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A B.C. Supreme Court judge in Vancouver has sentenced a man convicted of sexually assaulting a Squamish woman to three years of incarceration.
However, on Sept. 15, Justice Andrew Mayer ruled that Rhos Barnes will be credited for the time that he has already served, since he was taken into custody shortly after the incident, which occurred on Nov. 26, 2020.
As a result, Barnes will serve an additional 504 days, which is under a year and a half. He must also undergo a two-year probationary period.
"Mr. Barnes has been convicted of a very serious sexual assault involving an unconscious or severely intoxicated victim. Although, in this case, there is no finding that violent physical force during the assault was applied, in addition to the sexual assault itself, a sexual assault is inherently violent," said Mayer, in his oral reasons for sentence.
The reasons for the sentence, recently published in written form online, recount that at the trial, the court heard that Barnes met a woman whom The Squamish Chief will identify only as X on Nov. 25, 2020.
"The offence has had a very significant impact on [X]. The gravity of the offence is very high. There is no question that Mr. Barnes knew or should have known that [X] was either unconscious or severely intoxicated before the sexual assault," said Mayer. "She had fallen down at least once and was slurring her speech. At one point, she was unceremoniously dragged by Mr. Barnes and another party attendee down the hall of Mr. Barnes's office and left on the floor. His behaviour in waiting until all guests had left the party at his office, taking [X] down the hall, and having sex with her was predatory."
They met at a gathering at a mutual acquaintance's shop in the evening, by the judge's recounting. X and several Barnes's friends and acquaintances were there.
Later, the gathering moved to the front room of the adjacent office where Mr. Barnes worked. Mayer said Barnes had sexual intercourse with X on the morning of Nov. 26, 2020, in the back room of his office.
The judge recalled that the court heard that X became severely intoxicated during the party, as she had trouble speaking coherently and standing up. She collapsed or fell on one of the party attendees at one point.
At some point, Mayer said, X passed out on the floor at the front of Mr. Barnes's office.
"After 2 a.m., Mr. Barnes moved X to the bed in the back room," said the judge. "Mr. Barnes had vaginal intercourse with X in the back room of his office sometime between 2 a.m. and 3:30 a.m. on Nov. 26, 2020. X did not consent to intercourse as she was either unconscious and therefore unable to give consent or incapable of giving consent due to intoxication."
Mayer said that after the assault, at approximately 4 a.m. on Nov. 26, 2020, Mr. Barnes attempted to dispose of evidence of the sexual assault, bed sheets, by dumping them in a garbage bin across the street from the office.
The judge said that, aside from a flash of Barnes on top of her, X does not recall anything before she passed out on the front floor of Barnes's office until the next morning at approximately 8:30 a.m. when she woke up naked in his bed.
X has been diagnosed with PTSD, Mayer said, referring to her victim impact statement.
"She says that she has nightmares, suffers from low self-esteem, and blames herself for what happened. She has neck pain and permanent bruising to her knee. She says that her personal relationships have been impacted as a result of the sexual assault. She has lost friends, and her husband has asked for a divorce," said the judge.
"[X] says that she has suffered financial consequences. She had to stay at a safe house for seven to eight months after the incident and was forced to leave Squamish. She has lost her business and is unable to work, and is now on social assistance and disability benefits."
Barnes, under the terms of his probation, must report to a probation officer. He must never be within 50 metres of X, and he must not possess or consume alcohol or controlled substances, among other things.
