R. v. Gordon Jeffrey Morin, 2021 ONSC 3807

COURT FILE NO.: CR-16-19590

DATE: 2021/05/26

ONTARIO

SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE

B E T W E E N:

Her Majesty the Queen

– and –

Gordon Jeffrey Morin

Stephen Donoghue and Chantal Lefebvre

Self-represented

HEARD in Ottawa: March 25-29, 2019, December 14-18, 2020 and April 6-7 and 13, 2021

reasons for decision

Pursuant to s. 486.4 of the Criminal Code there is a continuing order

in place making it an offence for any person to publish information that

might lead to disclosure of the identity of the Complainant.

o’bonsawin J.

Background

[1] Mr. Gordon Jeffrey Morin and the Complainant were in a relationship from February 2012 until the end of September 2015. They met on a dating site and moved in together in April 2012. They resided together at the time of the incidents. Mr. Morin is currently 56 years old and the Complainant is currently 49 years old. Mr. Morin is an information technology consultant and the Complainant is a registered practical nurse. Mr. Morin performs contract work for third parties and the Complainant works at a hospital.

[2] Mr. Morin is charged with fifteen counts to which he pled not guilty. They are as follows:

1. several assaults contrary to s. 266 of the Criminal Code of Canada, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46 (January 1-September 1, 2013);

2. assault with use of a weapon, namely glass, contrary to s. 267(a) (November 11, 2013);

3. assault causing bodily harm contrary to s. 267(b) (November 11, 2013);

4. several assaults contrary to s. 266 (July 1-March 31, 2014);

5. assault causing bodily harm contrary to s. 267(b) (September 1-December 1, 2014);

6. uttering a threat to cause death contrary to s. 264.1(2) (May 1-May 30, 2015);

7. assault with use of a weapon, namely a credit card, contrary to s. 267(a) (August 1-August 31, 2015);

8. assault contrary to s. 266 (January 1-March 2013);

9. assault contrary to s. 266 (June 1-August 31, 2013);

10. assault contrary to s. 266 (June 1-August 31, 2013);

11. assault contrary to s. 266 (January 15-March 15, 2015);

12. assault contrary to s. 266 (May 1-May 31, 2015);

13. assault with use of a weapon, namely water, contrary to s. 267(a) (November 11, 2013);

14. assault causing bodily harm contrary to s. 267 (August 10, 2015); and

15. aggravated assault contrary to s. 268(2) (November 11, 2013).

[3] At the beginning of the trial, I issued a bench warrant for Mr. Morin’s arrest since he was not present on the first day of trial. On the second day of trial, he was present and advised that he had been hospitalized and had been discharged the previous evening. Mr. Morin was ready to proceed with his trial. Section 486.3 counsel was also present to conduct the cross-examination of the Complainant.

[4] In order to simplify the timeframes of the numerous counts, the Crown organized the periods noted in the counts as follows:

• January to September 2013 = counts 1, 8, 9 and 10

• November 11, 2013 = counts 2, 13 and 15

• July 2014 = count 4

• September to December 2014 = count 5

• January 15 to March 15, 2015 = count 11

• May 1 to May 30, 2014 = counts 6 and 12

• August 2015 = counts 7 and 14

[5] Mr. Morin admitted jurisdiction and identity. The Crown stayed count #3.

[6] The Crown called the Complainant to testify. She testified in French with the aid of an interpreter. Mr. Morin elected to testify.

[7] The issue in this case is whether the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the conduct noted in the charges occurred. This turns on an assessment by the Court of the credibility and reliability of the evidence provided.

Evidence

[8] I will review the evidence of the witnesses. Both the Complainant and Mr. Morin testified.

The Complainant’s Evidence

[9] I summarize the Complainant’s evidence as follows. She is currently on sick leave from her position as a registered practical nurse at a hospital. She works at the Emergency Department and covers the other eight floors.

[10] The Complainant met Mr. Morin in February 2012 on a dating site. At the beginning of their relationship, Mr. Morin was nice, charming and helpful. In April 2012, she moved in with Mr. Morin at his residence at Trump Avenue in Ottawa. At that time, the Complainant resided with her daughter and the latter’s son.

[11] When the Complainant moved in with Mr. Morin, he had already lost his contract work and she had to pay for his expenses. He started not paying his rent as soon as the Complainant moved in with him and thus, she had to pay the rent. Mr. Morin did not want to deal with his landlord and always had excuses about paying his rent. He wanted to change his lease into the Complainant’s name. She refused and they had to move to Windance Crescent in Kanata. They moved to Kanata in autumn 2012.

[12] When they moved to Windance, their relationship deteriorated very fast. For example, Mr. Morin had a meltdown in front of the Complainant’s daughter in the street. He was yelling and throwing things. At that time, the Complainant’s grandson lived with her and Mr. Morin. He was approximately one year old. Mr. Morin was still not working at this time and he started to use her credit cards. She gave him her personal identification number (PIN) in order for him to buy groceries and shop. Mr. Morin then started to use her credit cards all the time. He made the Complainant feel guilty, he yelled at her, broke things, made holes in the walls, broke a laundry basket and was very intimidating.

[13] When the Complainant tried to share with Mr. Morin her point of view, he threw water in her face until she would cease talking: “[s]o he would do this to make me shut up, like I was a little animal.” Mr. Morin no longer permitted the Complainant to have access to her mail and he no longer allowed her to make meals. He took total control over her life, “It was control. Control of everything. Everything.”

[14] The Complainant had an “R” credit rating, a good credit rating, before she met Mr. Morin. However, after she started letting him use her credit cards, her credit rating plummeted. The Complainant had worked hard all of her life, brought up her daughter alone and he totally destroyed everything she had worked so hard to achieve.

[15] The Complainant lent Mr. Morin $15,000 in order to pay for his motorcycle. The Complainant was very stressed about the debts incurred by Mr. Morin. She had never had debts like this in her life and felt that he was abusing her. Every time she tried to talk to him about their finances, Mr. Morin had a fit and threw water in her face. He also started pushing her in autumn 2012.

[16] From January 1 to September 1, 2013, they were living at Windance. At that time, she was off work on sick leave due to her depression. She was no longer sleeping and Mr. Morin’s control over her got worse. There were a number of incidents at Windance. Shortly after their move, all of their stuff was everywhere, and they had not yet placed their large furniture. The Complainant’s mother and A, her mother’s husband, attended the Complainant and Mr. Morin’s residence in order to help them. When A was moving the table into the living room, Mr. Morin had a fit. He had a lot of fits that day in front of her mother and A.

[17] One time after Christmas, the Complainant tried to talk to Mr. Morin about these issues in the living room. There were stairs that went from the living room to the second floor. He took her and pushed her into the stairs. She landed on her back and injured her back.

[18] At Windance, Mr. Morin strangled the Complainant, pushed her and made holes in the walls. They had to move out of Windance because the rent was not getting paid again. They had difficulties with their neighbours. Mr. Morin invented a reason to break the lease.

[19] In spring 2013, they moved to Claymore Avenue in Ottawa. At some point during the summer 2013, Mr. Morin did not allow the Complainant to go into their basement and to access her mail. It was difficult for her to know what was going on because she was not receiving her mail. At that time, the Complainant received calls regarding missed credit card payments. She was very surprised by the phone calls because she did not have the means to spend such money. Sometime during the summer, she went downstairs when Mr. Morin was not home. She discovered that he had a new Apple modem, two wireless keyboards, two wireless computer mice and two AppleTVs and a lot of art supplies. All of these items were new. Mr. Morin was not working at that time. The Complainant later confronted him in the basement about these purchases. He started yelling at her in the basement and told her that he put these purchases on her credit card. At that time, she was approximately $30,000 in debt on her credit cards. Mr. Morin started pushing her downstairs. She went upstairs into the kitchen and he ran after her. He continued yelling at the Complainant like a madman, pushed her, he threw glasses of water at her and into her face. When she thought he was done, she ran away from him to go upstairs where the two bedrooms were located. Mr. Morin kept yelling at the Complainant that he used her credit cards in order to start a future for himself and ran after her. In the hallway, he took her by the shoulders, pushed her against the wall and then lifted her by her neck from the ground. He looked her in the eye with a mean and enraged look and he was shaking mad. Usually, Mr. Morin threatened to kill her but did not do so on this occasion. The Complainant tried to tell him to stop but could not do so because she had difficulty breathing. He held her up in the air for was seemed like an eternity, but it was not long enough for her to lose consciousness. Mr. Morin then let her go. The Complainant thinks he did so because he was scared that she would die. She did not say a thing afterwards and went into her bedroom to cry. He tried to make her feel guilty because he had no work and he wanted to start his own business as a technical writer. Mr. Morin told her he needed these supplies. Mr. Morin told the Complainant that she should have been proud of him because he was taking responsibility for himself. His actions hurt her neck and when he pushed her against the wall, it hurt her back. When Mr. Morin threw water in her face, it was very intimidating, and her mascara went into her eyes and burned them.

[20] The Complainant started to confront Mr. Morin more often about their debts. On another occasion at Claymore, she confronted him in the kitchen/living room area because the credit cards had not been paid. The Complainant asked Mr. Morin why he had taken her credit card and why she was not able to have access to her mail. He got mad and started yelling at her. He pushed her. As always, he had an excuse and said he had no choice. Mr. Morin said he would repay her. The Complainant then ran upstairs into her bedroom and tried to hide from him. He followed her with a pot of cold water and threw it on her. The Complainant crouched down and, when she stood up, Mr. Morin was facing her; he took her by both her shoulders and pushed her hard against the bed. Her lower back hit the footboard of the bed and broke it. This really hurt her back. Mr. Morin yelled at the Complainant during this whole time. She was in shock and got up. She told him that she was leaving because she could not take it anymore. The Complainant left the bedroom and went towards the stairs. When she was facing him with her back to the stairs, Mr. Morin was enraged and told her “you want to leave, then leave” and pushed her by her shoulders very hard towards the stairs. In order to break her fall, she grabbed onto the railing and hurt her neck and her shoulder blades. She went backwards 2-3 steps. It was evening time and the Complainant left in her car for a good period of time. She had nowhere to go and she did not know where to go. She cried so hard that at times she could not see. The Complainant ended up returning home because she had no choice. She barely spoke to Mr. Morin when she returned home because she was too scared, and she did not want to start all over again. After such incidents, the Complainant always kept a low profile.

[21] The evening of November 11, 2013 is a significant date in the Complainant’s mind. They still resided at Claymore. At the time of the incident, the Complainant was in the entrance of the living/dining room area. Her two-and-a-half-year-old grandson was sleeping upstairs at the time because she had temporary custody of him. Mr. Morin drank a lot of alcohol that evening and was a bit drunk. He was able to hold his liquor well. The Complainant had not been drinking that day. She brought up the issue about missed payments and the fact that their debt kept climbing. The Complainant always approached Mr. Morin in a delicate manner when she confronted him. Mr. Morin became mad and yelled at her. He became very violent very quickly. He started pushing the Complainant and she cried. Mr. Morin threw a bucket of water onto her. He yelled at her with a sadistic appearance and told her that if she did not shut up, he would continue to dump water on her. “I kind of collapsed like a dog and I decided to shut up because I knew that I was gonna get beaten up.” The Complainant then went upstairs and changed her clothes because she was drenched from the water. She went back down to the living room in a short nightgown and her legs were bare. She sat down on the sofa. “The only thing that I was doing – the only thing I was doing wrong was crying. I wasn’t saying a word. I was just crying.” Mr. Morin was in the kitchen and he yelled at her. When he was at the sink, he took a big glass and threw it towards the Complainant with all of his strength. He is strong. The glass hit her left leg. She was covered in blood because the glass had shattered. It was painful. Mr. Morin then went over and took the Complainant by her arms. He looked her straight in the eyes and pushed her down onto the glass that had shattered all over the leather sofa. He pushed and grinded her into the glass. She felt the glass against her and struggled. She told him “Stop Jeff. You’re gonna kill me. You’re cutting me everywhere.” Mr. Morin told her that was exactly what he was hoping would happen. He told her: “you wanna cry? Well I’ll give you something to cry about.” He continued to grind her into the glass. That night, the Complainant thought: “that’s it. I’m done.” Her other leg was underneath when he was grinding her into the glass; both of her legs got all cut up. She could see that one cut was down to the bone. It seemed to her that Mr. Morin was grinding her forever in the shattered glass. There was glass in the Complainant’s wounds. She was in a state of shock. She could not say anything. Mr. Morin acted like nothing had happened; he was really, really calm. She recalls walking to the bathroom and him putting her into the shower. The Complainant was completely frozen. She recalls the pool of blood in the white bathtub. He grabbed the shower head and matter-of-factly watered her down while she was sitting in the bath leaning back. Mr. Morin flushed the glass away and plucked shards of glass from the Complainant’s legs. She bled a lot and she could see sections of nerves in a few spots on her legs. Mr. Morin did not want to bring her to a hospital because he feared it would impact the security clearance he required for his contracts. The Complainant had to shut up if she wanted him to repay her because if he were in jail, he could not do so. Since she was a nurse, she had leftover bandages at home. She tried to patch herself up. However, the glued stitches were not holding. She took photographs of her legs.

[22] The next day, the Complainant had no choice but to go to a doctor. They went in the evening. At first, Mr. Morin took the Complainant to the hospital and it was too busy. He then took her to an Appletree Clinic. The doctor put in 18-20 sutures and bandaged up her legs. The Complainant was unable to work for three to four weeks because she could not walk. She was told the section of the nerve would never heal and even today, she does not have any sensation on the front of her knee. Mr. Morin was with the Complainant when she was getting her sutures. Mr. Morin did not want her to tell the truth. In order to explain why she had cuts on her legs, she told the doctor she had dropped a heavy glass, she had fallen, she jumped back up and fell again. Mr. Morin showed no remorse. The Complainant took more photographs of her legs in front of Mr. Morin in the doctor’s office.

[23] In July 2014, they resided on Ashmore Drive. Another incident occurred in the powder room near the entrance of their residence. At that time, Mr. Morin was still keeping the mail from the Complainant. There were huge amounts on her credit cards, and he stole things from her like her jewelry and clothing. She talked to him about their debts again. He got mad and yelled at her. He repeated to her to shut her mouth. Mr. Morin told the Complainant the reason he was not giving her the mail was because he was responsible for the debt. He did not want her to see the mail, it would stress her more if she saw it. The Complainant tried to explain her point of view to Mr. Morin and he would not let her get in a word edgewise. He was angry at her. They were in the little powder room. He took her with both of his hands by the shoulders, as was his habit, and slammed her against the wall onto the toilet paper holder. The left side of her back, just above the buttocks area, hit the toilet paper holder and broke it. This injured her lower back on the left side. Mr. Morin then made her go see a chiropractor. The Complainant had to pay for these visits out of her own pocket. Afterwards, as was her usual practice, she shut up as she did not want Mr. Morin to hit her anymore and kept a low profile. The Complainant was becoming more and more closed onto herself and keeping to herself in her bedroom. She had no more confidence in herself. The Complainant could not see any way out: “[t]o me what I was thinking was if only my heart would stop beating…If only it would stop. That would be the only way that I would be getting out of that.”

[24] Between September 1 and December 1, 2014, another incident occurred on Ashmore. The Complainant’s grandson was living with them at the time. The Complainant wanted to go downstairs to see for herself what was down there since he would not let her go downstairs. She was only allowed to go to the laundry room in the basement. “But on the left, there’s the office part and, my goodness, if I were caught there, well, I’d get it.” She decided that she had a right to go downstairs and she wanted to stand up for her point of view. It must have been in the evening because Mr. Morin would never do anything in front of the Complainant’s grandson. She was standing in front of the stairs that led to the basement. They argued because the Complainant was not allowed to have her mail and she wanted to go into the basement. She was getting calls about the late payments for the credit cards. The debt was increasing to an incredibly high level of about $50,000. She had her back to the stairs going to the basement. Mr. Morin was angry and told her “You wanna go downstairs? Well, go downstairs.” He then pushed the Complainant with his two hands down the stairs. There were two to three steps before the landing turned and she fell onto that landing. The Complainant got a two-inch-long, deep cut on the back of her left shoulder from the handrail of the stairs. She put a bandage on her cut to stop the bleeding. The Complainant did not want to go to the hospital. She did not end up going to the basement.

[25] Some time between January 15 to March 15, 2015, another incident occurred when they resided at Ashmore. One day, during the daytime, Mr. Morin forgot his cellular telephone at home. The Complainant had figured out his PIN. She looked through his telephone and discovered pornography sites, pornographic videos, sadomasochistic sites with women in leather garbs and whips and dating sites for someone who wanted to have an affair. Mr. Morin was corresponding with women through the dating site. The Complainant also discovered sub-files with emails from his ex-partner. The Complainant felt hurt about what she had found. She waited for the appropriate moment in the evening to confront Mr. Morin about what she had found: “I was afraid to talk about it because I knew that I was going to get it.” The Complainant’s grandson still resided with them at that time and he was asleep. She always approached Mr. Morin in a delicate manner because she was afraid to talk to him about it. She took it easy and went slowly. The Complainant had taken photographs of what she had seen in Mr. Morin’s cellular telephone. She also made him promise not to get mad at her and not to hit her. She showed him the photographs and asked him what they were. Mr. Morin got mad. They were in the entranceway to the basement when she talked to him about what she had found. Mr. Morin told the Complainant she had no business going into his telephone. He did not deny anything. Mr. Morin said it was because he did not feel like a man anymore and had problems “down there.” He yelled at the Complainant, pushed her and slapped her in the face. She then went up to the kitchen near the sink. He followed here there. This was the first time the Complainant tried to defend herself and she kept talking. Mr. Morin continued to hit her straight on both sides of her face really hard about ten to fifteen times. He did not want her to stand up to him. Mr. Morin continued to hit the Complainant because she would not shut up. She had enough. “I was standing up to him and I was saying that this was awful, that it was disgusting…being in a relationship where there is no sexual side…I was loyal to him and I see this sadistic stuff and that was it. I had enough…I held my ground.” Mr. Morin hurt the Complainant’s neck and ear and she had difficulty closing her jaw for two days. She then went to her bedroom and cried. The next day, her face was blue at the temples and cheeks.

[26] In May 2015, the Complainant’s grandson still lived with them on Ashmore. The incident occurred in the evening. At that time, she was isolating herself more in her bedroom. She was discouraged because she could not see a way out. Mr. Morin went into the bedroom and started yelling at the Complainant to get out of there. She told him she did not feel like it, she told him “If only my heart would stop beating. Then I’d be free of you.” Mr. Morin insisted that the Complainant get up and she did. They were out in the hallway along the wall when she told him that she was looking forward to dying. He grabbed her by the neck with both of his hands and lifted her up in the air and told her “you wanna die? Well, you’re gonna die and it’s gonna happen now.” He looked her straight in the eye, his eyes scrunched with an empty look. He was gritting his teeth and he was shaking. It felt like she was in the air forever. She tried to say “finish me off. I didn’t care anymore to be honest.” She had difficulty breathing and then got dizzy and, just before she passed out, he let her go. The Complainant’s neck was sore, and she coughed for a while. It took her a while to get up from the floor and to gather her wits. The Complainant thinks it threw Mr. Morin that she did not care about dying. He then went downstairs. She returned to her bedroom afterwards, once she was able to do so. Later that evening, the Complainant told Mr. Morin “Do you realize that where you’re at? You come to the point where you’re strangling me…Do you realize where we’re at? You’re always hurting me and you’re threatening me with death. You wanted to take away my life.” This was not the first time he strangled her. Mr. Morin’s response to the Complainant was that it was her fault. She was the one that made him angry. So she had to listen.

[27] On August 10, 2015, the Complainant discovered there were no credit cards in her wallet. The Complainant secretly went through Mr. Morin’s wallet. He had five of her credit cards in his wallet. She also discovered that he had an American Express that she never authorized. She called the credit card company and asked them to suspend the card. Mr. Morin did not know she did this. When he used it, he received a call from the Fraud Department. When he arrived home, Mr. Morin was mad. She was sitting in the living room. He yelled at the Complainant that, because of what she had done, he would not be able to get his security clearance because he would be thought of as a fraud. Mr. Morin told her he was not going to be able to work anymore and to pay her back. The Complainant stood up to Mr. Morin and told him flat out that he had gotten a credit card in her name “You had no business doing that. That’s fraud again…I had the card blocked.” He was very angry at her. Mr. Morin took the credit card in question and threw it at her with all of his strength. The corner of the credit card hit her left temple and cut her. It left a scar. She told him “There. You’re hurting me again.” It was already understood by then that she was leaving anyway. Consequently, she just kept quiet because she did not want the argument to continue. Her grandson was no longer living with them at this time. The next day, the Complainant took photographs of her injuries.

[28] On September 1, 2015, the Complainant finally moved out and ended her relationship with Mr. Morin. At point, the Complainant did not report to police what had happened with Mr. Morin. He was holding her hostage with her credit card debts. She was also still scared of him and did not feel capable of reporting him. On approximately December 15, 2015, the Complainant had an appointment with her family doctor and her daughter attended the appointment with her. She showed her doctor some of the photographs of the injuries she suffered at the hands of Mr. Morin and explained two or three things he had done to her. The doctor left the office for ten minutes then she returned to see the Complainant. The doctor sent the Complainant to see a counsellor at the police station. It was recommended that the Complainant provide a written statement. The Complainant wanted to be a good example for her daughter and demonstrate to her that a woman does not deserve to be treated that way. She gave her statement to Detective Turgeon, who was very nice and made her feel at ease.

[29] Her relationship with Mr. Morin had a lasting financial impact on her. She had to declare bankruptcy because he never repaid her. She had a debt of $85,000 and before meeting Mr. Morin, she did not have any debts. Mr. Morin also stole her gold jewelry and her expensive motorcycle clothes. He promised to return her jewelry to her, and he never did so.

[30] The Complainant also has lasting physical effects from her relationship with Mr. Morin. She still has a sore back, neck, arms, sciatic nerve issues on her left side and her knee. She is still followed by a physiotherapist. These physical issues stop her from doing a lot of activities like long walks. Before being physically assaulted by Mr. Morin, she did not have these issues. She has been on and off work since these events happened. From a psychological standpoint, she is also followed by a psychologist. When the Complainant is not working, she only receives 80% of her salary. She has panic attacks. At work in the emergency department, she has trouble dealing with patients that are in crisis and decompensating. She cries in the office and before entering the patient’s room. At times, she must go lay down in the washroom. The Complainant takes many prescriptions and anti-depressants. She also has difficulty concentrating. Before Mr. Morin, she could deal with 1001 things at the emergency department, but now, she has trouble doing simple tasks. She looks forward to the day when she will be finally healed and to be able to return to work like before.

Mr. Morin’s Evidence

[31] I summarize Mr. Morin’s evidence as follows. He met the Complainant on a dating site in April 2012. Within one week, they decided to move in together. In May, the Complainant officially moved into his home on Trump Avenue, where they stayed until August 2012. Within two to three weeks of the start of their relationship, things became rocky with the Complainant’s daughter. They had informal custody of the Complainant’s grandson and he stayed with them until they moved to Windance Crescent in September 2012. Once they moved, the Complainant’s daughter wanted her son back and he returned to live with her. It was then just Mr. Morin and the Complainant. Once in a while, they had her grandson for long weekends. At that time, Mr. Morin was working on two different contracts. Sometimes he worked from home and, at other times, he worked from the office. The Complainant was still working as a registered practical nurse at the hospital. There were two periods of time when the Complainant was off work. During her leave, she received short term disability.

[32] Mr. Morin is 5’7” and weighs approximately 190 lbs. and the Complainant is about 5’1”-5’2” and weighs 120 lbs.

[33] In the summer of 2012, the Complainant slipped down some stairs at the Texas Bar and Grill and injured her back.

[34] While they lived at Windance, they bought two AppleTVs during Christmas time. They gave one to the Complainant’s mother.

[35] At Windance, the Complainant did not like the neighbours. They looked for a new place to move in the spring 2013. They wanted to moved closer to the bridge so that the Complainant’s transit time to Hull was not as long. They found the house on Claymore and remained there until spring 2014. It was a large house with a yard and the rent was cheaper. They had informal and formal custody of the Complainant’s grandson at that time. They had gone through the investigative process with the DPJ in Quebec. They were interviewed separately and together. Due to work, Mr. Morin was not there when the caseworker came to the house and the Complainant met with her alone. They went through quite a few interviews. They left Claymore because there was mold in the basement, and this exacerbated the Complainant’s asthma. They then moved to Ashmore Drive in the spring of 2014 and resided there until the end of their relationship in September 2015. They had formal custody of the Complainant’s grandson at Ashmore. In late May, early June, her grandson went back into his mother’s custody, once she was able to prove that she was ready to take him back. They received a call from the police in Hull that there was a problem. They were interviewed by police and they received custody once again of the Complainant’s grandson. He later returned to his mother again and this left just the two of them. The Complainant really loves her grandson and enjoyed taking care of him.

[36] While at Claymore, Mr. Morin bought a new laptop and a laser printer for his new contract. Mr. Morin only bought art supplies after he and the Complainant separated. He used the Complainant’s Best Buy credit card to pay for these items. Mr. Morin never prevented the Complainant from going to the basement and seeing the items he had purchased. She never confronted him about finding this equipment and he never got angry with her. Mr. Morin did not throw water in her face and never put his hands around the Complainant’s neck and strangled her.

[37] On May 23, 2013, Mr. Morin told the Complainant “Today will take all purchases back in my car to get your money back.”

[38] Mr. Morin had sporadic income from contract work during their relationship. At times, there was uncertainty in his work. Most of the time, Mr. Morin paid the rent and the major utilities, like the Complainant’s car payment, the minimum payments on the credit cards and he made arrangements with the landlords. The Complainant took care of making minimum payments on the credit cards in her name and day-to-day items like food, pharmacy items and gas.

[39] Every time Mr. Morin borrowed money from the Complainant, he repaid her. When they borrowed money from the Complainant’s mother, he repaid her mother directly without the Complainant’s knowledge. Mr. Morin also paid most of the bills when he was in the relationship with the Complainant, such as the cellular telephones, the car insurance, 100% of the rent and the utilities. She only paid her car payment. While at Claymore, the landlord put the Complainant’s name on the water bill, and she wanted her name removed. Every time they were getting caught up in their payments, there was a large bill for the Complainant’s daughter or something else that popped up in the family. The summer cycle is slow for contracts and he normally did not have any work for the whole summer. This stressed the Complainant, but Mr. Morin was used to the cycle. Expenses as a family were different than his expenses as a single person; the money went out a lot quicker.

[40] Mr. Morin and the Complainant mostly communicated via text messages because of her shift work. When he was working, she was at home. They both cursed at each other in the text messages. Mr. Morin used vulgar words with the Complainant and criticized her when they argued about her daughter and her mother. Mr. Morin described the Complainant as “worse than useless” in a text message.

[41] The Complainant had a Canadian Tire credit card. She also had a cheque book through her American Express credit card. Mr. Morin was the payee for their bills in his bank account. She received her bills by email and would then forward them to him and he would pay them. The only time he did not pay bills was when he did not know about them. The Complainant then wanted Mr. Morin to be able to access that information directly and he no longer had to wait for her to send him the bills to be paid. He made the payments on her American Express credit card. On October 22, 2014, Mr. Morin made a payment on the Complainant’s American Express credit card. Her amount owing went from $10,266.21 to $9,253.95. At times, Mr. Morin used the Complainant’s credit cards with her permission. In late 2014, she provided him with a credit card for his birthday. She was the primary cardholder and gave him the spousal card for her Canadian Tire and American Express accounts.

[42] Mr. Morin used the Complainant’s credit cards with her knowledge when he was in between contracts. The rest of the time, everything came out of his bank account. Mr. Morin had a Mastercard City Financial credit card with a limit of $2,000 to rebuild his credit.

[43] At one point, they were paying money to the Complainant’s daughter. Her bills came before Mr. Morin’s bills. He made a series of transfers to the Complainant, her mother and her daughter.

[44] In February 2013, Mr. Morin was working from home on a contract. They argued a lot about the Complainant being off work and her depression. It got to a point where Mr. Morin went into the office and camped out there overnight because he is not confrontational. He prefers to leave the room or the premises to get away from an argument. With regards to the incident described by the Complainant with the footboard of the bed, Mr. Morin explained what happened. That night, he was getting his backpack out of the closet and the Complainant did not want him to leave. The Complainant grabbed onto Mr. Morin’s bag and he kept pulling it. He let go of the bag and she fell onto the bed. When they moved to Claymore, he glued the soft pine footboard back together.

[45] Mr. Morin never lost his temper with the Complainant and his anger was never out of control. However, on February 27, 2013, he texted her: “I begged you to stop I lost my temper as I knew I would”. He never broke things out of anger. However, he later testified he broke a laundry basket when he fell on it, but this was not out of anger. During cross-examination, Mr. Morin agreed he lost his temper more with the Complainant because she was going through therapy and it was hard on them. In a text message dated February 27, 2013, the Complainant wrote: “Je méritais pas que tu brise le comptoir. Mon verre pour ça.” [My translation: I did not deserve that you broke the counter. My glass for that]. The Complainant also wrote to Mr. Morin “Tu m’a demander de me la fermer. Je t’ai dit ok. Je vais me la fermer. Et tu me criss les bouteille par la tête et tu part.” [My translation: You asked me to shut up. I told you ok. I will shut up. And you throw me a bottle to the head and then you leave]. Mr. Morin did not break a glass and the counter. He never threw a bottle at the Complainant’s head. He threw water in her face maybe one time, but he did not do it all the time. Mr. Morin did not recall throwing a pillow at the Complainant on May 23, 2013, as noted in her text message to him. He also texted her “I cannot bear to continue to do this to you, [her daughter] any longer – you say now I am abusing you.” Those were the Complainant’s words, not his. She kept bringing up things from her past and comparing Mr. Morin to her daughter. On May 23, 2013, Mr. Morin wrote in a text message to the Complainant: “Just turned my phone back on – if you cared you would have calmed down and stopped – I do not threaten, I do … Especially when someone says I hit/abuse them…I cannot be with anyone who thinks or wants that.” Mr. Morin said that to the Complainant because she was comparing him to her exes and her daughter hit her. He did not want to be compared to those people.

[46] When the Complainant stopped seeing her doctor, she felt he was not taking her complaints about her medical issues seriously. They looked for another doctor and found one. They started seeing a doctor at the Appletree Clinic. She was also seeing a chiropractor. At this point, she was on three different inhalers for her asthma and on anti-anxiety and sleep aid medications. To be fair, Mr. Morin was on something similar, but his medication was milder. The Complainant’s new doctor put her on Lyrica because she was still having a lot of pain and they were unsure if she had fibromyalgia. During the evenings, if the Complainant felt anxious, she took another quarter to half of her medication in order for it to take effect quicker. At times, she forgot if she had a drink or two. The Complainant enjoyed a drink on a regular basis. She liked a Singapore Sling with gin and brandy.

[47] The Complainant was worried when Mr. Morin was between two contracts. They were spending a lot of money. Mr. Morin was not aware that the Complainant was giving money to her daughter.

[48] On November 11, 2013, they were celebrating his new contract as a System’s Analyst at the RCMP, which would start on November 13. The Complainant had taken an extra pill for her anxiety. Mr. Morin did not know that, and he mixed her a Singapore Sling in a tall glass. It would have been her third drink. The Complainant got thirsty and started having a reaction. Mr. Morin was drinking beer but not to excess. He was feeling a buzz, but he could handle his alcohol well. The Complainant started having a panic attack about Mr. Morin not having yet started his contract, even if it was only a few days away. Normally, he had to wait thirty days to be paid on a contract, but he had made arrangements to be paid within the first two weeks by lump sum payment. They would no longer have trouble meeting their commitments. The Complainant was also upset with her daughter. When the anxiety attack began, she tried her inhaler and it was not working. Mr. Morin got the Complainant a glass of water from the kitchen that was just five steps from the living room. On his way back, he bumped his leg on the table in front of the sofa. He dropped the pint glass of water and it fell on the Complainant’s lap. She was wearing a nightgown and ballet slippers at the time. She was startled and pushed down her legs to lower the recliner. The glass and the water then fell onto the engineered flooring. When this floor was wet, it became slippery. When the Complainant got up, she lost her balance, slipped and fell down hard onto the broken glass. The back of her thigh hit the ground first. The broken glass was under her leg and cut her deeply. She complained that she hurt herself and Mr. Morin rushed over and pulled the table out to help her up. The Complainant’s hand slipped, and Mr. Morin is unsure if she fell back down. It did not hurt the Complainant right away, but then they saw blood going down her leg. The Complainant was in shock at first. Mr. Morin was shocked at how it looked. They then went to the bathroom and the Complainant sat on the toilet. They looked at the shards of glass in her leg. She could not see or reach them. The Complainant was not bleeding profusely. She was upset and anxious; she had problems breathing. Once the Complainant calmed down, she wanted to see how bad it was, and she took photographs to see what had happened to her leg. They took photographs so that she could see the damage. Once they started getting the glass out of her leg, the Complainant used the gauze. Mr. Morin thought it was bad and wanted to call an ambulance. The Complainant was embarrassed, and she thought it was not that bad. She did not want to call an ambulance. The Complainant directed Mr. Morin as to how to help her and he put a lot of bandages on her. The photographs of her leg show just one cut, no dragging marks, except from when she was trying to get up at first and then slipped maybe once and fell back down onto the glass.

[49] On November 12, 2013, the Complainant was sore. Every time she moved it looked like she was in a lot of pain. She called into work because she was supposed to work the evening shift. The Complainant told them she could not work because she had injured herself. Once Mr. Morin and the Complainant looked at the bandages, it was clear she needed stitches. There was still something seeping out of the wound on her leg. That day, Mr. Morin had to go sign paperwork for his contract with the RCMP. The Complainant drove to see her friend L. at the hospital and the latter told the Complainant she needed stitches. Mr. Morin and the Complainant went and picked up her grandson because she knew she would be off work for a few days. The day afterwards, Mr. Morin and the Complainant went to the Queensway Carleton Hospital, but the wait was too long, and she got impatient. They then went to the Appletree Clinic. Mr. Morin stayed in the car with the Complainant’s grandson while she went in herself to get the stitches. At one point, she asked him to go into the clinic. Mr. Morin never assaulted the Complainant or threw a glass or water at her.

[50] The Complainant had to complete paperwork for her time off work. She had to fax the documents to Human Resources and to her supervisor. She had to return to the Appletree Clinic because they had not put in the diagnosis on her paperwork.

[51] Mr. Morin discussed the photographs he put into evidence of a leather sofa set. As can be seen from the photographs, the leather sofa set has no nicks, tears or deep gouges. The set only has the appropriate wear from people sitting on it for nine years. Mr. Morin had originally bought the set brand new when he lived on Trump. He never threw a glass at the Complainant like she described.

[52] Earlier that summer, the Complainant threatened to call the police because she was worried about him. Mr. Morin had left the house after a confrontation with the Complainant.

[53] At times, he thought of his ex-wife who had passed away and this frustrated the Complainant. She started arguments because she was jealous of something that was not there.

[54] When they lived at Ashmore, they were doing stuff around the house. Mr. Morin had taken a hose and left it in the powder room next to the garage door. The Complainant tripped on the hose and fell into the powder room. She grabbed onto to the toilet paper holder with her hands and broke it. If she had not done this, she would have hit the toilet bowl. The Complainant “gave me a pile of shit to have left the hose on the floor.” It was an accident and Mr. Morin should not have left the hose on the floor.

[55] The Complainant testified there were several assaults in July 2014. They had custody of her grandson and the DPJ was often over at their house at that time. If Mr. Morin was assaulting the Complainant as she alleges, someone would have mentioned it. In addition, she would not expose her grandson to someone who is violent. Mr. Morin did not commit any assaults on the Complainant.

[56] Mr. Morin never pushed the Complainant down the stairs and she never had an open wound. She injured her back at work during an episode with a violent patient. In fact, the Complainant had a few incidents at the hospital. Mr. Morin kept telling her to file a report. She had a related back problem and saw a chiropractor and a registered massage therapist. Mr. Morin paid for the Complainant’s sessions and she kept the reimbursement she received from her work insurance. Mr. Morin did not mind paying for the Complainant because it made her feel better.

[57] The Complainant was never afraid to tell Mr. Morin when she was mad at him or at someone else. She was not shy and spoke her mind. The Complainant was an advocate for women who went into the hospital and were mistreated by their partners. She was proud of this.

[58] Mr. Morin “is not a big yelling person.” Mr. Morin preferred to leave the situation. He did not hit or scream. The Complainant preferred talking by text messages. If Mr. Morin did not respond to the Complainant, she got mad. She kept asking him why he did not message her back. They have a history of text messaging back and forth. This was the first relationship where he was texting someone on a regular basis.

[59] Mr. Morin had an office in the basement and the Complainant had her own office for her exclusive use.

[60] Mr. Morin had a credit card until November 2014, when the company stopped his secured credit card. They told Mr. Morin he had to reapply and put down another deposit. It would take about six months to reapply and, at that point, the Complainant had given him a credit card to use. At times, Mr. Morin used her credit cards with her permission. If it was a major purchase for the house, he asked for her permission. The credit cards were in a drawer in the hutch and, when he had to put gas in the car or buy groceries, he took one of the credit cards. Since they were racking up the credit card debt jointly, Mr. Morin felt responsible for this debt. It caused a lot of stress for them.

[61] Sometime from January to March 2015, the Complainant confronted Mr. Morin about him using dating sites and visiting porn sites. Mr. Morin was working with Shared Services Canada at the time. He had forgotten his cellular telephone at home that day. Mr. Morin never went through the Complainant’s cellular telephone, but she went through his that day. The Complainant also went through his old emails. She did not like what she found. Mr. Morin admitted to the Complainant he looked at a dating site and received messages. What she hated the most was that he did not deny it. The Complainant slapped Mr. Morin across the face. He never slapped her several times across her cheeks leaving bruises. Mr. Morin then went downstairs, and the Complainant followed him. She swatted at him and clocked him on the side of the face. She hit him so hard his glasses broke. Mr. Morin has a whole lot of scars all over him; it is not a big deal. The Complainant told Mr. Morin she felt he had cheated on her. These were patterns she had faced before. Mr. Morin stayed away from her the rest of the night. The Complainant’s version of events is not the truth.

[62] In April 2015, the Complainant wanted a status update to see where they were with their bills. They were all caught up on bills as of April 15, 2015.

[63] In May 2015, they argued over credit cards and he felt depressed. Mr. Morin was living downstairs at that point in May-June. The Complainant had just returned from visiting her mother. She had talked to her ex-boyfriend. Mr. Morin was justifiably hurt and told the Complainant “if you want to leave, go.”

[64] In May 2015, Mr. Morin never choked, threatened or pushed the Complainant up against a wall. He never told the Complainant that “you will die and I will give it to you.” The Complainant was not stuck in her bedroom and depressed. She was in a “pretty good place.” Things were pretty good between Mr. Morin and the Complainant at that time and her grandson had returned to his mother’s care. At this same time, the Complainant had called her bank and consolidated her line of credit. Mr. Morin told her that he would pay it down and the Complainant was quite happy. The Complainant controlled her own finances and activities. She spoke her mind.

[65] During this time, the Complainant was working. The hospital had very poor air conditioning and the Complainant had to put her hair in a bun to get it off her neck. If she had choking marks on her neck, those would have been readily visible for anyone to see. She never took any time off work. Furthermore, when the Complainant was on a steady shift schedule, she had problems feeling very hot because she was doing hard physical work at the hospital. Her scrubs were open in areas. If the Complainant had bruising, it would have been seen by others. In fact, the Complainant used to report people who had been physically abused on a regular basis.

[66] In the summer of 2015, when the Complainant told Mr. Morin she would move out and he decided to stay in his basement office. He had no idea she was considering moving out and had been making plans to do before she told him of her plans. Everything seemed perfectly fine. Mr. Morin slept on an inflatable mattress and he came up to the main floor when the Complainant worked her shifts. The Complainant kept wanting to talk to him and he just wanted to be left alone. Their text messages support these facts.

[67] On August 7, 2015, the Complainant told Mr. Morin she would call the police because she was worried about how he was taking their break-up. Mr. Morin was quite depressed because he had not started a job. On August 10, 2015, after Mr. Morin texted the Complainant “Last text – good bye”, she responded “I will call the police if you put yourself in danger. I am telling you. I won’t hesitate.” These text messages show the Complainant was not afraid and she would have called the police.

[68] In August 2015, Mr. Morin did not obtain a credit card under her name. Mr. Morin did not pawn her jewelry at a pawn shop. On August 9, 2015, a text from the Complainant shows she was aware he was trying to pawn things off to continue to make payments on the credit cards and the car insurance. On August 22, 2015, the Complainant texted Mr. Morin “You didn’t pound my bracelet I hope? I didn’t find it this morning?” and he responded “Yes the bracelet is with the ring. Don’t worry about it. I had to make sure to cover the $400 initial insurance payment on Monday.” She responded “I must admit that hurts me. I really hope you get them back. Means really lot to me you know.”

[69] They were using the Complainant’s credit cards to finance their lives.

[70] On August 9, 2015, the Complainant texted Mr. Morin that she had looked at the credit cards that morning and they were heavily loaded. On August 10, 2015, the Complainant cancelled two credit cards in her name. She also cancelled the Costco American Express credit card she had issued in Mr. Morin’s name. When he went to fill up her car with gas, the man told him his American Express credit card had been cancelled and he could not use it. When Mr. Morin got home, the Complainant told him that she had cancelled the credit cards. Mr. Morin was in the kitchen area at the island by the refrigerator. There was a hallway between the dining area and the formal dining room. The Complainant was by the sofa near the table. From the kitchen, Mr. Morin threw the credit card to her. He was four to six feet away and flicked it like a frisbee towards the coffee table. Mr. Morin did not aim it at the Complainant’s head. He concedes the credit card hit the Complainant’s face, but it did not leave the mark shown on the photograph she produced. The photograph she took was in the Wal Mart parking lot, not at their house. The credit card did not dig in and leave a mark. Mr. Morin would have had to “take the credit card in my hand to make a mark on her face, dig it into her face, no way I could have done that.” Mr. Morin concedes he was frustrated with the Complainant because she was doing things that he knew nothing about. The Complainant later sent him photographs of the cut on her left temple and told him she was a “survivor”.

[71] Mr. Morin tried to use the Complainant’s Canadian Tire credit card to pay for parking when he was working with Airbus. This was when he was waiting for his first pay to come in from the contract. The Complainant had also sent him money by interact and he told her he did not need money because he was going to get paid soon. She told him to decline it.

[72] On August 28, 2015, the Complainant went to visit her mother in Granby, Quebec. Mr. Morin wanted to know when she would return home because, afterwards, she was moving out of their house and onto the Quebec side. She said she would arrive home by 5:00 p.m. Mr. Morin was packing all of the Complainant’s things and wanted to be ready when she arrived. They had already rented a truck and made arrangements with the apartment building to have access to the rear doors for her move. There was no animosity between them during this time. Mr. Morin had given her a lot of furniture. On the day the Complainant was supposed to leave, she got upset and called her mother. She did not want to leave. They had the truck and her new apartment was ready. It was very bizarre. Afterwards, the Complainant kept initiating contact with Mr. Morin. She sent a text message to him inviting him to supper and he turned her down.

[73] The amount that the Complainant testified Mr. Morin owed her at the end of the relationship was beyond his control and had nothing to do with him. The Complainant had an outstanding amount of credit card debt. Mr. Morin thinks the Complainant went into bankruptcy, but he does not know the final amount of her debt.

[74] Mr. Morin submitted the text messages between him and the Complainant to provide a complete record of their time together. They contain all the good and all the bad. They showed if he was being stupid as well. During the whole time they were together, he did not assault her, and the text messages supports his claim.

[75] Mr. Morin was very hurt when they separated.

[76] In 2016, Mr. Morin was convicted of driving while under the influence of alcohol. That evening, the Complainant kept texting him while he was out drinking. He made a horrible mistake that night and he has not repeated it since.

Evidence Filed

[77] There were 22 exhibits filed in this matter. The relevant exhibits include the following:

• Photographs of the Complainant’s injuries:

o 7 photographs of a cut on her left temple;

o 5 photographs of her left leg, taken in their bathroom on November 11, 2013; the photographs show multiple gashes, a severed nerve and deep cuts to the bone;

o 36 photographs of the multiple stitches on her left leg on November 12, 2013, taken at the Appletree Clinic; and

o 2 photographs of her legs bandaged on November 12, 2013, taken at the Appletree Clinic.

• Series of emails between Mr. Morin and the Complainant;

• Mr. Morin’s Bank of Montreal documents;

• Photographs of the bed and living room; and

• Voluminous text messages between Mr. Morin and the Complainant.

Position of the Parties

[78] The Crown argues the Complainant’s evidence was truthful and reliable. She was a credible witness. The evidence supports there was progressive violence in Mr. Morin and the Complainant’s relationship. Mr. Morin started out as nice and charming and then became intimidating. He progressed to having yelling fits, breaking things and making holes in walls. The violence began in autumn 2012, when he threw water in the Complainant’s face. Mr. Morin took control of her finances and mail. He repeatedly assaulted the Complainant in various ways: threw water into her face and onto her, yelled at her, threw her down stairs causing her injuries to her shoulder, neck and back, threw her on the stairs, threw her against walls, held her up against the wall and choked her, threw her against their bed causing the footboard to break and injuring her back, threw glasses at her, grinded her into broken glass causing severe injuries to her legs, and threw a credit card and cut her left temple. At times, he threatened to kill her. The Complainant’s evidence is corroborated by the text messages and the photographs.

[79] The Crown submits Mr. Morin was not a credible witness. There were many inconsistencies in his evidence. In addition, it is noteworthy that he only entered into evidence the text messages that supported his evidence. He specifically left out text messages that supported the Complainant’s evidence, for example, with regards to the incident of November 11, 2013.

[80] Lastly, it is the Crown’s position that there were multiple violations of the rule in Browne v. Dunn (1893), 1893 CanLII 65 (FOREP), 6 R. 67 (H.L.), notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Morin had the assistance of capable counsel to cross-examine the Complainant. For example, it was not put to the Complainant during cross-examination that she tripped over the water hose left on the floor by Mr. Morin, causing her to fall against the powder room’s wall and break the paper toilet holder. She was cross-examined on some of his versions of events, but not all. Consequently, the Complainant was not able to provide her response to his version of events. This permitted Mr. Morin to change the narrative to suit him throughout his testimony.

[81] For his part, Mr. Morin argues that his testimony was truthful. He is not the man as described by the Crown. It is alleged by the Crown that he was controlling, and he kept bills and mail away from the Complainant. He never did those things and the text messages support him. For example, the text messages show that the Complainant was aware he was taking care of the bills and that she had access to the mailbox because she knew where the mailbox keys were located. The Complainant also had knowledge that he pawned her items.

[82] It is Mr. Morin’s position the text messages support that he was not violent towards the Complainant. With regards to the credit card that hit the Complainant’s face, she did not have a mark on her face when she left the house that day. The photographs submitted by the Complainant are not of this incident.

[83] With regards to the Complainant’s evidence, Mr. Morin submits that she was evasive under cross-examination. She testified she took the photographs of her legs on November 11, 2013. That is not true because he took those photographs. This was a very bad incident, but he was not responsible for it. Furthermore, there is no evidence to support the Complainant’s claims that he choked her and slapped her. He was never violent with her. It is true they argued and they both said angry words to each other. In the Complainant’s evidence, she made herself seem like someone who shrank away and flew under the radar but, in reality, if she was mad, she let him know about it. This whole trial is her revenge for what she perceives as a huge slight by Mr. Morin. Since she cannot make him pay financially, she is making him pay this way instead.

Analysis

[84] In our court system, an accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The Crown bears the burden of proving the criminal offences charged beyond a reasonable doubt. If a judge has a reasonable doubt about whether or not the accused committed a criminal offence, the accused must be acquitted.

[85] I will start with a review of the applicable case law in this matter as wells as general principles. During this trial, there were contradictory versions of events presented in Mr. Morin and the Complainant’s testimonies. Consequently, I must evaluate the evidence as per the instructions at p. 758 of R. v. W. (D.), 1991 CanLII 93 (SCC), [1991] 1 S.C.R. 742 (S.C.C.):

First, if you believe the evidence of the accused, obviously you must acquit.

Second, if you do not believe the testimony of the accused but you are left in reasonable doubt by it, you must acquit.

Third, even if you are not left in doubt by the evidence of the accused, you must ask yourself whether, on the basis of the evidence which you do accept, you are convinced beyond a reasonable doubt by that evidence of the guilt of the accused.

[86] The court can accept all, a part, or none of a witness’ evidence. Inconsistencies do not automatically lead the court to dismiss the witness’ evidence. Even if there are inconsistencies in the evidence, the court can accept the witness’ evidence above all reasonable doubt.

[87] Credibility and reliability are distinct. In R. v. Morrissey (1995), 1995 CanLII 3498 (ON CA), 97 C.C.C. (3d) 193 (Ont. C.A.), at p. 205, Doherty J.A. clarified the concept:

Testimonial evidence can raise veracity and accuracy concerns. The former relate to the witness’s sincerity, that is, his or her willingness to speak the truth as the witness believes it to be. The latter concerns relate to the actual accuracy of the witness’s testimony. The accuracy of a witness’s testimony involves considerations of the witness’s ability to accurately observe, recall and recount the events in issue. When one is concerned with a witness’s veracity, one speaks of the witness’s credibility. When one is concerned with the accuracy of a witness’s testimony, one speaks of the reliability of that testimony. Obviously a witness whose evidence on a point is not credible cannot give reliable evidence on that point. The evidence of a credible, that is, honest witness, may, however, still be unreliable. In this case, both the credibility of the complainants and the reliability of their evidence were attacked on cross-examination.

[88] In R. v. Norman (1993), 1993 CanLII 3387 (ON CA), 87 C.C.C. (3d) 153 (Ont. C.A.), at p. 173, the court confirmed that the assessment of credibility based on demeanour alone is insufficient in a case where there are so many significant inconsistencies.

[89] The accused does not have the burden of explaining the complaints against him (R. v. S. (W.), at pp. 252-254). The accused does not have the burden of showing that the complainant had a motive to fabricate evidence (R. v. L.L., 2009 ONCA 413, 96 O.R. (3d) 412, at paras. 48 and 53). Furthermore, the court must not place too much weight on the complainant’s apparent lack of motive to lie (R. v. S. (W.), at p. 255).

[90] I turn to the specific charges against Mr. Morin and I will review the essential elements required for each offence. In order to find Mr. Morin guilty under s. 264.1 (threatening to cause death), the Crown must prove each of the following essential elements beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. that Mr. Morin made a threat;

2. that the threat was to cause death to the Complainant; and

3. that Mr. Morin made the threat knowingly.

[91] In order to find Mr. Morin guilty under s. 266 (assault), the Crown must prove each of the following essential elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant;

2. that the Complainant did not consent to the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied; and

3. that Mr. Morin knew that the Complainant did not consent to the force that he applied.

[92] In order to find Mr. Morin guilty under s. 267(a) (assault with a weapon), the Crown must prove each of the following essential elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant;

2. that the Complainant did not consent to the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied;

3. that Mr. Morin knew that the Complainant did not consent to the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied; and

4. that a weapon was involved in the Complainant’s assault.

[93] In order to find Mr. Morin guilty under s. 267(b) (assault causing bodily harm), the Crown must prove each of the following essential elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant;

2. that the Complainant did not consent to the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied;

3. that Mr. Morin knew that the Complainant did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; and

4. that the force Mr. Morin intentionally applied caused the Complainant bodily harm.

[94] In order to find Mr. Morin guilty under s. 268 (aggravated assault), the Crown must prove each of the essential elements beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant;

2. that the Complainant did not consent to the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied;

3. that Mr. Morin knew that the Complainant did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; and

4. that the force that Mr. Morin intentionally applied to the Complainant wounded, maimed, disfigured or endangered the life of the Complainant.

Assessment of the Evidence

[95] The main issues in this matter are with regards to credibility and reliability. I begin by assessing the witnesses’ evidence, starting with the Complainant’s evidence. She gave her evidence in a forthright manner. At times, she cried. It is noteworthy that the Complainant was not shaken during cross-examination. Mr. Morin points out a few inconsistencies in the Complainant’s evidence about who took the photographs on November 11, 2013 and the fact that she knew about the location of the mailbox key. I find there were no internal inconsistencies with the Complainant’s evidence. How the photographs of the Complainant’s legs were taken is not at the heart of this matter. In addition, the fact that she knew where the mailbox key was located does not necessarily mean that she got her mail.

[96] It is noteworthy that the Complainant’s evidence was also corroborated by other evidence such as the text messages and the photographs of her injuries. At times, Mr. Morin’s evidence corroborated the Complainant’s evidence, including the fact that the bed was broken, that he threw water at her, that the toilet paper holder was broken by the Complainant, that she confronted him about finding things on his cellular telephone and that he threw a credit card at the Complainant. In certain text messages, Mr. Morin is clearly aggressive with the Complainant and calls her useless, among other things. The Complainant testified that Mr. Morin had a bad temper. His own text states: “I begged you to stop I lost my temper as I knew I would. I am getting tired of being the person who loses his temper like that my heart and my soul and my mind cannot take it anymore. I am not blaming you because I don’t blame you to begin with I do blame you for not stopping or slowing down on the situation when I begged you to.” There are also contemporaneous text messages that confirm Mr. Morin broke things such as a counter and a glass and threw a bottle at the Complainant’s head when she would not stop talking when he told her to do so. On May 23, 2013, Mr. Morin wrote to her: “All you show me lately is everything I do wrong. So I am the problem with us, your daughter. I cannot bear to continue to do this to you…you say now I am abusing you. I do not want that.”

[97] The Complainant testified that Mr. Morin threatened her. On May 23, 2013, Mr. Morin wrote to her: “Just turned my phone back on-if you care you would have calmed down and stopped-I do not threaten, I do…Especially when someone says I hit/abuse them…” The Complainant testified she was not injured at work. When reviewing the text messages, there are no messages showing that the Complainant was injured at work. There are messages where she says she was not hit by a patient and that she had a headache because of her nerves.

[98] Lastly, on August 22, 2015, the Complainant wrote to Mr. Morin asking if he had brought her bracelet to the pawn shop because she could not find it that morning. He responded that he had brought her bracelet and ring to the pawn shop to cover the $400 insurance payment. This supports her evidence that Mr. Morin pawned off her jewelry without her knowledge.

[99] When I review the Complainant’s evidence as a whole, which is corroborated by external evidence, I accept her evidence. I did not rely on the fact that she cried at times during her evidence. I find her to be a credible and reliable witness.

[100] I turn to a review of Mr. Morin’s evidence. There were a series of internal inconsistencies in his testimony. At times, he was not responsive to questions put to him during cross-examination. He answered questions with arguments. For example, Mr. Morin was asked a simple question as to whether he was charming and helpful at the beginning of his relationship with the Complainant. There was back and forth about what helpful meant. This was a simple question. Another example was whether or not they relied on the Complainant’s income when she was working. He did not answer question at first. Instead, he provided a very long-winded answer related to whether or not this was for living expenses. He finally answered that the Complainant paid for groceries and these were living expenses. He often did not answer questions in a straightforward manner during cross-examination. I also find that Mr. Morin was very argumentative during cross-examination.

[101] Mr. Morin testified that he did not lose his temper with the Complainant. Instead, he was frustrated with her. During cross-examination, when confronted with the text message where he stated he has a temper, he conceded these were his words. Even when he was presented with text messages during cross-examination that showed he was critical and demeaning towards the Complainant, he tried to explain these things away.

[102] The text messages do not support Mr. Morin’s contention that he walked away from confrontation with the Complainant. Instead, the text messages show him being aggressive, condescending and difficult. In his own words in the text messages, “I do not threaten, I do” and “I begged you to stop I lost my temper as I knew I would. I am getting tired of being the person who loses him temper like that.” When he was cross-examined about putting down the Complainant, at first, he said he did not. It is only after his own text messages were put to him that he explained that he only put her down when it came to her daughter.

[103] Mr. Morin testified that he did not throw a bottle at the Complainant’s head and did not break things. However, there are contemporaneous text messages in which the Complainant wrote to Mr. Morin that he broke a counter and threw a bottle at her head. When he was confronted about the Complainant’s allegations that he hit and abused her, he testified that his responses to her refer to verbal abuse or a comparison to her previous abusive partner.

[104] I agree with the Crown that Mr. Morin’s answers tended to evolve in nature. He testified that the Complainant agreed with the purchases he made. On May 23, 2013, he wrote the following text message to the Complainant: “Today will take all purchases back in my car and get your money back.” During cross-examination, it was put to him that this text message suggested the Complainant was not always in agreement with his purchases because she made him return the purchases. Mr. Morin’s answer evolved from he did not know what the purchase was, to it was possibly something related to the house to finally it was certainly not computer equipment. Another example relates to throwing water in the Complainant’s face. During his direct testimony, Mr. Morin said that he did not throw water into the Complainant’s face. However, during cross-examination, he testified that he threw water in her face one time but not all the time. He then attempted to change his answer again afterwards.

[105] Another inconsistency relates to Mr. Morin having testified in December 2020 that he had not pawned any of the Complainant’s jewelry. However, during his evidence in April 2021, he submitted text messages to show that the Complainant knew he had pawned her jewelry.

[106] The most significant inconsistencies came in Mr. Morin’s evidence about what occurred on November 11, 2013, with regards to the shattered glass and the injuries sustained to the Complainant’s legs. He was very inconsistent regarding how many times she fell. In December 2020, Mr. Morin first testified that the Complainant’s hand may have slipped one time when she was trying to get up. He also recalled that she slipped and fell two times. However, during his evidence in April 2021, he recalled the Complainant fell two times and provided further details of the event. He testified that the Complainant fell onto her thigh. However, the photographs show that she sustained injuries to both of her legs and not just to the thigh area.

[107] Mr. Morin testified that the text messages between him and the Complainant offer a snapshot of what was happening in their relationship. It is noteworthy that he provided the court with hundreds of pages of text messages to prove an absence of messages depicting abuse in their relationship, but he did not file the messages that confirmed some of the allegations of the Complainant. These messages were put to him during cross-examination.

[108] I find that, overall, Mr. Morin’s evidence is not believable about what occurred between him and the Complainant. He tried to explain things away and contradicted himself on quite a few occasions.

[109] With regards to the Crown’s Browne v. Dunn argument, it is true that certain issues were not put to the Complainant during cross-examination. However, the Crown chose not to recall the Complainant to testify.

[110] It is important to note that I considered the evidence as a whole. I did not choose one version of events over the other which would reverse the burden of proof. There were a number of allegations in this case and no similar fact evidence application was brought, therefore I considered the evidence individually as it related to each count. I did not consider the evidence from one count to another.

[111] I now turn to the three steps in W.(D.). First, I do not believe the evidence of Mr. Morin about what occurred between him and the Complainant during their relationship. Second, I do not believe the testimony of Mr. Morin and I am not left in reasonable doubt by it. Third, even if I am not left in doubt by Mr. Morin’s evidence, on the basis of the evidence that I accept, I am convinced beyond a reasonable doubt by the evidence of Mr. Morin’s guilt with regards to counts #1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15. I do not accept Mr. Morin’s evidence about what occurred during his relationship with the Complainant. Not only is the Complainant’s evidence credible and reliable, it is corroborated by external evidence as discussed above.

Conclusion

[112] I find with regards to the charge under s. 264.1 (threatening to cause death), the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that, in May 2015, Mr. Morin made a threat to the Complainant to cause her death when he grabbed her by the neck with both of his hands and lifted her up in the air and told her “you wanna die? Well, you’re gonna die and it’s gonna happen now.” I find Mr. Morin made the threat knowingly.

[113] I find with regards to the charges under s. 266 (assault), the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Morin intentionally applied the force to the Complainant; she did not consent to the force Mr. Morin intentionally applied; and Mr. Morin knew the Complainant did not consent to the force he intentionally applied. I find he threw her down, and against, stairs, pushed her, choked her, threw her against walls, strangled her, slapped her and threw her against their bed breaking the footboard.

[114] I find with regards to s. 267(a) (assault with a weapon), the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant; she did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; he knew she did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; and used a weapon, namely water, a credit card, and glass, in the Complainant’s assaults. I find Mr. Morin routinely used water to assault and intimidate the Complainant. Even when she ran away from him, he found her and dumped water onto her. The photographs show the cut the Complainant sustained on her left temple as a result of Mr. Morin throwing the credit card to her face. The most significant assault with a weapon relates to Mr. Morin threw water onto the Complainant and then ground her legs into the broken glass that shattered when he threw it on her on November 11, 2013.

[115] I find with regards to s. 267(b) (assault causing bodily harm), the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant; she did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; he knew she did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; and the force he intentionally applied caused her bodily harm. I find his assaults of the Complainant caused her to sustain injuries to her back, her neck, her face, her ear, her shoulder and her shoulder blades.

[116] I find with regards to s. 268 (aggravated assault), the Crown has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Morin intentionally applied force to the Complainant; she did not consent to the force he intentionally applied; he knew she did not consent to the force that he intentionally applied; and the force he intentionally applied to the Complainant wounded her and caused her bodily harm. I find Mr. Morin’s assault on the Complainant on November 11, 2013, wounded her legs. This assault was particularly brutal since he physically took her and ground her legs into the broken glass. This assault caused the Complainant long lasting physical issues with her legs that remain today.

[117] Pursuant to my overall assessment of the evidence, I find that Mr. Morin used his power over the Complainant to control her. He took over her finances and her mail to accomplish this control. Mr. Morin instilled fear in the Complainant during their relationship and took advantage of her vulnerabilities. His assaultive behavior towards the Complainant has led to long lasting physical and emotional scarring.

[118] Based on all of the evidence as a whole, I am convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Morin is guilty of all counts, with the exception of count #3 that was stayed by the Crown.

Justice M. O’Bonsawin

Released: May 26, 2021

COURT FILE NO.: CR-16-19590

DATE: 2021/05/26

ONTARIO

SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE

B E T W E E N:

Her Majesty the Queen

– and –

Gordon Jeffrey Morin

reasons for decision

O’Bonsawin J.

Released: May 26, 2021