Victim of sexual assault | Refused by the Montreal General Hospital…because she speaks French

A woman who had just been sexually assaulted was refused by the Montreal General Hospital because she spoke… French. She even had to fall back on a third hospital, since the CHUM had no forensic kit. A troubling treatment revealed at the Montreal courthouse.

“We’re headed to the Montreal General [l’Hôpital général de Montréal]. Unfortunately, since Madame speaks in French, Montreal General decides to refuse us and decides to redirect us to the CHUM where afterwards, we are told that they do not have a kit and directs us to [l’hôpital] Our Lady. »

This is the story told by agent Marc-André Lacroix at the trial of Martin Jolicoeur in September 2022. The police officer from the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) told the judge about the victim’s treatment, on July 11, 2020, following his call to 911.

The Montreal General Hospital (MGH) is an Anglophone health facility affiliated with the McGill University Health Centre. It is located west of downtown Montreal. The establishment had not responded to our request for an interview at the time of publication.

This case was revealed Friday at the Montreal courthouse when Martin Jolicoeur was sentenced to 18 months in prison for having sexually assaulted his friend one evening in July 2020. The 45-year-old Lachine resident was trying to get away with jail at home.

The decision of Judge Alexandre Dalmau very briefly addresses the linguistic episode. Thus, the name of the Montreal General Hospital is not there. The judge summarizes that the establishment refused to give the victim an examination “since his mother tongue is French”.

In this case, Martin Jolicoeur abused his friend’s trust to sexually assault her. That evening, the woman had clearly advised Martin Jolicoeur that she did not want a sexual relationship. Jokingly, the accused had replied that it would be “difficult not to succumb to temptation”. However, he accepted this condition.

Martin Jolicoeur and the victim first drink alcohol at a friend’s house, away from home, then go to a bar to play billiards. They then return to the same place. In a drunken state, the woman told Martin Jolicoeur that she was tired and wanted to sleep. He offers her to go to bed. She falls asleep on one side of the bed and has her back to the accused.

When she wakes up, the woman feels that Martin Jolicoeur is penetrating her. “She doesn’t like it. She does not feel well and does not know what to do, ”summarizes the judgment. After the aggressor has withdrawn, the victim launches to him: “I told you that I did not want”.

“You know when the temptation is too strong. I’m sorry, ”replied Martin Jolicoeur.

The woman feels “betrayed and dirty”. “She is nauseous. She is scared. She decides to leave the house,” the decision reads. The woman calls 911 outside. Patrolmen come to get her. It is with them that she will come up against closed doors because of her mother tongue. In the absence of a medico-legal kit, the CHUM will then direct her to Notre-Dame Hospital.

According to Judge Dalmau, the suspended prison sentence (at home) is not appropriate in this case, in particular because of the numerous convictions for non-compliance with the accused’s court orders. The latter also has a history of domestic violence and a pending case for breakage.

The magistrate retains several aggravating circumstances, including the state of vulnerability of the victim and breach of trust. “The offender and the victim are friends. The latter clearly establishes its limits before the meeting. […] The offender transgresses the limits of the victim when she is vulnerable,” said the judge.

The sentencing range for similar sexual assaults is between 12 and 20 months, said the judge. He therefore considers that a prison sentence of 18 months is appropriate. Crown prosecutor M.^e Geneviève Rondeau-Marchand demanded two years in prison.

M^e Allan Guttman defended the accused.

With Daniel Renaud, The Press