SQLFusion - Anatomy of a cover-up: background to Cornwall Inquiry

Date

Yr.

Source

Subjects

Content

03 Feb

DOCUMENT

Malcolm MacDonald

Malcolm MacDonald "between the 24 August 1993 and the 02 September 1993 inclusive....did unlawfully attempt to obstruct or defeat the course of Justice by arranging for the payment of a sum of money to David Silmser, a witness in a criminal investigation, to dissuade the said David Silmser from participating in the criminal investigation or any proposed judicial proceeding, contrary to section 139 (2) of the Criminal Code of Canada."

4 Feb.

Freeholder

(Sean Silcoff)

Perry Dunlop

Carl Johnston

- Dunlop: "A Cornwall police officer has been cleared by a provincial board of inquiry of any wrongdoing in the handling of an sexual abuse investigation of an Alexandria-Cornwall Roman Catholic priest."

- the internal investigation into Dunlop's actions was ordered 07 Oct. 93. No misconduct charges were laid.

Johnston: received a copy of the ruling Friday morning. "I don’t feel it's proper for me to make any comment until the (Police Services) board has had the opportunity to review the report and decide what they wish to d o about it."

07 Feb.

Freeholder

(Sean Silcoff)

Angus Malcolm MacDonald

OPP

Malcolm MacDonald: age 64, former Crown Attorney, charged with attempting to obstruct justice.

- "The independent OPP inquiry was ordered last January by Cornwall Police Services after it was learned that the Alexandria-Cornwall diocese had taken part in negotiating a deal to pay $32,000 who claimed to have been a victim of sexual abuse ..."

- "The OPP investigation earlier determined that there did not exist sufficient grounds to lay charges against the priest, and cleared the Cornwall police of any wrongdoing in not laying charges against the cleric. But, according to the OPP, 'there was evidence of an attempt to obstruct justice in relation to the settlement made with the alleged victim.'"

15 March

Freeholder

Ontario's Police Complaints Commissioner

ON Police Complaints Commissioner: appealing a ruling that cleared a Cornwall police officer of any wrongdoing in the handling of a sexual abuse investigation of an area Catholic priest.

- the initial inquiry was ordered by Cornwall's acting Chief Carl Johnston.

08 June

Ottawa Citizen

Father Charles MacDonald

OPP

DS: a former altar boy, now 37, sued the priest and the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall.

- Father MacDonald counter-sued

- "In a statement of defence and counterclaim filed in Ottawa court, the priest and the diocese deny the man's allegations and have started a civil action of their own. They claim the priest has suffered emotional and mental distress, sever depression, and has been robbed of his career in the priesthood as a result of the man's unfounded allegations. . . .They claim the man's allegations of sexual abuse were made 'wantonly and recklessly, knowing them to be false and with no other purpose but to obtain financial gain.'"

- the OPP started a review of the case and handling by Cornwall police in early 94. The OPP concluded Dec. 94 there were no grounds to lay criminal charges against the priest.

Perry Dunlop

- charges of misconduct and discreditable conduct against Perry Dunlop have been stayed

02 July

Globe & Mail

(Sean Fine)

Perry Dunlop

Ken Seguin's brother

Police Complaints Commission

DS: is suing Dunlop for $400,000 for violating his privacy

- D.S. has filed suit against the priest and the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall. The priest has filed a countersuit against DS accusing him of making false and malicious allegations that ruined his career.

- Seguin's brother: says Perry Dunlop gave encouragement to DS who was trying to obtain money from Ken.

- "A government source told the Globe and Mail that DS called the Solicitor-General's Ministry three weeks after the suicide to notify it of his allegations against the employee, the probation officer. At that time the Ministry told the Cornwall and provincial police the OPP investigated but were not able to 'substantiate the allegations'"

Police Complaints Commission: argues that Cst. Dunlop did not learn of the suspected abuse during his official duties since he wasn't part of the investigation. Also argues that the law refers to a child in need of protection but that Cst. Dunlop did not have any specific child in mind. In it’s appeal of the board of inquiry ruling said: "The specific reference to 'a child' in the singular excludes children in general who may be at risk because of potential exposure to a historic paedophile."

29 July

Freeholder

police inquiry info

- 31 Jan 95 Board of Inquiry (Ottawa) stays proceeding against Perry Dunlop.

- 01 March 95 Police Complaints Commissioner files a notice of appeal. In the notice, commission disputes the board of Inquiry's interpretation of the Child and Family Services Act and argues it doesn't apply in the circumstances of the case.

- the appeal, which will probably be heard in October, will be heard in the province's Divisional Court in Ottawa.

29 July

Globe & Mail

(Sean Fine)

Perry Dunlop

Ken Seguin's brother

Seguin's brother: has filed a formal complaint with police authorities over an interview that Dunlop subsequently gave to a newspaper reporter regarding Ken Seguin found hanged in his rural home and OPP ruled it suicide.

Dunlop: "I have been on an emotional roller coaster for the last year-and-a-half."

- A reference to July 1992 where a superior officer referred to Dunlop as "a policeman's policeman" - "I have been blessed with some officers who are proud and who care. PC Dunlop is one of those officers."

01 Aug

Freeholder

(Bowman & Hooper)

Perry Dunlop support

161 readers flooded newsroom with calls in two hours. 147 praised Dunlop for releasing the file to CAS. The article contains a series of excepts from those calls.

03 Aug

Freeholder

(Len Hooper)

Leo Courville (chair of the Cornwall Police Services Board)

DS has reached an out of court settlement in a civil lawsuit against Cornwall Police Services Board.

"Leo Courville, chair of the police services board, said the board's insurance company - Canadian and General Insurance Company - negotiated the settlement."

Courville: "I can say that the dollar amount we were shown is not a substantial amount..." He denied that it was a six-figure amount.

10 Aug

Freeholder

(Bowman)

Dr. John Edgar (coroner)

Edgar: supports Dunlop. Says if an inquest into a drowning death revealed that the area or waters were dangerous, he must under authority notify the police.

14 Aug

Seaway News

(Bob Roth)

re Freeholder

Roth reports that more than a year after "Dunlop got into hot water exposing the $32,000 sex abuse allegation and cover-up by the Catholic Church the Freeholder has suddenly carried a major feature and held one of its phone-ins on the topic."

- Roth asks "What finally roused Rip Van Winkle from his slumber?" then goes on to say that "in effect the Freeholder got scooped by a Toronto paper and the feature article in the Freeholder was in fact a reprint of an article in Globe and Mail written by Sean Fine.” Roth notes that Globe and Freeholder are both owned by the Thomson chain.

19 Aug

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

Nelson Barque (former probation officer)

Nelson Barque, 56, has pleaded guilty and "was sentenced to four months in jail and 18 months probation Friday after pleading guilty to one count of indecent assault on a male."

- a youth reported the incident to Barque's supervisor, Ken Seguin, and Seguin then began sexually assaulting him.

- the victim went to police last fall, about one year after the supervisor died.

Barque left his job with Corrections Canada in the early 80s.

Crown prosecutor - Guy Simard

Defence lawyer - Don Johnson

Judge - Gilles Renaud

6 Sept.

Freeholder

petition

Cyndi MacMillan

"A group of concerned citizens is hoping to collect 10,000 signatures on a petition that will be presented to the Ontario government in support of Perry Dunlop."

- the petition urges Queen's Park to stop all legal action against Dunlop.

Cyndi MacMillan: "Our committee was formed to show overwhelming support to Dunlop and his courageous effort to protect our children."

26 Sept

Cornwall Standard Freeholder

Petition

Helen Dunlop

"Supporters of Cornwall Police Services Const. Perry Dunlop hope to have 15,000 signatures before his case goes to appeal this fall."

- in a presentation to city council Monday, Dunlop's wife Helen said they have 7,000 signatures so far. "More than 40 supporters marched outside city hall prior to the meeting and filled the visitor's gallery in council chambers during Dunlop's presentation."

-"Council voted to receive the report with no question or debate."

27 Sept

Ottawa Sun

(Steve Madely)

"One Big Mess In Cornwall"

- a recap of events plus reference to the petition and nearly 7,000 signatures. Also notes there are still those who refuse to sign and blame Dunlop for embarrassing the Church.

02 Oct

Cornwall Seaway News

(Bob Roth)

second victim

signature campaign

"According to my extremely reliable sources, at press time a second person was about to file a statement with the Kingston Police alleging abuse by the same priest that has been the subject of the cover-up case in Cornwall. Apparently the alleged victim first tried to make a statement to Cornwall police, but they shunted him off to Kingston."

Signature campaign: at last Cornwall council meeting a petition with 7,000 names supporting Perry Dunlop was presented: "Council received the petition without question or comment. What a brave bunch."

09 Oct

Seaway News

(Bob Roth)

"Where are all the 'Good' Priests?"

"According to the Kingston Whig Standard (the charges were laid in Kingston after Cornwall police sent the new alleged victim there), the case of one of (now three) alleged victims was made known to two other priests in 1978. These priests did not report the allegations, although they were required to do so by law.

"Are these examples of the 'good' priests we hear so much about - those who not only turn the other cheek but also the other eye."

- "There is something very wrong, very sick with the whole power structure. What is at issue here is not that there are a minority of perverts and paedophiles within the Church, but that there are a majority of priests who won=t speak up against corruption."

12 Oct

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

Malcolm MacDonald

Malcolm MacDonald: (64) Cornwall lawyer received an absolute discharge "after pleading guilty to attempting to obstruct justice in a sexual assault case against his client, a Catholic priest."

- the case was supposed to proceed in Cornwall but was transferred to Ottawa in September.

- “The absolute discharge means that MacDonald will not have a criminal record."

14 Oct

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

second victim

Inspector Rick Trew

Inspector Tim Smith

Inspector Trew: (re second victim with allegations against priest) Trew confirmed Friday that Cornwall police received the most recent complaint in mid-August. The case was turned over to Kingston-based Ontario Provincial Police Insp. Tim Smith.

- Trew said the was case turned over because it had allegations against the same priest and the OPP file was not closed.

- The OPP cleared Cornwall Police of any wrongdoing and concluded there weren't sufficient grounds to lay charges against the priest.

- OPP did charge the priest's lawyer with obstruction of justice for his part in arranging the financial settlement.

20 Oct

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff) "Priest's lawyer Fall Guy in sex abuse case: counsel"

Malcolm MacDonald

Bob Wakefield (MacDonald's lawyer)

Curt Flanagan (Crown attorney)

"Cornwall lawyer Malcolm MacDonald became the fall guy following an investigation into the way Cornwall Police handled a sexual abuse complaint against an area Catholic priest two years ago, MacDonald's lawyer says.

"To ensure impartiality, a Crown Attorney (Brockville-based Curt Flanagan) and Judge (Brian Lennox of Ottawa) from outside Cornwall were assigned to the case.

"Because Flanagan was due to spend a week in Ottawa in September where both Lennox and Wakefield are based, it was easier for one person (MacDonald) to travel from Cornwall to Ottawa than three people to make the trip the other way, Wakefield says.

"'So we did it in Ottawa. It made sense' to do it there since it was the most convenient option.

"Wakefield says MacDonald 'determined that a plea of guilty (together with an absolute discharge) represented an efficient and inexpensive way to bring all this nonsense to an end without any adverse consequences to him and to any of the other people involved.

"'When this charge was laid, many of (MacDonald's) friends, clients, other lawyers and other people in the justice system told him that they knew and understood that he had become the "fall guy" for a case that was truly a calamity of errors of bad judgements and mistakes by other people..'"

MacDonald: in an interview on Thursday "It's not very nice to be accused of anything, especially when you feel you didn't do anything wrong." In the end, MacDonald said he felt "I was able to live with it the way it worked out."

- "MacDonald agreed to plead guilty to the charge after the Crown offered the defence an absolute discharge in exchange, Wakefield says."

Flanagan: says the absolute discharge option, which means MacDonald won't have a criminal record, was offered for several reasons, including: "the exemplary background of the accused"; the accused's age (65); the guilty plea "which saved the expense of a trial," the fact that, irrespective of the obstruction of justice charge, no sexual assault charges were laid by the police against the priest; the potential involvement of the Law Society of Upper Canada after MacDonald was convicted.

Wakefield: says Flanagan agreed the obstruction of justice charge was, at best, a technical offence. Despite the guilty plea he says: "In my opinion, if he had gone to trial, he would not have been convicted."

Flanagan then counters that he "wouldn't let a person plead guilty to a crime he didn't commit" noting that MacDonald "pled guilty...period. The court found he's guilty." "Mr. MacDonald was a facilitator of a settlement between the Church and the victim. When the release was exectuted by the complainant, he believed that the police were not going to lay any charges in response to his complaint. The victim decided to take the money and run because the police were not going to lay any charges."

DS (in response to latter quote): "He's got it right, except for taking the money and running." "All I wanted was criminal charges in the first place. All I wanted was an apology from the Church and they refused to do that. Thirty-two thousand is peanuts for what has happened to me. Peanuts. I don't want a settlement anymore. I want the truth to come out in court."

21 Oct

Freeholder

Claude McIntosh

(associate editor)

recap

Father Charles MacDonald

a recap of events with reference to thousands of names on the petition but not signature of DS [who then believed Dunlop leaked his statement to the media], and reference to a disgruntled policeman. Concludes sating Dunlop's life is on hold awaiting results of appeal "Meanwhile, the other player in this story is on a roller-coaster ride of his own. He is the priest. Charged with no crime to date, cleared by a lengthy OPP investigation, he continues to be dragged mercilessly through the cruel court of public opinion..."

21 Oct

Freeholder

Letters to Ed

Bill McCrimmon

(Toronto policeman and former resident of Cornwall)

McCrimmon: supports Perry Dunlop. Says it’s common knowledge the Ministry of the Solicitor General investigated the Cornwall City Police Service in 1993. "Stated were 50 recommendations."

23 Oct

Seaway News

Bob Roth

"Priest's Lawyer Pleads Guilty But Gets Off Scott Free"

"What ever happened to the notion of 'zero-tolerance' with regard to child abuse case or investigation?"

- "If you want some idea of how warped the Church has become, refer to your 16 October Freeholder. There you will see the story, complete with photograph of 'Brother MacDonald' being 'Knighted into the Order of St. John' - about one month after his guilty plea, and four days after the guilt was written up in that same local paper.

"The picture shows MacDonald kneeling before a priest (no doubt one of the 'good priests' we hear so much about). The story says he is receiving a 'rare honour' and that this 'Order' is made up of an elite group of Christians whose inception dates back to 600 A.D.

"The story continues that 'persons invited to join Order are recognized for their contributions to their community...'

"This whole tragic farce says so much about the sickness within the Catholic Church, the judicial system and the political structure. (And they wonder why young people lose faith.)

"Meanwhile, Const. Dunlop, the Catholic who exposed this evil and brought at least one man to justice, is still waiting for his 'knighthood.'

"However, he won't have to wait long for the next act of persecution against him; his trial for refusing to participate in the cover-up is next month. This, you must recall, is actually his second hearing; he was found innocent but, in the twisted logic of our legal system, this man must be relentlessly pursued."

07 Nov

Freeholder

diocese

Bishop Larocque

reports that diocese has streamlined its policy on sexual abuse complaints. It did so with input from the police, CAS and the Cornwall and Area Christian Council.

Larocque: referred reporter's request for an intereview to Rev. Denis Vaillancourt, chancellor.

07 Nov.

Freeholder

Benoit Brisson

Brisson says nothing has changed. "It's the same old Church approach, cover things up. Hush. Hush. Nothing's changed as far as I'm concerned."

18 Nov.

Freeholder

Sean Silicoff

Victim “J”

Insp. Tim Smith (Kingston OPP)

Cst. Perry Dunlop

"J": says he has been told by police that they won=t proceed with an investigation into his complaints of sexual abuse against an area priest until a decision on the fate of Cst. Perry Dunlop is handed down next week.

- J "says police have advised him to stay away from Dunlop and his family, even though they've become part of his support network since he brought forward his allegation against the priest last summer."

-J decided to bring forward his complaint after reading that the priest was counter-suing DS: "When I know that the truth is out there and in me, that was enough to boil that anger over, and it was time to come forward with this”

- J gave his statement in August. Smith told him then he=d like to have the investigation wrapped up by Christmas.

- Smith told J earlier this month that "he'll put two guys on it Nov. 24. It'll become their priority then." That's the day after a decision is expected in the case against Dunlop.

- "J said Smith 'wasn't afraid to say it was after Dunlop's date on (Nov, 23)' that the Kingston OPP investigation would pick up steam."

- asked what he thinks of having to wait for the Dunlop decision, J said, "Perry Dunlop has nothing to do with what happened to me 23 years ago." Says he doesn't know what the politics are in having to wait until after next Thursday.

- Carson Chisholm, the Dunlops, DS and Benoit Brisson are part of J’s support network since he came forward with his allegations in June.

DS: says he's re-suing the Church, the priest and the dead bishop for $2.8 mill in the hope that the truth will come out.

Smith (of Kingston-based OPP): the case against the priest has been his responsibility since Johnston requested an external investigation of his force's handling of the investigation.

OPP concluded last February, after a year-long review of the case, that there weren't sufficient grounds to lay charges against the priest.

21 Nov

DOCUMENT

Hansard

John C Cleary MPP (Cornwall) presents petition signed by 9,469 constituents of Eastern Ontario supporting Perry Dunlop's action when he reported information on child abuse to the Children's Aid Society. "...We fully support Constable Perry Dunlop in his decision to protect children first. Further that no action or penalty be brought against him."

22 Nov

Freeholder

Sean Silicoff

John Yoannou

(spokesman for Police Complaints Commission, PCC)

- The stay of hearings in first inquiry "was appealed a month later by the Office of the Police Complaints Commission, a police watchdog organization."

Yoannou: says the question of the relationship between CAS and police was never raised before in the five-year history of the public complaints process.

- Yoannou says it's the court system, not a board of inquiry, that should set precedents.

- Yoannou expects the outcome of the ruling "will provide some clarification of the rights and duties of an officer in situations such as this."

23 Nov

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

Cst. Perry Dunlop

nominated for Order of Canada by Victoria lawyer Ronald MacIsaac, head of the Vancouver Island Human Rights Coalition

24 Nov

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

Cst. Perry Dunlop

William Manuel

(Lawyer for PCC)

a divisional court panel reserved judgement Thursday on an appeal that could send a Cornwall Police officer back before a disciplinary hearing.

- "When the panel of three Ontario Court General Division Justices return with their decision - possibly as early as today

- they're expected to either uphold the board's ruling or send the matter back to a hearing."

- the ruling is expected to set an important precedent by clarifying the duties of officers in similar situations.

- "On Thursday, the PCC's lawyer William Manuel argued that giving the Child and Family Services Act precedence over the Police Services Act - and allowing officers to disobey their superiors - would spell trouble for the order and structure of police organizations."

25 Nov

Citizen

Cst. Perry Dunlop

William Manuel (lawyer of PCC)

-divisional court has postponed a decision on the appeal

Manuel: argued in an Ottawa court that Dunlop disobeyed an order from his staff sergeant, breaching police discipline.

- O'Brien: argued his client was legally required to notify the CAS about a priest suspected of sexually abusing an altar boy 20 years ago.

25 Nov

Freeholder

(Sean Silicoff)

Cst. Perry Dunlop

divisional court justices

- two of the Ontario Court Divisional Justices, James Southey and Nicholas McRae have returned to Toronto. They and Justice Robert Desmarais of Ottawa won't be sitting again until January.

- divisional court typically takes two to three months after reserving on a decision.

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