Supreme Court
Decision Information
Summary: Sixty-seven year old male pleads guilty to sexually assaulting his sixty-eight year old cousin when she was asleep in her room at the senior citizens residence the accused also resided in. While under the influence of alcohol, the accused got on top of the complainant and ejaculated on top of her clothing. Complainant's Victim Impact Statement reflects emotional hurt as she and offender were like brother and sister before the incident, but also reflects her concern that the accused get treatment - there were no indications of a desire for retribution on her part. Accused suffers from early forms of senile dementia and Parkinson's disease. He is in need of a nursing home but, as that is unavailable, he lives at a senior citizens' residence. Court recognizes that the objectives of any criminal sentence are denounce, deter, and promote rehabilitation. However, it is unclear if the sentencing process will be comprehensible to accused. Younger accused would get severe sentence for taking advantage of helpless elderly, sleeping complainant. This accused, however, does not pose a continuing danger to the community. Conditional sentence in this particular instance is appropriate.
Decision: Sentence - 18 months conditional sentence
Subjects: Criminal law - Sentencing - Considerations on sentencing - Medical condition
Criminal law - Sexual offences - Sexual assault