Kimberly Rogers Inquest Alerts

Kimberly Rogers Inquest - Thurs. October 31 - Day 13
Steering Committee on Social Assistance (SCSA) Summary

Cross-examination of the Crown involved at Kimberly's sentencing hearing continued today.

He told the inquest that he did not know what effect the sentence would have on Kimberley, or what assistance from the community she would require. He was only aware that she would be receiving help from friends and relatives. He did not know whether the 3-month ban on benefits had been taken into consideration by Kimberly's defence counsel or by Kimberly. There was no discussion directly between himself and Kimberly's defence counsel on the impact of the suspension of benefits. From this he concluded that defence counsel did not feel the conditional sentence was unduly harsh.

He told the inquest that he felt the conditional sentence was an appropriate one based on the information that was provided to the court and the seriousness of the offence. He stated the court's focus in cases of this type was general deterrence, and that there had to be a clear message to the community that there would be consequences for such an offence.

In response to a question from a juror as to what would happen in a similar case where a defendant suffers from a mental disorder or depression, the Crown replied that he felt certain a pre-sentence report would have been ordered by the Judge.

Kimberly's defence counsel gave evidence of his involvement in the case, but he was restricted to only giving evidence that was outside of solicitor-client privilege. He stated that he felt that the conditional sentence Kimberley received was a fair sentence, given the seriousness of the charge and the level of breach of trust, as she had repeatedly misled Ontario Works and OSAP in her declarations of income. He advised that he only provided the court with the details he felt were necessary. He told the court that after reading the disclosure and discussing it with Kimberly, he thought there was a likelihood that she would be convicted. He told the inquest that Kimberly was aware of the facts that were presented to the Court in the joint submission, and that he was aware of the ban at that time. He stated he would never have recommended the conditional sentence if he felt it was not appropriate, and that the sentence was in line with jurisprudence.

Defence counsel also told the inquest that he had known from handling other OW fraud cases that a suspension of benefits would be imposed. He was unsure how long the suspension would last and stated that he told Kimberley to contact the OW office to determine how long her benefits would be suspended for. He stated that two days before the trial, Kimberley advised him that OW told her that the suspension would be 3 months.

Ms. Rogers' counsel on the charter challenge will give evidence on Friday, November 1, 2002.

Margo Ayers
Steering Committee on Social Assistance (SCSA)