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BC, Pedophilia and the Courts

VANCOUVER, Jan 22 (LSN) Friday's ruling by Justice Duncan W. Shaw of the B.C. Supreme Court - that the law against possessing child pornography violates a person's constitutional freedoms - is only the latest in a string of suspicious pedophilia-related court rulings coming from the NDP-governed province.

The 1997 case against William Bennest, a BC teacher charged with procuring the sex services of a minor, is particularly revealing. Incredibly, crown prosecutors in the Bennest case agreed to hold the hearings in secret and then agreed to drop the more serious charges of pedophilia for a plea bargain on possession of child pornography. Furthermore, the Crown prosecutor in the case, Chris Webber (under Regional Crown Austin Cullen), chose not to cross examine character witnesses brought forward by Bennest's lawyer Peter Leask. Cross-examination was expected to lead to evidence of a history of pedophilia. On October 3, 1997 William Bennest was sympathetically scolded by Judge Kitchen for possession of child pornography while 2 charges of procuring the sex services of a minor were stayed.

Research by the Citizen's Research Institute (CRI) discovered that Bennest's defense lawyer and regional crown Austin Cullen were previously involved in another controversial pedophilia case. The Dr. John Gossage case involved a medical doctor who was frequently employed by the BC Ministry of Social Services to examine children apprehended from their parents to assess abuse. Dr. Gossage was accused of serious sexual abuse of these children. While the police involved had enough evidence against Gossage to alert the BC College of Physicians and Surgeons, the province chose not to pursue criminal charges. This decision was made by a special independent prosecutor - Bennest's defense lawyer Peter Leask - appointed by Mr. Cullen. Mr. Leask subsequently dismissed the case.

This soft glove treatment of child sexual molesters is evident, not just in the courts, but also in the province's New Democrat government. Premier Glen Clarke was himself embroiled in a pedophile controversy last July. Kari Simpson of CRI exposed to the media that Premier Clark's Youth Web Site contained links for accessing graphic depictions of child pornography and invitations for children to experiment with homosexual sex. While the link on the site was pulled after being exposed by CRI, no independent investigation was called to look into the matter.

As we await the possible appeal of BC Supreme Court Justice Shaw's decision, the National Post reported today that yet another case of possession of child pornography has hit the Supreme Court in BC. Viktor Peter Schlick was charged with 3 counts of possession of child pornography and convicted in provincial court of 1 count. Justice Robert Bauman was scheduled to rule in the case yesterday, but has withheld his decision until the Crown appeal of Shaw's ruling is resolved.

For more information contact Kari Simpson of the Citizen's Research Institute at (604) 502-8876.

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