A class action lawsuit has been certified by the Supreme Court of B.C. against the province for allegedly turning a blind eye to the actions of a former corrections officer who is accused of sexually assaulting inmates at four prisons, two in Maple Ridge.
Accusations of sexual assault by former prison guard Roderic David MacDougall go back decades.
This includes any non-consensual touching of a sexual nature, masturbating in front of inmates, or exposing himself.
MacDougall is accused of allegedly sexually assaulting upwards of 200 inmates at four prisons in the Lower Mainland: Oakalla Prison/Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Centre in Burnaby, where he worked from January 1976 to September 1990; Fraser Regional Correctional Centre in Maple Ridge, where he worked from September 1990 to January 1993; Surrey Justice Centre Probation Office, where he worked from January 1993 to July 1993; and at Alouette River Correctional Centre, also in Maple Ridge, where he worked from July 1993 to June 1997.
Slater Vecchio LLP, a national civil litigation law firm, is looking for possible victims of MacDougall who would like to join the lawsuit.
According to the law firm, a class action is a legal case where the representative plaintiff seeks to hold the defendant responsible for their conduct in one legal proceeding on behalf of a group of people who have the same legal claim. Meaning the issue can be resolved in the same legal proceeding rather than have each person prosecute a claim individually.
Now that the claim has been certified as a class action, it can move onto the next stages of litigation which could include a trial and judgment, unless a settlement is reached, said the long form notice posted online.
Individuals who have been impacted by the alleged actions of MacDougall are automatically included in the class action, unless they choose to opt out.
Slater Vecchio LLP has posted a Class Member Information Form and an Opt-Out Form, along with instructions for those who wish to be part of the class action and those who do not.
For more information go to: https://slatervecchio.com/ and click on Newsroom.