Accused in buggery charge makes brief appearance in Barrie court

SEX LAWS / Roger Bazin, yet to hire a lawyer, has proceedings delayed until May

X-Tra! Canada’s Gay & Lesbian News

Neil McKinnon / Ottawa / Wednesday, April 28, 2010

A former chief Roman Catholic chaplain of the Canadian Forces appeared in Barrie court today without counsel on seven charges, including buggery.

Roger Bazin, 73, appeared in Barrie pre-trial court. The charges against him stem from a 1972 incident involving a teenaged boy, when he was a young Roman Catholic chaplain with a rank of captain at CFB Borden. Before he retired in 1995, he served as Canada’s top military chaplain general.

In 1972, buggery was still considered a criminal offence under the Canadian Crimi