Crown seeks seven-year sentence for ‘egregious’ sexual assault of OPP officer

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BROCKVILLE — As an Ontario Provincial Police officer convicted of sexual assault awaits sentencing for his crime, his victim told a courtroom Wednesday that the incident had profoundly impacted her life.

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Jason Redmond, an OPP officer in Leeds County, returned to court on Wednesday for a sentencing hearing after being found guilty of sexual assault for raping an unconscious woman in 2017 and recording video to “prove” that he had a drinking problem. .

In an emotional impact statement, his victim, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, described how the assault had transformed the way she lived her daily life.

“For me, explaining how all this has impacted me is almost indescribable. I try to put it all out of my mind, but it’s so heavy and so embarrassing and embarrassing,” she said in the courtroom, adding that the impact on his mental health had been a challenge.

“I do not eat a lot. I don’t sleep much I don’t laugh much anymore. I am never happy. My anxiety is extreme.”

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Crown counsel Peter Napier said the case warranted an “exemplary sentence” given that the events are so “appalling” and had such a profound impact on the life and general well-being of the victim. He said a sentence between five and 10 years would be appropriate, but said seven years in prison would be ideal.

Redmond, who has been on paid leave from the OPP since 2015 after being involved in a local drug operation, was charged with sexual assault in 2021.

He pleaded not guilty, arguing that the victim’s inability to remember was not proof that she did not consent to sexual intercourse. His trial took place over two days in August at the Brockville courthouse, and Ontario court judge Janet O’Brien found him guilty on February 16.

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The judge found that the victim, over the course of a long day of drinking and drug use with Redmond, eventually lost consciousness “either because she fell asleep or as a result of the effects of the alcohol, or a combination of these.”

She was unconscious and unable to consent, but Redmond had sex with her anyway and made a video to “teach her a lesson” about how irresponsible she was when she drank, according to the court decision.

Napier said the assault was compounded by Redmond’s behavior the next day and in the weeks that followed. Redmond mocked, demeaned and humiliated the victim for what he did to her, he said.

Redmond was “relentless in his attempts to demean the victim, both in front of her and in front of her friends,” Napier said Wednesday.

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His “markedly abusive” behavior after the assault must be considered an aggravating factor when the judge passes sentence, the Crown said. Napier also said Redmond should receive a lifetime gun ban, must produce his DNA, be placed on the sex offender registry and be barred from communicating with the victim or any witnesses in the case.

Napier said that Redmond had no limits in the situation and didn’t even realize that what he had done was wrong.

“They had to tell him that this was unacceptable behavior,” Napier said. “He is still a police officer. To say that one would expect more would be an understatement.”

Defense attorney Karin Stein said a sentence of two to three years in a federal penitentiary would be more appropriate, given the circumstances. She asked the judge to take into account Redmond’s personal situation, including “significant mental health issues” and the fact that she suffers from addiction.

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Stein said his client had made “significant efforts” to rehabilitate but remained an active drug user and dealt with various mental health issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder and attention deficit disorder.

She said it’s “no secret” that he continued to use crack.

“It’s been a big problem for him,” Stein said. “He’s under a tremendous amount of stress.”

Redmond has “feelings of guilt and shame about himself,” Stein said, adding that he is willing to undergo treatment, something he has tried before.

The judge must take Redmond’s rehabilitation into account when passing sentence, Stein said. Incarceration exacerbates symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and Stein said Redmond should receive “necessary treatment and support” while he is in prison. At some point, he will be out of custody and back into society. He would benefit everyone if he were properly rehabilitated, she said.

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Meanwhile, the victim said the assault had made her feel generally unsafe in her life, forcing her to be cautious and constantly paranoid.

“Jason has dragged out this trial for years and my mental health is deteriorating more and more every day. I’m hanging by a thread,” he said.

She said she had no health benefits to pay for therapy or medication, made worse by the fact that Redmond had lived comfortably for years on a taxpayer-funded salary.

“He has lived his best life on the river, facing no consequences, earning astronomical amounts of money. He has no remorse for what he has done.”

Redmond also faces 11 counts stemming from a criminal investigation involving allegations of abuse against another woman.

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He has pleaded not guilty to all charges: six counts of assault; three counts of assault causing bodily harm; one count of assault with a weapon; and a charge of failing to provide the necessities of life. A judge has yet to make a decision in that case.

Redmond, who began working with the OPP in the mid-2000s, was involved in another high-profile case in 2015. Project Arrowtown was a case in which police conducted an 18-month investigation into criminal activity. of police officers in Leeds County. Redmond pleaded guilty to one count of marijuana trafficking and was convicted of falsifying documents in 2018, but was not sentenced to prison for those crimes.

He has remained on paid leave from the force ever since.

The Police Services Act says that an officer charged with a criminal offense can only be suspended with pay. For an officer to be suspended without pay, the person must be convicted and sentenced to prison time.

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This has allowed Redmond to collect his salary even as the OPP has made efforts to remove him from the force.

The public has been appropriately outraged by this, the victim said, but added that people “are forgetting that there’s a victim behind all of this, but I get lost in the mix.”

“(This ordeal) has consumed me and my life more than it should have. I should be free of him and any thoughts of him, but here I am, still having to relive a part of my life so publicly that it is extremely embarrassing for me,” he said.

She believes, however, that the judicial process will not let her down “after all these years of being a victim. I really wish I could say that everyone can trust the justice system and that they should report her abuser. I want people to know that there is justice and that the system works.”

Redmond attended the proceedings on Wednesday with his attorney. When the judge asked him if he wanted to say anything, he refused.

O’Brien will pass sentence on June 16.

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