Hugh Mackenzie
Huntsville Doppler
A Big Black Eye
Huntsville made the Globe and Mail, ‘Canada’s National Newspaper’, last week. Normally that would be a good thing, but sadly it was a big black eye. What a horrible statistic it is to learn that Huntsville, on a per capita basis, is the fifth worst community in Canada when it comes to the number of sexual assault cases that were deemed by police to be unfounded and therefore dropped. In a 20-month investigation, The Globe monitored 873 police jurisdictions in Canada, representing 92 per cent of the population and when it came to deciding not to press charges on accusations of sexual assault, Huntsville placed fifth. Not to be outdone, our friends in Bracebridge placed third, in the entire country!
According to the Globe article, in Huntsville, between 2010 and 2014, 55 per cent of sexual assault accusations were deemed by police (in our case the OPP) to be “unfounded”. In our community, during that period, 121 allegations were reported to police but 66 of those were considered “unfounded”. In Bracebridge, 154 allegations of sexual assault were reported and 87 of them were deemed by police to be “unfounded”. Goodness knows what the statistics will be for 2015 and 2016.
First of all, what does “unfounded” mean? Does it mean that the police concluded that the complainant was lying? And second, isn’t that the job of the courts to decide and not the police? I am not naïve. I am well aware that in rocky relationships sometimes what happens can be exaggerated. But surely not 55 per cent of the time and statistically, on a per capita basis, surely Huntsville and Bracebridge should not be leading the charge in this regard.
Sexual assault is a heinous crime. It is hard for me to believe that it is so prevalent in our modern and relatively enlightened society. And, oh please, especially not in Huntsville. But statistics do not lie and there is no room for alternative facts here. In addition to the Globe investigation about allegations that were considered to be “unfounded”, Lauren Power, Executive Director of Muskoka Parry Sound Sexual Assault Services, says that there are many more women in the District who will not go to the police for a number of reasons, not the least of which is being afraid they will not be believed.
So, what the hell is going on here? Has this been a well kept secret that has been swept under the rug over the years? And now that it has been exposed, where are our political leaders? Surely, with what only can be described as a national disgrace, they should be yelling and screaming and demanding to know how this has happened in Muskoka and what will be done to turn the situation around. Yet since this story broke across Canada in the past week, we haven’t heard a peep or a tweet out of Huntsville Mayor Scott Aitchison or Bracebridge Mayor Graydon Smith.
In the absence of their input, I will presume to say where much of the problem lies. I am a great fan of the Ontario Provincial Police, but in this case, especially in Muskoka, they have seriously failed. And frankly, our politicians have allowed it to happen. Taxpayers in Muskoka pay well in excess of $15 million dollars a year for police services from the OPP. Yet there is almost no accountability. There is no forum to hold their feet to the fire on important public issues such as sexual assault. For many years, there was something called the Police Liaison Committee where OPP officials met on a regular basis with District politicians to discuss police matters. For whatever reason, that went the way of the dodo some time ago. So maybe the District Chair and OPP brass get together every once in a while for a nice lunch but, sorry, that just does not cut it.
Municipalities and regions with their own police forces have Police Commissions or Police Boards to hold their officers accountable. We have none of that. Without our politicians putting their foot down and demanding information and accountability we have no way of knowing what is happening in Muskoka other than the statistical reports that are tabled telling us how many drunk drivers and drug dealers and so on have been charged.
Our local OPP need to explain why they let more than half of people accused of sexual assault off the hook. Our politicians need to demand that they do and they also need to re-establish a forum where they hear about these problems before they become a national embarrassment.
The stories about sexual assault, and the lack of action to confront it, uncovered by the Globe and Mail’s investigation are horrendous and sickening. If you believe the statistics, especially when we are apparently near the top of the totem pole, these terrible offences are also prevalent in Muskoka. Sexual assault, in my view, is right up there with murder and our national security. This is a terrible reputation for Muskoka to be tagged with. Our politicians cannot remain mute. We cannot remain mute. It is time to step up and confront this evil.
You can read the entire Globe article here: Unfounded sexual assault rates across Canada.
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There’s a great interview with the reporter at the Globe here: https://www.facebook.com/theglobeandmail/videos/10154970437148904/
Thank you for bringing this forward, Hugh. I was horrified to read about this in the Globe and Mail and further dismayed to see relatively little said about it locally afterwards. You got it right: What the hell is going on in Muskoka? To answer this question, uncomfortable conversations need to happen; in private and in public. The community’s health and our children’s future depends on it.
As a private child and youth Psychotherapist in Muskoka I strongly believe that the number of youth I see who have been sexually assaulted at some point in their life would greatly surprise many living here. This issue is not being talked about enough!
While the results of the Globe’s research is surprising (#3 and #5 in all of Canada!!!), my greater concern is that almost all youth I see who have been sexually assaulted have never told anyone!
The culture of keeping sexual assault silent is what hinders police, professional service providers, and mentors from doing their job effectively.
As a community it is all our responsibilities to start talking openly about this problem!
Thank you to Hugh and the Doppler for helping the conversation to continue!
Yes. It’s a question of response to assault. Pre-judgment or respect?
The answer may be to unclog the courts (more resources, higher priority) and respect all accusations. If anyone is compelled to go to police about an assault, I think they should be received with respect, without pre-judgment by police.
Interesting Jesse that you would assume all sexual assaults are male on female. We all know the cover up of sexual assaults regarding the Roman Catholic Church. More rape cases on males by males and females by females and female abuses of males regarding teachers and students has gained some traction in the news as well of late. I think knowing more about the nature and participants of these sexual assaults would give us greater insight to these numbers. Sexual assault ranges from any touching of one individual by another to rape. I think we are quick to chastise the OPP in Muskoka for a perceived cavalier attitude towards sexual assault. Should they simply jam up the already over taxed court system by referring all cases to them, when they feel the cases have no merit or chance of conviction?
Absolutely agree. We need to do better for all of the women who call Huntsville and Bracebridge home – and for women worldwide. Unacceptable.