B.C. woman whose ‘earliest memories’ are of sexual abuse wins civil suit against stepfather

A statue of Themis, Goddess of Justice, in the B.C. Supreme Court building in downtown Vancouver on June 26, 2024 (Zak Vescera / Investigative Journalism Foundation and CTV News)

Warning: This story contains disturbing details.

A B.C woman who sued her former stepfather over childhood sexual abuse has been awarded nearly $900,000 in damages, according to a recent court decision.

Last week, a B.C. Supreme Court judge found James Arthur Smith liable for sexual battery and assault of his stepdaughter, concluding it was more likely than not that he committed multiple and repeated acts of sexual violence against the plaintiff over a nearly 10-year period – starting when the girl was around three years old.

“The defendant’s actions during the years of the plaintiff’s childhood have caused serious harm to the plaintiff,” Justice Maegen Giltrow wrote in her decision.

“Despite her determination and resilience at times throughout her life, and despite her demonstrated capacity to form meaningful and loving relationships with friends and people she has trusted over the years, the plaintiff has suffered significant psychological injuries due to the defendant’s actions.”

The identity of the plaintiff, now 34, is protected by a publication ban and she is referred to as “MP” throughout the decision.

“The plaintiff attested that her earliest memories are of abuse by the defendant,” the judge wrote.

Smith, the decision noted, has denied all of the allegations and he has not been criminally charged or convicted.

The judge, however, was satisfied on the “balance of probabilities” that Smith sexually abused MP.

“I have found that the defendant did commit the acts alleged by the plaintiff,” Giltrow wrote in a decision that spans roughly 90 pages and details numerous instances of abuse.

Those include Smith touching his stepdaughter sexually while toilet training and bathing her, touching MP sexually in her bed at night, “compelling” MP to watch pornography, kissing her on the mouth, making MP suck his toes and looking into the girl’s room through a peephole. Smith was also found to have masturbated in front of MP on at least one occasion and to have put her on his lap to “stimulate his own erection” while touching MP’s genitals, according to the decision.

MP’s testimony was credible and reliable, despite the passage of time and her young age when the abuse began, the judge found.

“MP described specific events with details – such as the smell of the defendant’s foot, the scrape of his toenail on her mouth, the snap of her pyjama pants, the specific locations within the family’s various homes of where events occurred, the time of day of the masturbation event, and things the defendant said to her during, or just after, alleged events,” Giltrow wrote.

Smith, on the other hand, was found to lack credibility.

“Overall, the tendency of the defendant’s evidence was toward dismissiveness of MP, as though she were an outsider to the family or he did not feel serious concern or responsibility for her,” the judge wrote.

‘Devastating’ impact

In assessing damages to compensate MP for her pain, suffering and “loss of enjoyment of life” the judge considered the profound and lasting impact of the abuse on MP’s mental health.

“MP began to suffer the tortious acts of the defendant when she was very young,” the decision said. “She began to suffer the resulting mental health injuries also when she was young.”

“She described by the age of eight seeing suicide as a way out – a ‘safety plan’ as she put it. This was a devastating result of the defendant’s victimization of MP. The injuries to MP’s mental health became woven into her life and her identity.”

The court heard expert evidence that MP suffers from PTSD, major depression and anxiety disorders and tends toward agoraphobia. However, the judge also noted repeatedly that MP has shown remarkable resilience.

“The active and positive things MP has been able to accomplish do not refute the severity of the mental health symptoms she suffers. Rather, their import is that she did these things despite her mental health symptoms,” Giltrow wrote.

“MP does not want to be debilitated, she wants to live a full and happy life.”

Despite her best efforts, the judge said, MP was on leave from her job and on long-term disability at the time of the trial and continued to struggle with the effects of trauma in a way that impacted her day-to-day life and all her relationships.

“The consequences on MP have been devastating, despite her efforts to forget and live a life unmarred by this history,” the judge wrote.

The court awarded MP $330,000 in non-pecuniary and aggravated damages as compensation for the impact of the abuse. Smith’s “avoidance and denial of MP’s accusations” was also factored into that calculation.

Punitive damages – meant to “punish” the defendant – are not generally awarded in abuse cases where someone has been convicted and sentenced, the decision said. Given that Smith has never been charged, Giltrow found punitive damages were on the table and ordered Smith to pay $250,000.

“The defendant’s conduct was deliberate and concealed, and continued for many years. The defendant prioritized his own sexual desires over the well being of MP, his young stepdaughter. He took advantage of her natural dependence and vulnerability as a child, and violated her personal integrity in a deeply personal way,” the judge wrote.

“Her childhood was scarred by the defendant’s actions, and she faces a lifetime of grappling with the consequences. The defendant avoided police investigation when the plaintiff was young. He has never faced criminal charges or conviction.”

The court also awarded MP $100,583 for loss of future earning capacity and $130,000 for the cost of future care – specifically, life-long counselling. Smith was also ordered to pay $71,281 for past wage loss and $12,260 for counselling expenses MP has already incurred – bringing the total to $894,124.