Thank you.
In January 2020, Matthew McKnight was found guilty of five counts of sexual assault. His 13 victims in Edmonton have not lifted their publican bans, but I want to tell you about N.T. She said that sharing her story was an incredibly important part of healing. She fought for changes to reverse the UCP's Bill 16 and she helps other survivors today. She never consented to having a publication ban.
In Toronto, Maarika Freund applied to have her publication ban removed. She learned of it two years after her trial. She had to ask two lawyers to help her lift her publication ban. The ban on her name was not lifted until October 2021, because the former accused was granted an extra 70 days to come up with a valid argument for why the ban should remain in place. She never consented to having a publication ban.
In Victoria, Kelly Favro, who is in the room today, represented herself in court to have her publication ban removed. She learned of her publication ban four years after court proceedings concluded. She said the process took away her autonomy for a second time and she feels revictimized by the justice system. She never consented to having a publication ban.
In Dartmouth, Carrie Low had to retain her own lawyer to lift the publication ban that she didn't want. She said, “Someone took away my right to have my own name out there without telling me. Then I had to go through another court process to have [the ban] removed. It's very unfair and very unjust”. The judge noted that he would not have revoked the ban without the consent of the Crown. She never consented to having a publication ban.
In Barrie, Brandy, who's in the room today, lifted the publication ban on her name in May 2022, after reporting a historic sexual assault that happened 30 years ago. She said, “the Canadian [legal] system has now taken part of my voice and I'm truly disappointed in the...system's inability to support survivors.” She never consented to having a publication ban.
S. in Toronto still has a publication ban on her name. She said that the accuracy and transparency of information provided to her in the legal system were a problem. She said the victim services worker told her she needed money and a lawyer to lift her publication ban. This is not true. She said that the publication ban silenced her and protected her abuser. She never consented to having a publication ban.
In August 2022, a victim in Nanaimo named Jade had her publication ban lifted. The application to lift her publication ban was initially denied. She was told that she should have asked for it to be lifted before the matter was complete. She asked to have her publication ban lifted three times before it was finally granted and the matter was resolved. She never consented to having a publication ban.