Whatever happened to ... scandalous criminal allegations: the Miazga case.

• Author: Bowal, Peter

Introduction

Miazga v. Kvello Estate is a tragic, yet fascinating, case which reminds us of the devastating power of criminal prosecution to ruin innocent lives and the near impossibility to hold Crown prosecutors legally accountable when that happens [(2009) 3 SCR 339, 2009 SCC 51 http://canlii.ca/t/26g27].

Facts

In 1989, Michael, Michelle and Kathleen Ross (aged 7 to 10 years) began to accuse their biological parents, foster parents and extended family members of sexual and ritual abuse. Michelle, in a videotaped interview with Saskatoon police and therapists, described horrendous rituals that they were made to witness and endure, including acts of infanticide, cannibalism, drinking human blood, being forced to eat their own excrement, and perform sex acts. Although the allegations were preposterous and lacked any credible evidence, the prosecution was unrelenting.

On July 10, 1991, 16 people were charged with almost 70 counts of sexual assault. In fact it was Michael who was abusing his sisters, coercing them into performing and participating in sexual acts. This was known to the Klassens, who urged Social Services to transfer him to a different foster home, which they eventually did. Michael had a difficult early childhood growing up with deaf, mute, alcoholic and allegedly sexually abusive parents.

Michael then accused the Klassens of sexual assault, claiming that he was concerned about the safety of his sisters. Social Services did not separate Michael from his sisters, even though the new foster parents noted and reported similar behaviour. The investigating police officer and therapist largely ignored this when it came up. They focused on gathering evidence against the adults.

The accused adults were troubled by the investigation. They believed the investigators had prompted the children to lie by providing examples of sexual and ritual abuse, by encouraging and rewarding answers that would suggest guilt, by emphasizing the sexual parts on anatomically correct dolls, and using influence and coercion.

A number of adults were found guilty at the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench and Court of Appeal level. The Supreme Court of Canada overturned the convictions, and although the Court felt there was enough evidence to re-try the adults, the charges were stayed to prevent the children from facing more court proceedings. Eventually, all three children recanted their allegations.

Malicious Prosecution Lawsuit

In 1994, twelve members of...