CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION BOARD
Adjudicator: Anne-Marie Langan
Indexed as: (Re) 1702-00551
ORDER
INTRODUCTION
1The Applicant, a correctional officer, 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 pain and suffering, reimbursement for medical expenses she has incurred and compensation for lost income as a result of a physical assault by the Offender, an inmate in the correctional institution where the applicant works, that occurred on October [date], 2016, where she claims to have sustained physical and psychological injuries. The incidents were reported to the police and resulted in the Offender being charged and convicted of assault causing bodily harm and sentenced to 30 days in custody and 3 years probation.
DECISION
2The CICB approves the claim and awards the Applicant the sum of $9,000.00 for the reasons set out below.
ISSUES
3A conviction may be taken as conclusive evidence that an offence has been committed pursuant to section 11 of the Act. Given that there was a conviction in this case, the Applicant is required to prove, on a balance of probabilities, that her injuries are the result of the crime pursuant to subsection 5(a) of the Act.
4In addition, the Applicant must provide reliable evidence to support her claims for:
a. Expenses actually and reasonably incurred as a result of her injury pursuant to subsection 7(1)(a) of the Act; and,
b. Income or pecuniary loss incurred as a result of her total or partial disability affecting her capacity for work pursuant to subsection 7(1)(b) of the Act.
HEARING
5The hearing was conducted in writing on the basis of the materials contained in the Applicant’s file.
Documentary Evidence
6In her Application the Applicant explains that she was working on the day of the incident and came upon several staff standing around the door of a multipurpose room. When she approached, the Applicant saw the Offender throwing objects around the room and acting aggressively. The Offender then put a phone cord around his neck at which point the Manager decided it was time to intervene. The Applicant tried to assist the Manager in controlling the Offender but before she had a chance to grab his arm, another Officer pushed him on the ground. The Applicant was up against the wall with the Offender directly in front of her and quickly realized that he was biting her leg. It took some time for the other Officers to realize what happened and to intervene so the Applicant could escape the Offender’s grip on her leg.
7She attended at the hospital for treatment the same day. The Applicant describes the bite as extremely painful and the offender left bite marks on her leg and there was a bruise around it. Following the incident she had nightmares and would wake up in a sweat and crying. As a result she had difficulty sleeping and was fatigued during the day. She was very concerned that the Offender had infected her with Hepatitis, HIV or another communicable disease. She has had bouts of anxiety since the incident. The Applicant has not been able to partake in many of the activities she enjoys, including hockey, since the incident.
8The Police incident report confirms the facts as laid out in the Application in more detail as well as the Applicant’s injuries. The report writer describes the applicant’s bite mark as being “extremely visible”.
9The Applicant provided a hospital report from the hospital she attended on the day of the incident that confirms that she was treated for a bite mark on her leg. She was later treated with antibiotics and pain medication as the bite was infected. She also had blood tests done which confirm the presence of Hepatitis B antibodies. There is a Medical Report by Dr. [Name] which confirms that he treated the applicant for a human bite and that the Applicant suffered pain as a result.
10The Applicant explains in her update statement that she had to have surgery 6 months following the incident due to the fact that the wound was not fully healing and was continually becoming infected. Shen continued to experience pain and discomfort for months following the incident. She has continued to feel angry about the incident and is suffering from symptoms of depression. She has been taking pain medications which makes her feel drowsy.
11The Applicant provided receipts from [Name] pharmacy showing that she paid $103.64 for medications she was prescribed.
12WSIB provided a report that confirms that theAapplicant received $723.43 per week in LOE benefits while she was off work. The Applicant also told the WSIB analyst that she missed a lot of overtime shifts that she normally would have worked had she not been injured and estimates this to have cost her $1,675.80.
ANALYSIS AND DECISION
13Given that the Offender was convicted with assault causing bodily harm the board finds his conviction to be conclusive evidence that a crime of violence has occurred.
14Based on the medical information provided, including the hospital report and medical report, the CICB is satisfied that the Applicant suffered injuries as a result including a severe bite mark injury to her leg which was very painful and required surgery to prevent further infections. The CICB also accepts the Applicant’s evidence that she suffered psychological injuries as a result of the incident including nightmares, anxiety, depression and other symptoms that could be attributable to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The incident has affected the Applicant’s ability to earn an income and to enjoy many of the activities that she previously enjoyed and this has impacted her overall wellbeing. As a result, the Applicant is a victim within the meaning of section 5(a) of the Act.
15On the basis of its assessment of the Applicant’s physical and psychological injuries, the CICB awards the applicant $9,000.00 in damages for pain and suffering.
16While the CICB accepts the applicant’s evidence that she was not able to work overtime and did so prior to the incident, compensation is generally only awarded in respect to actual income loss. However, the CICB has taken into consideration in its assessment of damages for pain and suffering.
17Based on the Applicant’s stated intention to enter into therapy in the near future, the CICB authorizes up to $1,200.00 (exclusive of any applicable taxes) for counselling expenses to be paid directly to a qualified treatment provider upon receipt of a Curriculum Vitae outlining the credentials of the service provider (unless the CICB already has a copy on file). These sessions can only be accessed when the therapy sessions are not covered by other sources, such as the applicant’s place of employment or insurance benefits. Therapy sessions must be completed within 36 months of receipt of this Order. It is the CICB’s practice to award up to $100.00 per session for therapy, or up to $125.00 per session for registered psychologists. Payment may be made directly to the treatment provider on a monthly basis, upon submission of an invoice and the required verification from the applicant. The CICB may also consider therapy expenses that were incurred between the times that the applicant submitted her final set of documents to the CICB and the receipt of this Order. If there are such expenses, the CICB will deduct these from the pre-authorized $1,200.00 amount described above.
AWARD
18The CICB orders payment as follows:
Subsection 7(1) (a) Future Pre-Authorized Expense $ 1,200.00
Subsection 7(1) (d) Pain and Suffering $ 9,000.00
TOTAL AWARD (AND COSTS) $10,200.00
Less: Preauthorized treatment costs $1,200.00
TOTAL CURRENT AWARD $9,000.00
PAYMENT
19THE CICB ORDERS that the following sums be paid forthwith to:
The Applicant $9,000.00
DATED at Toronto this 29th day of December, 2017.
Anne-Marie Langan, Member