Last week a man was on trial for sexual assault. The man was the caretaker at a church, and the woman who accused him worked there as a summer student. Ms B is in her early 20s. During the summer she worked at the church; she also lived with Mr C and his wife. Mr C is currently 64.

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Ms B went to the church pastor and complained that Mr C was being too intrusive in her life, as she had problems with an ex-boyfriend and still stayed at her sister's place sometimes, where Mr C felt she might be in danger. Pastor J spoke with Mr C about Ms B's concern. When it progressively got worse, Ms B complained again and Pastor J raised the issue with the church leadership, and it was decided that Mr C would no longer have access to the church. After another incident, Ms B decided to go to the police, aided by another church member, a woman who accompanied her to the police station when she made specific complaints of sexual assault.

Testifying during the first day of the trial was the police officer who investigated the incident, interviewing the woman and the pastor, and then arresting Mr C. The officer said that months after taking the woman's statement she contacted police to say that she had recordings of telephone conversations between her and Mr C that had been recorded before his arrest. She told police she had trouble getting them off the phone and eventually delivered a USB memory stick with the recordings to police. The officer said he recognized the voices on the recordings as Mr C and Ms B, and that the recordings were not complete and nobody in the recording identified themselves. The officer never testified as to what was said in the recordings, and they were never entered into evidence or played in court. When Ms B was cross-examined, she said she made the recordings because she felt she didn't have enough proof against Mr C before going to police. When she came to give her statement, she had it all prepared on paper.

The second witness to testify was the Pastor. He said he had been pastor for about three years and knew Ms B well because she had been friends with his kids for some time. He never witnessed anything between Mr C and Ms B, but provided testimony that confirmed the timeline. He said that he was with Ms B on a family trip when Mr C called her several times, which confirmed to him that Mr C was being overbearing toward Ms B. He said Mr C took her in for the summer out of kindness and concern and that Ms B was struggling and didn't have reliable housing.

Complainant's testimony and cross-examination

Ms B also testified. She said she was invited to stay with Mr C and his wife because she didn't want to live with her sister, as she had used drugs with friends in the house; Ms B was a former drug user (speed) who didn't want to live that lifestyle. Ms B detailed five specific incidents:

Incident 1

In July 2023, Mr C allegedly came into her room at night, rubbed her arm and told her that God had made her just for him. She said she tried to dissuade him by reminding him he was married and his wife was downstairs. He giggled and instructed her to take off her pajama bottoms. He asked a few times, and “I told him no, but he wasn't leaving so I took them off.” She said he then tried to get an erection by playing with himself but was unsuccessful. She said he then said he wanted to take a picture “for after” and used his phone inside her panties to take a picture. Under cross-examination, she said the camera did not have a flash and did not make a noise and that she had never seen a photo. A tech expert would later testify at the trial that Mr C's phone had been seized during the arrest, and it was examined and no compromising photo was found. The defence lawyer said, “I am going to put it to you that no picture was ever taken.” Ms B admitted after this alleged incident she could have gone back to live with her sister, but was worried people would question why she was leaving and the reason might be obvious. She also admitted she stayed more nights with her sister than she did with Mr C despite saying she didn't want to be there.

Incident 2

Ms B told the police that one day at the church Mr C approached her and asked her for a “holy kiss,” and she resisted; he grabbed her by the arms, held her against the wall, and asked a second time. The lawyer for Mr C suggested that Ms B called Mr C that morning to let her in the church because she didn't have a key, and that when he arrived he joked with Ms B that she owed him a kiss on the cheek for opening the door and never touched her.

Incident 3

In this alleged incident that Ms B says happened one morning, she said she was getting ready to take a shower in the upstairs bathroom when Mr C came into the unlocked room unannounced. She alleged Mr C stood in the doorway, pulled his pants down, masturbated and urged her to do the same while she stood in the shower behind a shower curtain. She said she declined and warned him that his wife would hear. She said he left and she finished her shower and went to her room. She said she thought about leaving but concluded that she didn't want to risk losing the relationships she had made at the church.

Incident 4

Ms B alleged during her first day of testimony that one evening she woke up and Mr C was standing in the door of her room, came in and sat down and began touching her hair, then lay down beside her. She said, “I got undressed and everything, and I took my pajamas off, and that’s when the assault happened.” She described the assault, stating he touched her in her private area and suggested they get it over quickly while his wife was sleeping. She said she eventually stopped protesting because she felt it wasn’t working and didn’t want to wake his wife. She estimated she told him to stop “probably half a dozen times.” She said he had intercourse with her, which she did not want to happen. Later in the afternoon Mrs C’s wife testified about him not being able to have sex because of a medical issue. Because this possibility was not raised with Ms B, she had to be recalled and asked questions about whether Mr C was able to have sex with her. Ms B alleged that Mr C masturbated while she was in the shower but was unable to get an erection, but was able to masturbate and achieve an erection and have sex on the next occasion. She said he did not ejaculate. The defence maintained he was physically unable to have sex, but Ms B said that was incorrect.

Incident 5

On a road trip to Campbellton with Mr C and Pastor J, Ms B was sitting in the back seat. When they stopped for gas and Pastor J was out of the truck, she said Mr C turned around and touched her leg, and she said that was the last straw because she felt Mr C would never back off. The defence lawyer suggested there was an innocent discussion in the truck about the pants she was wearing and cast doubt on whether this incident provoked her to go to police.

Other interactions

Ms B was asked if she ever had any other interactions with Mr C and his wife outside the home or church, and she said they went to dinner, and one time Mr C took her to see a doctor because she was injured. She said Mr C's wife called her after the allegations were known and explained to Ms B that Mr C was just flirting. She was asked if she knew if Mr C had any medical issues, and she said she wasn't aware of any. Timing of the allegations: Ms B admitted that Mr C made her feel uncomfortable sometimes and was overbearing and too concerned about her wellbeing regarding her ex-boyfriend. The defence lawyer suggested that Ms B made up the sexual assault allegations after she realized Mr C wasn't relenting; otherwise she would have come forward earlier. Ms B maintained she didn't want anyone to know what was going on because she didn't want to lose the sense of belonging she gained at the church.

Wife testifies

Also testifying on the second day of the trial was Mr C's wife, Janet, who is 63. Janet said she met Ms B at church, and learned later from her husband that Ms B needed a safe place to stay, and stayed there overnight only four or five times, and each time she would call to ask if it was OK. Janet said, from what she had heard about Ms B's ex-boyfriend, she was afraid for her safety and their own safety, and took the precaution of putting Ms B's car in the garage when she stayed there so it could not be seen.

Janet was asked if Mr C had any health issues. She said her husband has thyroid and heart issues, requires a sleep-apnea machine, and also has erectile dysfunction and is unable to have sex. She was asked if he takes treatment for the ED, and she said he has had the condition for about five years and has not taken treatment, as they do not have a family doctor.

The court took a break with plans to resume Janet's testimony after lunch, but because of a problem with the air conditioning, Judge Cripps cancelled the afternoon session and the trial is scheduled to resume on October 9th.

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Support is available for people triggered by reports of sexual violence. Contact Miramichi Safe Harbour Sexual Violence Services at (506) 773 7472 or coordinator@safeharbourservices.com. For more information: www.facebook.com/miramichisafeharboursvs