Man gets 18 year sentence for sex assault that impregnated teen girl

BRANDON — A 29-year-old man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for sexually abusing and impregnating a 14-year-old girl in 2024.

“Sexual abuse of a child is inherently a grave violation of the child’s bodily integrity, dignity, and security, and in this case, the consequences were compounded by the victim’s pregnancy and the need to undergo a termination,” Brandon provincial court Judge Patrick Sullivan said on Tuesday.

The accused had pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual interference and two counts of breaching a court order banning him from contacting anyone under 18.

A publication ban prohibits the publication of information that could identify the 14-year-old, who is from a western Manitoba First Nation, and two other minors with whom he communicated.

The man, who has treaty status in a Saskatchewan First Nation, started communicating with the girl in March 2024 — less than six months after serving time for three counts of possessing child pornography, Sullivan said.

He was also communicating with girls aged 13 and 17.

The judge said his sexual offending “represents a horrifying escalation of his sexual interest in children,” adding that he knew he was not allowed to contact children.

The man would take the girl and her friends over to his house and provide them with alcohol and cannabis.

Sexual contact between the man and the 14-year-old girl occurred between March and July 2024, constituting the first sexual interference charge.

The second charge stemmed from an incident in July when he raped the girl without wearing a condom, resulting in the pregnancy.

The girl “reported the pregnancy and sexual assault to her principal,” and terminated the pregnancy, the judge said.

DNA confirmed the 29-year-old was the father.

Sullivan said the absence of a victim impact statement from the girl doesn’t diminish the court’s ability to recognize the “profound consequences” of sexual violence perpetrated against a child.

The abuse will affect her sense of safety, trust, dignity and well-being for years, he said.

The man’s guilty plea shows he accepted responsibility for his actions, eliminating the need for the girl to be retraumatized during her court testimony, Sullivan said.

He considered that a mitigating factor, but described aggravating factors, including the man’s criminal background, his involvement in providing the victim with substances and comments the offender made in the pre-sentence report.

The accused told the author of the report that he didn’t “perceive the circumstances of his relationship with the victim as problematic or illegal,” Sullivan said.

He also said he didn’t see the girl as a victim and that the pregnancy was planned. He expressed a desire to potentially continue a relationship with the child when she is 18.

Sullivan said it’s clear the man has “no real understanding of the gravity of his offending,” adding that the report noted he had an “average risk” to reoffend sexually.

During counsel’s sentencing submissions in June, Crown attorney Sarah Kok suggested a 20-year sentence after adjustment of totality, which reflects a proportionate sentence for the criminal behaviour, with defence lawyer Anthony Kavanagh arguing for an approximate 13-year sentence.

Kavanagh said the two counts of sexual interference should be served concurrently because the incidents involved the same victim and occurred within the same date range.

Kok opposed this by arguing both sexual interference charges are distinct from one another with emphasis on the harm caused to the victim.

Sullivan said a consecutive sentence for these charges is warranted because the girl got pregnant.

“To impose concurrent sentences in these circumstances would, in my view, insufficiently reflect the distinct criminality and the distinct harm arising from the two counts,” Sullivan said.

“Accordingly, I find that the time imposed with respect to all counts is to be served consecutively,” he said.

Sullivan sentenced the man to 10 and 12 years each for the sexual interference charges, but reduced the total sentence from 25 to 18 years, accounting for the principle of totality.

The accused has spent 839 days in custody with credit for time served, meaning he will spend more than 15 years in prison.

The judge imposed a lifetime weapons ban and prohibited him from contacting the three victims and anyone under 16 years.

He cannot use social media sites for 20 years following his release.

— Brandon Sun