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Edmonton Youth Development Centre Sexual Assault Class Action Overview:
- Who: 14 men who say they were sexually abused by the same priest are suing the province of Alberta and the Anglican Synod of the Diocese of Edmonton.
- Why: The men say they were assaulted by Anglican priest Rev. Gordon William Dominey when they were teenagers detained at the Edmonton Youth Development Centre in the 1980s.
- Where: The men are looking to take class action in Alberta, Canada.
More than a dozen men who say they were sexually abused by a priest while they were incarcerated in a youth jail are looking to take class action against the province of Alberta and the Anglican Synod of the Diocese of Edmonton.
The 14 men say they were assaulted by Anglican priest Rev. Gordon William Dominey when they were teenagers detained at the Edmonton Youth Development Centre in the 1980s, CBC reports.
The priest died in November 2019, just two months before he was set to go to trial to face 33 charges of historical sexual offences against teenagers.
One of the lead complainants in the civil case against Dominey filed the complaint in 2017 and has been seeking to have it certified since then.
Now, the court is finally hearing the men’s arguments for why the case should proceed as a class action, instead of 14 individual suits. The Government of Alberta and the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton are opposed to the certification being granted.
Diocese, Province Created Environment That Allowed Priest To Abuse Youth, Plaintiff’s Lawyer Says
On Jan 24 Court of Queen’s Bench Justice John Henderson heard arguments from the plaintiff’s lawyer, Avnish Nanda, where Nanda said the diocese and the province put Dominey in a position of authority over the youth, and then failed to adequately supervise the priest or enforce policies and practices to protect them.
“The institutional members created or permitted an environment that allowed Dominey to abuse them with impunity,” Nanda said.
Some of the survivors appeared at the hearing, where they alleged being assaulted by Dominey in the jail swimming pool, a private office and a shower.
Alberta province lawyer Luciana Brasil challenged the argument that there was systemic negligence or abuse by the province.
“In this case, the allegation is only, only that Mr. Dominey assaulted the youth at the Edmonton centre,” Brasil said. “There is no allegation that staff or another student committed anything to anyone else.”
She also argued that Alberta doesn’t have a fiduciary duty or commitment to act in the best interest of inmates even if they are children.
The judge will rule on whether the class action can proceed within two weeks.
What do you think—should the class action be certified? Let us know in the comments!
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