ONTARIO

SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE

COURT FILE NO.: 11-01188
DATE: 20140924

BETWEEN:

HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN

– and –

TYLER JAMES WHITE

Mr. R. De Chellis, for the Crown

Ms. J. Penman, for Mr. White

HEARD: May 20, 21, 27, 28, 30; June 2, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11, 23, 24, 2014

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

RESTRICTION ON PUBLICATION: By court order made under subsection 486.4(1) of the Criminal Code, information that may identify the person described in this judgment as the victim of an offence, may not be published, broadcasted or transmitted in any manner.

FUERST J.

Introduction

[1] As a result of his involvement with a 15 year old girl, Tyler White was charged with sexual interference, child luring and making child pornography. He pleaded guilty to those offences.

[2] Mr. White has a lengthy criminal record, spanning more than a decade.

[3] Crown counsel seeks a declaration that Mr. White is a dangerous offender, and a sentence of indeterminate detention in the penitentiary.

[4] Mr. White was assessed by two forensic psychiatrists, Dr. Scott Woodside and Dr. Julian Gojer, for the purpose of the dangerous offender application.

The Circumstances of the Offences

[5] C.R. was born on […], 1995. She met Mr. White’s girlfriend, Molly, online in September 2010, at a website for young teenagers. Ms. C.R. was then a 15 year old grade 10 student. Her online profile indicated that she was 15 years old.

[6] Ms. C.R. and Molly communicated over the internet, and via text. They spoke once on the phone. Molly said that she was 16 years old.

[7] Molly suggested that Ms. C.R. should meet her boyfriend, whom she described as a cool guy. Molly gave Mr. White’s phone number to Ms. C.R.. Ms. C.R. texted him a greeting. She thought that, given Molly’s age, he was 16 or 17 years old. Soon after, she found out that he was 24 years old. She told him that she was 15.

[8] Ms. C.R. became online friends with Mr. White. They communicated by phone and through the internet over the next several weeks. Mr. White told her that he really wanted to meet her, and that she sounded cool. He knew that she was a virgin.

[9] At first, Ms. C.R. felt “iffy” about meeting him because she did not know him that well. Ultimately, they made a plan to go to his apartment. Around 8:00 on a morning in late September or early October 2010, they met in person at a coffee shop, then went to his apartment. He told Ms. C.R. that Molly, with whom he shared the apartment, was at work.

[10] Ms. C.R. and Mr. White lay on the bed watching a movie. After he rubbed her belly, they “made out” with open mouth kissing. Mr. White took off her shirt and his own. She was in her bra. He asked if they wanted to take their pants off, but she said no, that she was not ready for that. He said that was fine and he did not want to pressure her. He told her that he wanted to have sex with her if she wanted to do it. She declined.

[11] Around 11:00 a.m. she decided to leave the apartment. She had never gone that far with a guy before, and started to get a nervous feeling.

[12] Ms. C.R. and Mr. White continued to communicate by text every day. They also had some phone conversations. He initiated the conversation about 70 per cent of the time. He seemed trustworthy to Ms. C.R..

[13] Mr. White offered to go with her to his apartment again, but they never got around to it. Every once in a while he asked if she wanted to get a hotel room to “fuck”.

[14] Around Hallowe’en, Mr. White came to Ms. C.R.’s school during the lunch period. He took her to a restaurant for lunch, then they walked to a park where they kissed.

[15] In a subsequent conversation, Mr. White said that he had a cell phone to give to Ms. C.R.. She wanted it to communicate with friends, because her mother frequently took away her phone. She and Mr. White met at a convenience store and walked to a park. Mr. White showed her how to use the phone. When they separated, they kissed good bye.

[16] That night, Mr. White convinced Ms. C.R. to send him naked pictures of herself over the cell phone. The pictures she sent were of her naked breasts. A week later he asked her for “pussy shots”. She complied with his request. He emailed a couple of pictures of himself, including one of his penis.

[17] Mr. White wanted them to be boyfriend and girlfriend, but Ms. C.R. did not really want it because he was older, her mother would not have approved of the age difference, and they rarely got to see each other.

[18] The relationship ended because Ms. C.R. met someone else. She and Mr. White last had contact via a message he sent a few days before December 2, 2010.

[19] Ms. C.R.’s mother found out about the cell phone and the relationship. She took Ms. C.R. to the police on December 2, 2010. Ms. C.R. did not want to go to the police, but they convinced her to cooperate.

[20] Ms. C.R. knew that Mr. White was committing a criminal offence by having this kind of contact with her. It was implicitly understood that what occurred between them was not to be disclosed to any adult. However, she was not sure why she did not discourage him. She did not feel victimized by his behaviour. There was no assaultive behaviour toward her, and he respected her wishes at all times. She indicated that the relationship was a two-way street.

[21] In her victim impact statement, Ms. C.R. said that Mr. White’s actions have had a big impact on her life. She described experiencing anxiety and depression, such that for weeks she does not eat, sleep, interact with people, or even leave her bed and couch. She has struggled with drugs and contemplated suicide. She has troubles with intimacy and showing affection. She cannot initiate any sexual contact with her boyfriend. She has been scared to leave the house for fear of seeing Mr. White. She cannot trust anyone to talk to about her feelings.

[22] Ms. C.R. testified before me that she would not have gone to the police but for the fact that her mother found out she was having contact with an older guy. She also said that more recently, she has had other difficulties in her life. As a result, she is not quite sure to what extent she attributes her problems to Mr. White, but she does attribute issues with anxiety, depression and relationships to him.

[23] Mr. White has been in custody since his arrest in February 2011.

(Continues exactly as in the source judgment through paragraph [186], including all headings, paragraphs, and text.)

Fuerst J.

Released: September 24, 2014