She pressed charges against a Mountie for sex assault, but says court delays robbed her of justice
Woman says if restorative justice had been an option, she would have taken it
Editor's note:
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she → press → it
This story includes details of an alleged sexual assault and might affect those who have experienced sexual violence.
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who → include → violence
A Nova Scotia woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by an RCMP officer says the national framework intended to ensure timely trials is failing some survivors — and that alternatives to criminal trials, such as restorative justice, should be an option.
The case involving the officer she accused, RCMP Const. William McNutt, 41, was recently thrown out due to delays in the justice system.
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she → allege → system
It was the first of three criminal cases involving allegations of sexual assault against McNutt.
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CBC News is not naming the woman because of a court-ordered publication ban on her identity.
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The woman alleged that in early 2023, McNutt choked her and threatened to rape her if she did not perform oral sex on him.
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she → allege → him
“I had to make a split-second decision how to get out of this because I'm looking up at this six-foot-eight man who's a police officer in a position of power, essentially threatening to rape me,” she said in an interview.
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she → have → interview
“So ultimately I complied with it to get myself out of the situation.”
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I → comply → situation
She says for months afterward, she struggled to come to terms with what happened.
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what → say → terms
Eventually, in July 2024, McNutt was charged with sexual assault, choking and uttering threats.
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McNutt → charge → threats
McNutt pleaded not guilty, and the allegations have not been tested in court.
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allegations → plead → court
McNutt's lawyer declined a request for comment.
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lawyer → decline → comment
The woman says the criminal justice process — which involved retelling and reliving the alleged assault and having her credibility questioned by McNutt's lawyer — affected her mental health to the extent that at one point, it was unclear whether she would be able to carry on with the process.
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she → say → process
“It's constantly retraumatizing you and bringing everything back up to the surface … and it's just never-ending.
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it → retraumatize → surface
Like it controls your life and it eats you alive
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Then, on May 26, two days before the trial was set to begin, the process abruptly came to a halt.
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process → set → halt
Judge Ian Hutchison ruled that McNutt’s right to a trial within a reasonable amount of time had been violated, citing a 2016 Supreme Court ruling known as the Jordan framework.
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right → rule → framework
It stipulates that criminal trials must be completed within 18 months for a provincial court and 30 months for a Superior Court.
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trials → stipulate → Court
Hutchison issued a stay of proceedings, saying McNutt’s case would have gone on for more than 24 months by the time the trial was scheduled to end.
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trial → issue → time
“It knocks the wind out of you,” the complainant says.
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complainant → knock → you
“The system's failing, essentially.
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system → fail → ?
Like people in my position go through this really gruelling process and then they're just left with essentially nothing.”
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they → go → nothing
“It seems very broken.”
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The woman says she does not feel she got any justice through the court process, and that if restorative justice had been an option, she likely would have taken it.
“Just to make them sit there and listen to, you know, you hurt me,” she says.
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she → say → me
“Just to get to say my piece … it just would have given me a bit of my sense of self back."
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it → get → self
Restorative justice is a process that aims to address the harm caused to a complainant, and sometimes involves bringing together the complainant and accused to communicate about the causes, impacts and circumstances of the incident.
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The process can lead to accountability measures for the accused and supports to address the underlying causes of the incident.
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The province implemented a moratorium in 2000 after hearing concerns about survivor safety, power imbalances, appropriate training, screening and community supports for participants.
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province → implement → participants
Jennifer Llewellyn is a law professor at Dalhousie University who specializes in restorative justice.
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who → specialize → justice
Llewellyn says while the concerns that led to the moratorium should be front of mind, a lot of work has been done in the fields of gender-based violence and alternative justice since the moratorium came into effect, and it is time to make restorative justice available to survivors of sexual violence.
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“The shame, the alienation, the isolation that comes from being a victim of gender-based violence and sexualized violence is real,” Llewellyn says.
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“And the solution to that comes from being placed at the centre, your needs being placed at the centre of the process that seeks to respond to those harms.”
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A new bill that came into effect across Canada this summer could improve options and outcomes for survivors of sexual assault.
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mandates courts to consider alternatives to staying proceedings when a case comes up against its Jordan deadline.
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case → mandate → deadline
It also explicitly gives a right for victims to have their interests considered in the timely resolution of matters.
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interests → give → matters
While it stops short of saying victims must have access to restorative justice options, it says victims have a right to get information about restorative justice.
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victims → stop → justice
Llewellyn says her reading of the legislation is that “we can't take that decision away from them entirely in all cases.”
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“I think we're in a moment now where Nova Scotia is well positioned … to rethink the moratorium and to think about how to move forward with a restorative pathway for those who choose it,” she says.
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she → think → it
The Justice Department did not directly answer a question from CBC News about whether the province is reconsidering the moratorium.
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province → answer → moratorium
"We continue to listen to those most affected, including through the Ministers’ Table on Gender-Based Violence," a statement said.
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statement → continue → Violence
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
