CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION BOARD
Adjudicator: James Graham
Indexed as: (Re) 1703-00649
ORDER
INTRODUCTION
1The Applicant is seeking financial compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board (CICB) in accordance with the Compensation for Victims of Crime Act, RSO 1990, c. C.24, as amended (the “Act”). The Applicant is seeking compensation for expenses and pain and suffering as a result of a physical assault that occurred on [date], 2016 where he sustained physical and psychological injuries. The incident was reported to the Police but no conviction was obtained because the Alleged Offender could not be identified.
DECISION
2The CICB approves the claim and awards the Applicant the sum of $10,400.00 for the reasons set out below.
ISSUES
3The fact that there has not been a conviction is not a bar to the Applicant’s claim. Subsection 16(1) of the Act provides that compensation may be awarded whether or not a person has been prosecuted or convicted of the offence giving rise to the injury. The Applicant is required to prove, on a balance of probabilities, not only that he was a victim of a crime of violence but also that his injuries resulted from the crime pursuant to subsection 5(a) of the Act.
4If the Applicant has met the above threshold, in deciding whether or not to exercise its discretion to award compensation and the amount thereof, the CICB must consider whether the Applicant has refused reasonable cooperation with, or failed to report promptly the offence to a law enforcement agency pursuant to subsection 17(2) of the Act.
5The Applicant must provide reliable evidence to support his claims for expenses actually and reasonably incurred as a result of his injury pursuant to subsection 7(1)(a) of the Act.
HEARING
6The hearing was conducted in writing on the basis of the materials contained in the Applicant’s file.
Documentary Evidence
7The CICB received the following documents with respect to the claim:
The Application,
[Name] Police Services general report,
Report of Dr. [Name], Dentist,
[Name] Health Care System emergency records, and
Report of Dr.[Name], Family Doctor.
8The Applicant says that he was in a bar called the [Name] in [City] at about 12:30 a.m. on [date], 2016. He had been there about twenty minutes in the company of a friend, who stepped outside for a cigarette. While the friend was absent, the Applicant claims that he was struck on the head and knocked unconscious. The Police were called, but the Applicant says he did not co-operate. He claims that he was in shock and just wanted to go home. However, he says that he reported the matter to Detective Constable [Name] within the following week.
9The [Name] Police Services General Report confirms that the Applicant was punched in the face by an unknown male on [date], 2016 at approximately 1:05 am. The report also says that the Applicant was missing one upper front porcelain tooth, had a fracture to a neighbouring upper front natural tooth, and that the Applicant did not know the Alleged Offender or the reason for the assault. The Report gives no insight into the reason for the assault but says that, given his intoxicated state, the Applicant was unable to provide any further details to police. The Police had no further record of the incident.
10The Applicant claims that he suffered injuries to his head, including to his nose and other facial bruising. He says that his teeth were damaged. He had suffered a previous head injury and suffered epilepsy and was concerned that the current trauma would make things worse. He says he was in extreme pain for many days and could not eat anything but baby food. He needed help to get to appointments or grocery shop. He says he was advised by his Family Doctor that he should not look for work.
11The Applicant states that he lost four teeth in all and wound up with a partial plate and two root canals. He says that there was a lot of pain in his jaw together with gum discomfort and he has had to adjust to having a plate in his mouth.
12The Applicant says that he is now uncomfortable walking in the neighbourhood, nervous when around people he does not know, and feels that he is not as attractive to women. He says he sleeps more, does not focus as well and is concerned that he does not have as much confidence as he did before the assault.
13The Applicant went to [Name] Health Care in the afternoon of [date], 2016. The Hospital emergency record reports that he was kicked in the face and suffered facial trauma and broken front teeth and confirms that the Applicant has a history of epilepsy. The Applicant complained of a headache, some vertigo, bi-lateral facial pain and numbness on the right side of his face. The Applicant was given a CT scan which showed a deviation of the septum to the right side, but no fractures.
14The Dentist states that the Applicant’s teeth were within normal limits prior to the assault and that the four front upper teeth were beyond repair and required extraction as a result of the trauma. He also says that the canine teeth were traumatized and required root canals. The missing teeth were replaced with a bridge. The Dentist states that the cost of treatment for the injury, paid by the Applicant, was $5,400.00. He states that the prognosis for the Applicant is good and that he is unlikely to have further problems.
15The Family Doctor reports that the Applicant’s prognosis is good, but he was unable to work from [date], 2016 to [date], 2017.
ANALYSIS AND DECISION
16Based upon the statements made by the Applicant and the uncontested information contained in the Police Report, the CICB finds on the balance of probabilities that the Applicant was the victim of a crime of violence and that he sustained injuries as a result.
17The CICB accepts the Applicant’s explanation for not co-operating with the Police on the night of the incident. It is reasonable given the trauma to his head that his first interest was to get home rather than go through the process of preparing a statement for the Police. In addition, there is no suggestion that the lack of a statement impeded the Police investigation. The Applicant told the Police that he did not know the assailant, and the Police were unable to determine who the assailant was on the night of the assault. The CICB finds that it should not exercise its discretion to deny or reduce compensation to the Applicant pursuant to section 17(2) of the Act.
18The CICB finds, based upon the Application and the documents filed, that the Applicant suffered trauma to his face, his nose and his teeth. He was in considerable pain for a period of time, limited in his diet because of the injuries and was obliged to undergo extensive dental work, leaving him with a bridge in place of four of his original teeth. He was unable to seek work for approximately ten weeks. When he prepared the Application in February, 2017, he was uncomfortable in public, nervous around strangers and felt that he was not as attractive to women. He was sleeping more, was not focusing as well, and felt a lack of confidence. There is no indication these emotional feelings are permanent. Taking into account all these matters, the CICB finds that $5,000.00 is an appropriate compensation for the Applicant’s pain and suffering.
19The CICB accepts the statement of the Dentist that the Applicant paid $5,400.00 for dental services rendered in treating the damage done in the assault and so awards the Applicant the sum of $5,400.00 as compensation for this out of pocket expense.
AWARD
20The CICB orders payment as follows:
Subsection 7(1)(a) Expenses $ 5,400.00
Subsection 7(1)(d) Pain and Suffering $ 5,000.00
TOTAL AWARD $10,400.00
PAYMENT
21THE CICB ORDERS that the following sums be paid forthwith to:
The Applicant $10,400.00
DATED at Toronto this 6th day of November, 2017
James Graham, Member