Sexual assault
R. v. 32992
A publication ban applies. The offender is not named.
- Below the Crown's ask
- No jail for a violent offence
Sentence and the Crown's position
What the law allows
The offender was found guilty by a jury of one count of sexual assault covering alleged incidents between 2016 and 2017. The Crown sought six months' imprisonment and the defence a conditional discharge with six months of probation. Justice Crerar ordered a conditional discharge with one year of probation and declined SOIRA and firearms prohibition orders, citing the doubt the evidence raised about the disputed facts, the offender's pro-social life, and the effect of incarceration on his children.
In the judge's words
1I agree that the highly unusual and rare circumstances of this case make a conditional discharge under s. 730 of the Criminal Code appropriate. The considerable doubt raised by the totality of the evidence calls into question almost all of the disputed facts.
The record
- Convicted of
- Sexual assault (CC 271)
- Prior convictions
- 0 prior convictions1
- At the time of the offence
- Not stated1
- Defence asked for
- Discharge1
- Appeal
- Not yet checked
- Counsel
- Crown: P.M. Fullerton
Defence: B. Martland, K.C.
Sources
- R. v. 32992, 2025 BCSC 75 Court decision, CanLII, January 17, 2025
[23] The Crown submits that an appropriate sentence for a sexual assault … is 6 months' imprisonment, along with the following ancillary orders:
[32] The defence seeks a conditional discharge under s. 730 of the Criminal Code, with a six-month probation order, with no-contact and counselling conditions.
[39] In the present case, the accused has never before been charged, let alone convicted of a criminal offence.
[34] I agree that the highly unusual and rare circumstances of this case make a conditional discharge under s. 730 of the Criminal Code appropriate. The considerable doubt raised by the totality of the evidence calls into question almost all of the disputed facts.
[85] The Court orders a conditional discharge, pursuant to s. 730, with a one-year probation order, with the following conditions:
- R. v. 32992, 2025 BCSC 75 Court decision, Courts of British Columbia