A man received a suspended sentence of two years less one day in a historic case of Indecent Assault in the Alberta Court of Justice in Drumheller on Friday, May 23.
The man, who cannot be identified, entered a guilty plea to one charge of indecent assault from an incident stemming from 1974.
The court heard how the man, who was 22 years of age at the time, had had intercourse with the victim, who was 13 years old at the time of the assault.
Defensive counsel explained during proceedings that the incident and charges predate the Criminal Code of Sexual Assault and, at the time, Indecent Assault was defined in the Canadian Criminal Code as any person who “indecently assaults a female person” and who is “liable to imprisonment for five years, and to be whipped.”
Although the charges are from an incident more than 50 years prior, the man expressed remorse, embarrassment, and shame at his actions, immediately accepting responsibility and instructing defensive counsel to engage in resolution discussions. He also expressed that he did not wish to make the victim stand trial.
The victim, likewise, expressed that they did not wish to see the accused face time in jail.
Crown and counsel entered a joint submission for the suspended sentence for a period of two years less one day. For the first six months of the sentence, the man will be required to abide by a 24-hour curfew, with a revised curfew of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the remainder of the sentence thereafter.
