(Re) 1611-00411, 2017 ONCICB 213

CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION BOARD

Adjudicator: Jo-Anne Hughes Date: July 31, 2017 Indexed as: (Re) 1611-00411

ORDER

Introduction

1The Applicant is requesting compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board (CICB) for an alleged crime of violence which occurred on [date], 2013, in accordance with the Compensation for Victims of Crime Act, RSO 1990, c. C.24, as amended (the “Act”). He is seeking compensation for counselling expenses as a result of the death of his sister (the Victim). The Offender was charged with murder, but was convicted of a lesser charge.

Issue

2In this case, the CICB is required to determine whether a crime of violence has occurred as per section 5(a) of the Act, what injury, if any, arose from it, and the relevant circumstances affecting whether or not compensation should be awarded and if so, the amount.

Interim Order for Counselling – December 23, 2016

3Pursuant to section 14 of the Act, if it appears to the CICB that the applicant will probably be awarded compensation, the CICB may in its discretion order interim payments to the applicant in respect of support, medical expenses and funeral expenses. The CICB provided $1,500.00 in interim funding to the Applicant for counselling on December 23, 2016 to cover the period of time leading up to the hearing.

Written Hearing

4In his November 2016 submission to the CICB, the Applicant wrote that he was just starting to feel the need for counselling as a result of this incident in which the Victim was alleged to have been choked and suffocated by the Offender. The Offender was convicted of indignity to a body for his treatment of the Victim after he put her in a duffle bag and disposed of it in the [Name] River. The jury was hung on the murder charge so a re-trial has been scheduled.

5At the time of his Application, the Applicant wrote that it had been over three years since the incident in which the Victim died. After the trial ended in a hung jury, he found he was struggling more with his grief. The Applicant wrote that he had arranged for his counselling to begin on November 4, 2016, he was unsure how many sessions would be needed and he requested funding to be made available ASAP. On that basis, the Interim Funding Order was issued.

6As the date of the written hearing approached, the CICB had not received any evidence, such as a therapy report, in support of the additional counselling request which the Applicant should have been able to obtain as a result of the Interim Order. The CICB reserved its decision to June 30, 2017, pending receipt of a Therapy Report from the Applicant’s counsellor. However, the CICB did not receive any evidence in support of the Applicant’s request for further funding.

Decision and Analysis

7Under section 11 of the Act, if a person is convicted of a criminal offence in respect of an act or omission on which a claim under this Act is based, proof of the conviction will be taken as conclusive evidence that the offence has been committed. In this case the Offender was charged with murder and convicted of a lesser included offence. Therefore, the CICB is satisfied that a crime of violence pursuant to s.5 (a) of the Act took place and it resulted in a death.

8Next, the CICB must determine whether to award the Victim’s brother additional compensation. As with all applications before the CICB, the onus rests on the Applicant to provide the required documentation to support the claim being made. The CICB requested further information from the Applicant to support his request for further funding for bereavement counselling. However, as of June 30, 2017, the Applicant had not provided any information or documentation to substantiate his request for further funding.

9Given the lack of evidence to support this claim, the Applicant’s request for further funding for bereavement counselling is denied and this claim is dismissed under the CICB’s Rules of Procedure (Rule 2.9) as Abandoned.