The accused was tried before a judge alone on charges of sexual interference, sexual assault, assault, and incest involving his biological child.
The case turned on credibility, with the defence relying on inconsistencies, incremental disclosure, post-offence contact, and alleged tainting by the complainant's mother.
Applying the W. (D.) framework and the child-witness credibility approach in B. (G.) and W. (R.), the court rejected the accused's and roommate's evidence as evasive, self-serving, and unreliable, and accepted the complainant's core allegations as credible notwithstanding peripheral inconsistencies.
The court held that no adverse inference could be drawn from continued contact after the abuse, and found the essential elements of the charged offences proved beyond a reasonable doubt.
Convictions were entered on one count each of sexual interference, sexual assault, assault, and incest.
