Convicted killer Russell Williams is defending himself against a multi-million-dollar lawsuit and demanding the victim of his sexual assault prove her claims of ongoing trauma and attempted suicides.
Laurie Massicotte, Williams' former neighbour in Tweed, Ont. and the victim of a 2009 sexual attack that saw her stripped naked at knifepoint, filed a $7-million lawsuit last fall against the former Canadian Forces colonel for causing her pain, suffering and emotional distress.
Massicotte claims the attack drove her to alcohol abuse and depression.
Williams has admitted to breaking into Massicotte's home on Sept. 30, 2009, and sexually assaulting her. But in his statement of defence, filed in a Belleville court on May 22, Williams says he is not aware of any long-term consequences of his attack on Massicotte.
Williams denies that Massicotte is "entitled to the relief" she has filed for, forcing her to provide "strict proof" that the attacks left her fearing for her life, humiliated and in need of therapy and medical attention.
None of the allegations in Massicotte's lawsuit have been proven in court.
Williams is currently serving a life sentence in Kingston Penitentiary after pleading guilty to first-degree murder in the sex slayings of Cpl. Marie-France Comeau, 37, of Brighton, Ont., and Jessica Lloyd, 27, of Belleville, Ont.
The former colonel, who has been stripped of his rank, has also pleaded guilty to 82 break-and-enters and thefts, as well as two sexual assaults.
Massicotte's lawsuit also targets Williams' wife, Mary Elizabeth Harriman, the Crown and the Ontario Provincial Police – which she alleges failed to alert the public to a string of break-ins in the community.
The province has filed its own statement of defence in the case.
Massicotte is alleging that Williams secretly and fraudulently transferred assets, including a house in Ottawa, to Harriman in March 2010 after he was charged with murders and sexual assaults.
Harriman denied that claim in a previously filed statement of defence.
Court documents filed on Williams' behalf also deny the transfer of assets was fraudulent, saying it was made "in good faith" to "provide Harriman with financial security as a result of their longstanding relationship and marriage."
The couple is in the process of getting a divorce.
The family of murder victim Jessica Lloyd and another one of Williams' sexual assault victims, whose name cannot be disclosed, have also filed suits against him and Harriman.
In those cases, Williams has not yet filed statements of defence.
A lawyer who specializes in civil litigation, Brenda Hollingsworth, said that could mean settlement discussions are under way.
In any case, Hollingsworth said it will be difficult for the victims to claim certain assets, such as the home Williams transferred to his wife.
"There are certain rights that a spouse has to a matrimonial home," she said.
With a report from CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife and files from The Canadian Press
