Inquiry 'is about the kids': Abuse victim

More emotional testimony at Cornwall's Project Truth hearings

Ottawa Sun
10 November 2006

By Canadian Press

CORNWALL — When Albert Roy was asked Thursday by a Cornwall Public Inquiry lawyer how he was affected by the sexual abuse he suffered as a child, the 36-year-old man paused, leaned back in his chair and slowly reached into the front pocket of his jeans. He pulled out a small, faded, sepia-toned photograph showing a teenaged boy, grinning ear to ear and posing in front of a Christmas tree — the pleasure over the gift of a new guitar more than evident on his face. “This is a photo of a young man at Christmas time, holding a guitar,” said Roy. “In that young man’s head, this hasn’t happened yet.” The boy in the early 1970s photograph is Roy, and what hasn’t happened yet, is the sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of two probation officers. “People in this room need to remember (this) is about the kids,” Roy said. “I’m not the hero in this — he is,” Roy added, holding the photo out at arm’s length for everyone in the hearing room to see. “He found some way to get out of it (the abuse.) Some kids don’t.” The inquiry is investigating the institutional response to allegations of decades of child sexual abuse in the Cornwall area. Roy is the latest in a parade of victims who’ve come forward to tell their stories as the commission attempts to get a handle on the extent of the problem. He is also the first witness who has confirmed he had some dealings with former city police officer Perry Dunlop, a man considered by many to be a central figure in the scandal. Roy said he knew Dunlop when the two were in high school, and later when Dunlop introduced him to a lawyer in relation to a civil lawsuit Roy was considering. The full extent of the discussions between Roy, Dunlop and the lawyer are not known as Roy indicated he would need to seek legal counsel before answering questions on the matter. Roy also testified he had discussed Dunlop with former city police officer Heidi Sebalj on a number of occasions during the investigation into charges against probation officer Nelson Barque. Roy said he told Sebalj he wanted to speak with Dunlop. She promised to try and facilitate that meeting, but Roy said her easy-going demeanour changed a few weeks later. “I mentioned it again and she told me to shut up,” said Roy. “She said she didn’t want to hear Perry’s name; that he had nothing to do with this (Roy’s case.)” “She got angry with me, but I didn’t understand her anger. I thought I had done something wrong.”