WARNING: This article contains details about a criminal sexual assault trial and may be disturbing to some readers. If you or someone you know has been impacted by sexual violence, contact the 24-hour Sexual Assault Support Crisis line at 1-877-954-6242 or the RCMP.
An Osoyoos man who drove off with a young woman and tried to ply her with vodka before sexually assaulting her was found guilty following a trial that stretched out over six months in a recently published decision.
The decision by Justice Hardwick was made on Jan. 21 and published on Feb. 23.
B. J. M., referred to in the Penticton Supreme Court decision as Mr. M, was charged with one count of sexual assault of a 17-year-old, whose name is protected by a publication ban and will be referred to here as Jane Doe.
In 2021, at the time the assault took place, Jane Doe worked in the restaurant as the morning chef at the Holiday Inn in Osoyoos. That morning, she had woken up feeling unwell and ended up oversleeping her shift.
Mr. M was called in by his at-the-time girlfriend, who was a co-worker of Doe’s, to assist in the kitchen. When Doe arrived in the kitchen, she worked with him on the breakfast service.
During a lull in orders, Mr. M told Doe she could bum a smoke off him, initially handing her a set of car keys before taking them back and saying he would go out of the hotel to unlock the car where he kept his cigarettes.
“[Doe] did not consider this to be unusual. She had, as noted, only met Mr. M. that morning and understood why he might not want to just give her his car keys, “reads the judgement. “At the same time, she also did not think it was unusual to take a smoke break with a co-worker, even with a very new co-worker. It is quite common, [Doe] testified, in the hospitality restaurant industry.”
The car, it turned out, did not belong to Mr. M but to his then-girlfriend, who had given him the keys in order to access his cigarettes for smoke breaks. Mr. M did not have a valid license, and according to the decision, his ex-girlfriend testified that he had previously “stolen” the car.
The car had been parked across the street from the hotel, and Doe entered it first, retrieving a cigarette from the centre console and lighting it up.
As she got close to finishing the cigarette, Mr. M joined her in the vehicle, retrieving a half-empty bottle of vodka and taking a drink from it. He offered the bottle to her, to which she refused, and then proceeded to lock the doors of the vehicle, start the car and drive off.
“While driving, Mr. M. immediately began touching [Doe]’s leg in what she considered and described to be a sexual manner,” reads the decision. “[Doe] heard Mr. M.’s cellular phone start to ring repeatedly. [She] accurately surmised that this was the restaurant trying to reach him, given that there were still customers to be served and the breakfast shift was not yet over. [Doe] indicates she repeatedly told Mr. M. that they should return to the restaurant. Mr. M. was dismissive of these suggestions but otherwise spoke very little.”
After parking, Mr. M took more drinks from the bottle, passing it to Doe, who faked taking a drink before returning it, before putting it back on the floor of the car, where what was left in the bottle audibly spilled out.
Mr. M then exited the car from the driver’s door before re-entering from the rear door on the same side.
“While in the back seat of the vehicle, there was sexual contact which, as noted based on submissions today, is not challenged. I am aware of all of the evidence as to the nature of the sexual contact described by [Doe]. and I do not consider it necessary for these purposes to recite it in detail,” reads the decision. “I will cursorily say that there was digital penetration by Mr. M. of [Doe]’s vagina and repeated attempted vaginal and some more limited attempt at anal penetration, albeit the success of penetration was constrained due to the state of Mr. M.’s penis during portions of the encounter.”
After a few minutes, Mr. M passed out, which Doe described as though he had overdosed, and while he was out, she attempted to escape the vehicle through the unlocked back door. Before she could get out, Mr. M snapped back into consciousness for several more minutes, before once again passing out and giving Doe time to escape.
A passing town employee spotted Doe and called the police about an hour after Mr. M and Doe had left the Holiday Inn, based on security footage entered into evidence.
Multiple police officers responded, finding Mr. M passed out in the car with his genitals barely covered by his shirt and his pants and underwear around his ankles.
Doe had blood on her clothes, and bruising on her upper thighs consistent with the use of force to pull her legs apart.
The trial lasted six months and involved two different counsel for Mr. M’s defence.
Justice Hardwick noted that while Doe had been at times scattered with her thoughts, her testimony and evidence had remained consistent through the cross-examination.
“At no time did I find [Doe]’s evidence to appear exaggerated, embellished, or contrived,” the decision reads.
Sentencing for Mr. M. will take place at a later date.