But Two Common Themes; both involved 17 year old female (girl?) witnesses to the alleged separate crimes said to have occurred here in the Nation’s Capital …Ottawa.
Here is a brief summary of the facts as alleged by the Crown:
In the first case, the 17 year old, from a village outside of Ottawa, while in the company of her mother, came across a destitute man lying in an Ottawa street. Not knowing whether he was dead, alive or injured, the young girl convinced her mum to call the police to investigate. In due course, two officers appeared whereupon in their dealings with him, are alleged to have caused this fellow to fall hard, face down on the pavement.
The girl and her mum brought this to the attention of the Ottawa Police and in due course charges of assault were brought against the two officers.
Those are the alleged facts, I do not know if they represent the truth or not, but that is what the mum and daughter have testified to in good faith.
In the second case, a 17 year old girl, amongst others, alleges that three other teenage girls forced her / them into prostitution by threatening her / them with physical violence – even death.
Again this is what the Crown alleges and again, I do not know whether or not these allegations are true.
It will be up to their two trials to determine that.
But here is how I feel about these two cases and the common link – the two 17 year old witnesses and more to the point, how they have been poorly treated by the Judicial System.
From my perspective they have both been needlessly battered and abused by Defence Counsel. If I was the Judge in both cases, I would have come down hard on these lawyers.
The two young girls have come forward of their free volition. In the case of the first girl – to right a perceived wrong allegedly committed by two of Ottawa’s finest sworn to serve and protect. She should be given a medal for her actions even if it turns out ultimately that she was in error in what she thought she had seen. Unless, of course, it can be proven that she came forward for malicious purposes – i.e. fabricating her story …but there is no indication that such is the case here nor in the second case.
In that case, the 17 year old felt she was being forced into prostitution and certainly from her testimony displayed true fear of her antagonists.
Both have been grilled so intensely that in the case of the young girl in case one, she had to leave the court room during her testimony, feeling sick to her stomach.
You have to ask yourself, what ends of Justice are satisfied by such aggressive cross-examination?
If there was any hint of maliciousness on the part of either or both young witnesses, I would say let the Defence go to it, but in both cases, as mentioned, there is not.
I can just imagine other young people out there watching this battering going on and saying to themselves …lesson learned, ‘I’ll never bring my concerns to the attention of the Authorities’.
After watching this myself, I certainly would not blame them for coming to that conclusion.
As I see it…
“K.D. Galagher’
