Sisters ordered to pay security for court costs in sexual assault suit involving Winnipeg church

December 15, 2024 Canuck

Warning: This story deals with allegations of sexual assault.

A Manitoba judge has ordered two women who allege they were sexually assaulted by a Winnipeg church youth leader when they were teens to pay security for court costs in order to proceed with their lawsuit.

In a decision issued last week, a Court of King’s Bench judge sided with the defendants named in the lawsuit, who argued the women — two sisters now living in Alberta — should front the costs pending the outcome of the case.

Each of the two plaintiffs was ordered to pay a $50,000 security, according to the Dec. 6 decision by Justice Sarah Inness.

The sisters allege Daniel Wiebe repeatedly assaulted them over a period from 1974 until 1979, while he was a youth leader at the Nassau Street Church, formerly known as the Gospel Mennonite Church.

None of the allegations have been proven in court. A trial date has been set for Jan. 13-24, according to Ingrid Hess, the women’s lawyer.

Under King’s Bench rules, the court can make an order requiring a security for costs if the plaintiff resides outside Manitoba, though it has discretion as to the amount and other factors.

Justice Inness said she was satisfied the women had the money to pay the security and cited previous court decisions that found the general rule in circumstances where plaintiffs live outside the province is to impose the order.

But at least one civil litigator says such orders are rare in sexual assault cases elsewhere in Canada, as they’re often seen as a barrier that may keep survivors from coming forward.

Elizabeth Grace, a partner with the Ontario-based law firm Lerners, said she’s never heard of anything like it in her 30-year career.

A woman — Lawyer Elizabeth Grace says the order to pay the $50,000 security presents ‘a huge barrier’ to people seeking justice. (Submitted by Elizabeth Grace)

“The average person cannot afford $50,000 just to proceed with a lawsuit that has its own risks and stresses,” Grace said.

“On top of that, they’ve got to pay money out just for the privilege of pursuing justice? It’s a huge barrier.”

Justice Inness said the defendants had estimated they would each incur $150,000 in fees and disbursements, should the matter proceed through a 10-day trial. They’d requested each plaintiff be ordered to put forward $90,000.

“I am also taking into account the apparent merits of the plaintiffs’ claims,” the judge wrote in her decision. “The plaintiffs may not prove their allegations at trial, resulting in some or all the claims being dismissed.”

Implies women not believed: advocate

In a statement of claim filed in March 2019, the older sister alleges Wiebe started sexually assaulting her when she was 14, after she was the last child to be dropped off after a youth program event.

The younger sister claims he started assaulting her a few years later, when she was also 14.

The sisters made a complaint to Winnipeg police in 1993, but prosecutors chose not to pursue criminal charges, the judge’s decision on the security said.

Coral Kendel, executive director of the Interlake-based Survivor’s Hope Crisis Centre, said the case highlights some of the barriers victims face seeking accountability.

“The burden of proof for a criminal trial is much higher than for a civil trial,” making the civil case the sisters’ “only other option to potentially see restitution,” said Kendel, whose organization offers supports for victims of sexual assault in the Interlake-Eastern region.

“To see financial means used … against them is sort of a piece of why many survivors choose not to involve means of justice, whether that’s criminal or civil, because of the implications that they’re now not believed or that they’re not going to be successful.”

Church denies knowledge of allegations

The sisters allege the church is vicariously liable for the actions of the man.

The older sister claims her parents and the church were made aware of the allegations after she spoke about them with a travelling evangelist in 1976.

She said she was then required to take counselling in “accordance with the church’s philosophy on forgiveness,” the judge’s decision said.

The younger sister said her parents only learned about the alleged assaults after they read her diary in 1978. The parents then told the younger sister Wiebe had done the same to her sibling, according to Inness’s decision. The younger sister was also made to attend counselling.

The women claim Wiebe continued to be involved with the youth program after they came forward, and the sexual assaults did not stop.

In a statement of defence filed in September 2019, the church denied any knowledge of the allegations.

In a statement of defence he filed in May 2019, Wiebe admitted there was physical contact with the plaintiffs, but said it was limited to kissing and “hugging for ‘therapeutic’ purposes,” the judge’s decision said. He claims the contact was consensual, and also noted in his defence the age of consent was 14 at the time.

Wiebe denies having any contact with the women after 1977, according to the decision.

Hess, the lawyer for the women, said Wiebe’s lawyer intends to argue he should be declared mentally incapable at a hearing Tuesday.

Stephan Thliveris, Wiebe’s lawyer, said in an email to CBC that Wiebe has been declared incompetent by two licensed doctors, and Justice Inness will hear submissions and confirm or refute that declaration.

For anyone who has been sexually assaulted, support is available through crisis lines and local support services via this government of Canada website or the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.

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