Retired vice admiral found not guilty on charges of sexual assault, indecent acts

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A retired senior naval officer was found not guilty Monday of sexual assault and indecent acts, ending an almost three-year legal saga.

Haydn Edmundson told reporters outside the Ottawa court house that he cried when he heard the not guilty verdicts, adding that the “massive emotional outpouring” was because the charges had been hanging over the heads of him and his family for years.

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“And now that has been lifted somewhat,” he said. “But the pain is still there and the emotions are still there.”

Judge Matthew Webber rendered the decision in the Ontario Court of Justice.

The Department of National Defence (DND) had announced in December 2021 that Edmundson, then a vice admiral, had been charged with sexual assault and indecent acts.

The charges followed allegations from a former sailor that she was raped by Edmundson onboard HMCS Provider, a navy supply ship, in November 1991.

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service began the investigation into Edmundson after CBC News notified National Defence it was about to release a story featuring on-the-record remarks by the alleged victim.

Stéphanie Viau told CBC that Edmundson, who was a lieutenant commander at the time, exposed his genitals to her while on a navy ship during an exercise. Viau, at the time, was a 19-year-old member of the Canadian Navy.

She alleged that Edmundson raped her onboard several days later HMCS Provider while the ship was docked in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Edmundson pleaded not guilty and testified in court that he never had any sexual contact with Viau.

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Webber read his entire decision to the court Monday, concluding that the Crown did not meet the standard of proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

He cited concerns with the complainant’s memory of what happened more than 30 years ago, and a lack of evidence to corroborate her account.

“There are just too many problems, and I’m not in the business of … declaring what happened,” Webber said. “That’s not my job, you know, my job is to just decide whether or not guilt has been proven to the requisite standard, and it hasn’t,” he added.

Edmundson had been head of the military personnel branch when the accusations against him were made public in early 2021. The charges against him were laid Dec. 7, 2021 after an investigation by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service or CFNIS.

Edmundson testified that in February 2022, he was directed by the chief of the defence staff Gen. Wayne Eyre to retire from the Canadian military.

Neither the DND nor the CFNIS would provide comment Monday about the court verdict.

Edmundson’s lawyer, Brian Greenspan, said his client was gratified by the “clear, decisive vindication of his steadfast position that he was not guilty of these false accusations.”

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Viau had earlier stated she did not want the Canadian Forces police or justice system to be involved in the investigation because she didn’t trust the military to properly investigate and prosecute her case. But the military declined a request to have the RCMP involved in the case.

The court ruling Monday is the latest in a series of high profile legal cases against senior military officers.

Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin was charged with one count of sexual assault on Aug. 18, 2021. He was acquitted Dec. 5, 2022, by Quebec judge Richard Meredith, who ruled that he was not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that Fortin was the assailant who sexually assaulted a member of the military in 1988.

Fortin launched a lawsuit in March 2023 against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Eyre and other military officials for their alleged roles in his removal from command and a military police investigation into the allegations of sexual assault.

In his lawsuit, Fortin alleged that at the behest of Eyre as well as “political actors,” the investigation against him was “rushed, flawed and did not follow the usual or ordinary course of a CFNIS investigation.”

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Fortin, who also later retired from the military, received an out of court financial settlement. DND has declined to comment.

In the fall of 2023, military prosecutors dropped service offence charges against Lt.-Gen. Steve Whelan. Those were linked to allegations that Whelan had an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate.

In late May of this year, Whelan’s lawyers filed a lawsuit against Eyre and the current defence chief Gen. Jennie Carignan as well as other senior officers.

In their statement of claim, Whelan’s lawyers accused senior military and civilian leaders at DND of destroying the officer’s career for political purposes.

The claim filed with the court painted a picture of a toxic environment and vicious infighting at DND headquarters in Ottawa.

DND has declined to comment on that legal action.

Retired chief of the defence staff Gen. Jonathan Vance faced a number of sexual misconduct allegations before eventually pleading guilty to one count of obstruction of justice.

Chief of the Defence Staff Adm. Art McDonald stepped aside in 2021 after he faced an investigation by military police into allegations of sexual misconduct. No charges were laid, but McDonald did not return to his job as top leader of the military. He has since retired.

Edmundson declined Monday to comment on whether he was considering legal action against the government or the military.

(With files from The Canadian Press)

David Pugliese is an award-winning journalist covering Canadian Forces and military issues in Canada. To support his work, including exclusive content for subscribers only, sign up here: ottawacitizen.com/subscribe

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