good reason to be angry at the current system’s profoundly unacceptable service delivery rates. 

The last thing survivors need, and the last thing that could build greater confidence in justice processes among survivors, is for the Chief Justice to wag her finger at them.

That any of these obvious facts needed to be said in 2017 is a testament to our medieval injustice system, making justice almost impossible to obtain for survivors of sexual abuse, extremely difficult for victims of various kinds of abusive power.

The system is rigged against women and people on the lower half of the income ladder. That’s been the case since forever.

Calls for more democracy, inclusiveness, and equality have been met with doubledown defense of the injustice status quo from Establishment elites like Beverley McLachlin.

This begs the question, can a survivor of sexual assault actually get a fair trial in this country? It seems not even remotely possible, given the number of Canadian judges who have been reprimanded and more for their shabby treatment of complainants, the number of accused men (especially high-profile, powerful men) that have been acquitted, and the fact that “more than 50 police forces in Canada have announced they are reopening sexual-assault cases previously deemed ‘unfounded.’”

What Chief Justice McLachlin should have said is that the Canadian legal/court system is broken and we need to fix or replace it.

The Globe sent a transcript of the Chief Justice’s remarks to Isabel Grant, a professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law, who specializes in criminal law and violence against women. She replied that the Chief Justice appears to be setting up a false dichotomy between rights of the accused and expectations of the complainant.

Hilla Kerner, a spokeswoman for the Vancouver Rape Relief and Crisis Centre, disputed the Chief Justice’s assertion that complainants’ expectations are unrealistic.

“Complainants expect nothing but a fair trial, and too often they do not get it.”

Women shouldn’t have to change their behavior to avoid sexual assault

Unprecedented yet far too late: 7 police agencies in Canada will let experts in sexual violence study uncensored case files on unfounded or inactive sexual assault investigations, “Right now, there is a bit of crisis across the country concerning victims’ confidence in the criminal justice system.” Surely they jest! “Justice” System? What “Justice?” There’s no confidence in Canada’s civil legal system either! Who’s going to investigate that?

Disgraced ex-judge Robin Camp said he’s learned his lesson. Really? “Knees Together” Camp Accompanied Ezra Levant On Trip To Train UK Rebel Staff, Camp stood by his comments about sexual assault, ex-Rebel employees say

Unbelievable Gall! No wonder Canada’s legal system is broken! Ex-Judge “sex hurts & why didn’t you keep your knees together” Robin Camp seeks to practise law again in Alberta

No wonder Canada’s legal system slithers around in Hell: ‘Knees together’ ex-judge Robin Camp should be able to practise law again, his lawyer argues

FOUR Alberta judges under scrutiny for sex assault rulings, Male judges relied on ‘myths and stereotypes’ about female victims’ behaviour, law professor says

“And the second issue is the judges’ blatant misunderstanding of the law.”

Public won’t see results of review of Alberta judges’ sex-assault case conduct

Justice Robin Camp resigns after judicial council recommends removal, Judicial watchdog finds judge’s conduct ‘manifestly and profoundly destructive of the concept of impartiality’

Oh Canada! Once-imprisoned lawyer (for child pornography) one step closer to getting his licence to practise law in Ontario, Two out of three lawyers on Law Society of Upper Canada (now called Law Society of Ontario) tribunal decide he’s of ‘good character.’

If only things had happened this way.

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