(Gatineau) The sexual assault trial of Major-General Dany Fortin is expected to continue for a fourth day, as the lawyers’ closing arguments began Monday afternoon.
Updated yesterday at 6:26 p.m.
Crown prosecutor Diane Legault said Monday afternoon at the Gatineau courthouse that she would present her closing arguments on Tuesday morning.
Mr. Fortin’s lawyer, Isabel Schurman, called for her client’s acquittal on Monday, telling Judge Richard Meredith that the evidence before him could not lead to a conviction. She argued that the complainant’s testimony was neither credible nor reliable – even if it was sincere.
The complainant, who attended the Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu military college at the same time as the accused, told the court last month that Fortin assaulted her one night in 1988.
Complainant, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, said she was ‘horrified’ to wake up one night to find a man masturbating with one of his hands at her, while the man’s other hand was on her chest. She testified that after letting him know she was awake and whispering to him to let her go, a short struggle ensued and he eventually left.
The complainant told judge Meredith that she had “no doubt” about the identity of her attacker: it was Dany Fortin, she assured. It is this formal identification that the defendant’s lawyer, Isabel Schurman, wanted above all to contest.
Mr. Fortin has always denied his guilt in this affair; he claims that he never had physical contact with the Complainant, that he never entered her room and that the two cadets were not part of the same group of friends at the military college. In court on Monday, he reiterated that he was not close to the complainant.
Major-General Fortin was the military officer in charge of the federal campaign to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to the provinces, until he was removed from that position in March 2021, when an investigation into allegations has been opened. He is also contesting this decision to withdraw his duties in Federal Court.
The military police quickly referred the case to the civilian justice system and in August 2021, the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions of Quebec formally charged Mr. Fortin with one count of sexual assault.
“Reasonable doubt” about the person
In his closing arguments on Monday afternoon, Mr.e Schurman said Mr. Fortin’s testimony was clear and “without hesitation” or contradiction. On the other hand, she pleaded, there was a reasonable doubt as to whether Mr. Fortin was the perpetrator of the alleged sexual assault – and even if this alleged assault had really taken place.
Me Schurman argued there were contradictions between what the plaintiff told investigators in early 2021 and what she said on the stand last month. The defense lawyer pointed out in particular that the complainant had told the investigators that she had recognized Mr. Fortin, a French-speaking person, by his accent, but she testified later at trial that her attacker had not spoken.
Me Schurman also pointed out that those close to the complainant at the time could not support her account of the events. The complainant’s former dorm roommate told court last month that she had no memory of the alleged assault, but said she had blocked many of those memories from her memory due to trauma that she herself had suffered at that time.
In addition, the complainant’s boyfriend at the time, called to the bar by the defense in September, had contradicted the testimony of his ex-girlfriend, who claimed to have spoken to him about the assault immediately afterwards.
Me Schurman ultimately argued that given the plaintiff’s nebulous credibility, it would be irresponsible for the court to rely on her certainty that she identified Mr. Fortin — even if she genuinely believes it herself. Me Schurman cited case law which, in her view, states that a measure of a witness’s certainty is not necessarily a sign of their credibility.
She also maintained that if this attack really took place, several other people could have perpetrated it. The lawyer recalled that the complainant and Mr. Fortin had both stated at trial that the doors of the dormitories were unlocked and that the doors of the barracks were not monitored.
And she pointed to the yearbook photos Mr. Fortin commented on in detail earlier Monday, noting that several young men looked alike. During his interrogation by Mr.e Schurman, Mr. Fortin also identified another college student who had the same last name and nickname as him: “Fort”.
Me Legault seemed to anticipate this line of defense: during her interrogation of the accused, she tried to establish that the other student Fortin did not really resemble her. The accused did not say whether he agreed with this assessment.
The trial is expected to end on Tuesday afternoon after closing arguments by Ms.e Legault.