SUDBURY -- Warning, graphic details may be upsetting to some readers. Almost a year after David Case and Celine Loyer were found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in Sudbury in 2011, the pair were sentenced Monday morning.
Case and Loyer were convicted March 5, 2020, but due to pandemic and shutdown issues, the sentencing was delayed.
Both appeared via video for the hearing on Monday as Ontario remains under stay-at-home orders due to COVID-19.
In Justice Patricia Hennessy's first virtual sentencing, she handed down a punishment of 16 months in jail and two years probation for both of the accused, who are supposed to report to the Sudbury jail by 3 p.m. on Tuesday. However, Case and Loyer are expected to avoid jail for now because release orders pending appeal have been filed.
Took advantage of someone 'young and impressionable'
During the hearing, the court heard how Case and Loyer met the complainant, referred to as Ms. T, who was 19 at the time. The two accused were regular customers at the deli where she worked and had known her for a couple of months before the sexual assault occurred.
Ms. T was new to Sudbury and was said to be impressed with 48-year-old Case, the "track coach of champions." At the time of the incident, Loyer, who was coached by Case, was 22 years old.
The sexual assault happened at Case's apartment after Ms. T, who was brought to his home to have dinner with him and Loyer, fell unconscious after having a couple of drinks with the defendants. She started having flashbacks of Loyer being on top of her and digitally penetrating her while Case encouraged the assault, memories that still haunt her to this day.
Case brought Ms. T home afterwards and despite feeling unwell, she went in for her early morning shift at the diner where she worked. Loyer and Case had breakfast there that morning and talked about a "wild night of drinking," with Case minimizing Ms. T's complaints of feeling ill and discouraging her from going to the hospital to seek treatment.
When Ms. T finally did go to the emergency room, finger-like bruises were found on her inner thighs, corroborating her recollection of the events of that night at Case's apartment.
During her testimony, she talked about the intrusiveness of the rape kit taken at the hospital and the impact of talking to a police officer, who said he knew Case and was willing to go speak to him about the incident.
Following the sexual assault, Case communicated with Ms. T through an encrypted email "hush" account where his emails disappeared shortly after they were read. He had given Loyer the password to the account so she could keep responses from Ms. T. One of those responses was submitted as evidence.
Both Case and Loyer found equally responsible for wrongful exploitation
Hennessey said Loyer and Case committed the sexual assault together and while there was no evidence it was planned in advance, she ruled the events were not a momentary lapse in judgement. They opportunistically took advantage of the young woman when she was unconscious and fully vulnerable, the judge ruled, causing her harm that has affected and hampered her relationships with others ever since.
Hennessey strongly condemned the pair's callous use of a woman's body for personal gratification.
"I do not subscribe to the theory that there is a hierarchy of physical interference, which suggests that some that some types of physical interference are by definition less harmful than others. Context matters," Hennessy said. "Modifying slightly the language of the Supreme Court in (the) Frieson (case), it is my view that it would be an error to downgrade the wrongfulness of the offence in this matter or the harm to the victim because the physical interference does not involve penile penetration."
Both defendants are considered first-time offenders in this case.
However, Case was sentenced two weeks ago in another case where he was found guilty of physically and sexually assaulting a teen girl he coached in the 1980s. In that case, he was sentenced to three years and nine months in jail. Case has not yet gone to jail as his lawyer, Nick Xynnis, is appealing the decision.
Hennessy said neither Case nor Loyer expressed remorse for the sexual assault and she did not consider COVID-19 as a factor in her sentencing decision.
Fallout from charges
Loyer recently resigned from being a registered massage therapist after losing clients following the charges despite former clients giving positive accounts of her service. During the hearing, it was stated that Loyer has been working with Case in his music business despite having no experience in the industry.
Case, who is currently living off social assistance after his music business collapsed following the charges, and said he has been physically and verbally attacked since the charges were laid.
One of the limits employed in the sentencing is that Case and Loyer must stop associating with each other, something the defence fought but ultimately lost.
Hennessy said it is in the public's best interest that the two remain apart and it will provide the best chance for rehabilitation.
