CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION BOARD
Adjudicator: Keith Forde
Indexed as: (Re) 1609-04784
ORDER
Introduction
1The Applicant asks the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board (CICB) to compensate her for injuries resulting from a crime of violence which occurred on [date], 2015 in accordance with the Compensation for Victims of Crime Act, RSO 1990, c. C.24, as amended (the “Act”). She is seeking compensation for pain and suffering incurred from one act of an armed robbery, perpetrated by the Offender and Alleged Offender. The applicant is also claiming for loss of income/wages, travel to treatment and cost for psychotherapy sessions with [Name]. The Offender was convicted of accessory after the fact to commit an indictable offence-armed robbery and sentenced to 150 days pre-sentence custody and 12 months’ probation. The Alleged Offender was acquitted on all charges as no one could positively identify him.
Decision
2The CICB awards the Applicant $6,000.00 for pain and suffering, $15,100.00 for loss of income/wages, $1,176.00 for travelling to treatment and $954.60 to be paid to [Name] for psychotherapy services rendered.
Issues
The Applicant is required to prove, on a balance of probabilities, not only that she was a victim of a crime of violence, but also that as a result of the crime of violence, she suffered an injury pursuant to section 5(a) of the Act;
The CICB is to determine what injuries the Applicant sustained as a result of the armed robbery. The CICB is to also determine if the Applicant’s claim for loss of income/wages and the claim for travel to treatment from her home in [city] to [city] and psychotherapy costs is reasonable within the scope of the Act;
The CICB must assess all relevant circumstances and whether or not compensation should be awarded and if so, the amount.
Evidence
The Applicant’s Evidence
3The Applicant was an employee and had been so employed as a teller on [date], 2015.
4At approximately 1:11 p.m. the Alleged Offender entered the credit union wearing a mask while carrying a knife in his right hand. As the Alleged Offender jumped the counter he slipped and fell to the floor, he quickly got to his feet and approached the Applicant with the knife in his hand and demanded she put the money from her draw into a bag which he was carrying. Once the Applicant complied with the Alleged Offender’s demand, he jumped back over the counter and exited the bank and fled the area with over $5,500.00 in Canadian currency.
5[Name] Police conducted a lengthy investigation including forensic evidence gathered from the scene, eye witness accounts, video of the offence and subsequent witness interviews. As a result, the Police learned that the Offender and the Alleged Offender were responsible for the robbery.
6Police investigation showed that on the day in question, the Offender drove the Alleged Offender to the credit union in his car. The Alleged Offender entered the bank, committed the armed robbery and returned to the Offender’s car which was waiting outside the credit union and fled the scene. Police Reports also noted that the armed robbery was captured on video surveillance showing the single Alleged Offender wearing a mask to hide his identity.
7The Offender and the Alleged Offender were subsequently arrested and charged with robbing the credit union.
8The Applicant provided the CICB various documents in support of her claim.
9The CICB was in receipt of a Medical Report from the Applicant’s Family Physician, Dr. [name], who noted that she presented with psychological injuries. The Applicant did not feel supported or safe at her workplace.
10[Family Physician] noted that the Applicant also needed a cardiac valve replacement shortly after the armed robbery which she noted, added further stress and anxiety to the Applicant. [Family Physician] said that the long term prognosis was good; however, she wondered if the Applicant will ever be able to be gainfully employed in a public service capacity, given her easily triggered fear.
11The CICB was in receipt of a Therapy Report from Psychotherapist [name] who noted that the Applicant suffered the following symptoms as a result of the armed robbery:
Anxiety; Hypersensitivity; Isolation;
Many levels of depression; Fear; and
Nightmares.
12The CICB was also in receipt of an undated signed letter from [Psychotherapist] stating the following:
[Applicant] has been seen at this office since [date] 2015 for symptoms of Acute Stress Disorder and Post Traumatic Stress since the workplace robbery of [date] 2015. Symptoms of hyper arousal, hypersensitivity, increased emotionality, re-experiencing of the traumatic incident, and social isolation have left [Applicant] unable to return to her workplace, despite an attempt at such. A combination of psychodynamic therapies including cognitive behavioural therapy and narrative therapy has proven to have some effectiveness. De-sensitization is now going to begin and incorporated into her therapeutic sessions. Additionally, medication has been recently added to her treatment.
Injuries
13The Applicant did not sustain any physical injuries as a result of the armed robbery.
Psychological/Emotional
14The Applicant noted in her Application to the CICB that after the armed robbery, she now suffers from the following psychological injuries:
Panic attacks;
Low mood and motivation; Depression; and
Acute stress disorder.
Analysis
15In relation to the armed robbery, the fact that there has not been a conviction is not fatal to the Applicant’s claim. Section 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.
16After careful consideration of the evidence, including the documentary evidence provided by the Applicant, the Medical/Therapy Reports on file and the Police investigative information, the CICB is persuaded that the Applicant was robbed by the Alleged Offender. In this regard, the CICB relied on the aforementioned information received from the Applicant, Medical and Therapy reports and the Police investigative information.
17The CICB does find that a crime of violence have occurred and finds the Applicant, on a balance of probabilities, to be a victim of a crime of violence and therefore, a victim within the meaning of section 5(a) of the Act as a result of one act of armed robbery perpetrated by the Alleged Offender.
18In assessing compensation for pain and suffering, the CICB was mindful of the circumstances of this incident and emotional injuries suffered by the applicant and considered the following aggravated facts:
The nature of the incident
The fact that the armed robbery took place at the Applicant’s place of employment. That a weapon was used in the commission of a crime
The impact the armed robbery had and continues to have on the Applicant’s health and emotional well-being
19Have considered these factors, the CICB awards $6,000.00 for pain and suffering.
20The CICB considered the Applicant’s claim in respect to therapy costs, for which receipts were provided. The CICB finds such costs to be both reasonable and within the context of the Act and will therefore award $954.60 for such costs to be paid to [Psychotherapist].
21The CICB awards travel to treatment costs in the amount of $1,176.00 calculated at the CICB’s standard rate of 40¢ per kilometre (35 trips @ 84 kilometres per trip @ 40¢ per kilometre). The Applicant travelled to her Family Physician and to her Psychotherapist.
22The CICB has considered the Applicant’s income loss claim. It is the CICB’s practice to reimburse income loss to a maximum of $1,000.00 per month or $50.00 per day and having considered the particular circumstances of this case, the CICB finds no compelling reason to deviate from that practice. Accordingly, the CICB now awards $15,100.00 for income loss as per CICB calculations. (2 days @ $50.00 per day and 15 months @ $1,000.00 per month.)
Award
23The CICB orders payment as follows:
Section 7(1)(a) Travel to treatment $ 1,176.00
Section 7(1)(a) Therapy $ 954.60
Section 7(1)(b) Income Loss $15,100.00
Section 7(1)(d) Pain and Suffering $ 6,000.00
TOTAL AWARD (AND COSTS) $23,230.60
24The CICB recognizes that no amount of money can adequately compensate victims for the injustice they have suffered but also finds the amount of the award to be reasonable within the context of the Act.
Payment
25THE CICB ORDERS that the following sums be paid forthwith to:
The Applicant $22,276.00
[Psychotherapist] $ 954.60
DATED at Toronto this 28th day of March, 2017
Keith Forde, Member