‘There’s no cure for pedophiles’: Rape survivor calls for bail and parole reform

Andrew Johnson speaks with longtime bail and parole advocate Tom O’Sullivan, who suffered sexual abuse at the hands of a repeat offender.

Warning: This story includes references to suicide.

More than four decades after surviving a violent sexual assault by a convicted pedophile out on parole, Tom Osullivan says he still lives with the trauma and is sickened to see the justice system still not doing enough to protect the public from dangerous offenders.

“I don’t have any faith in our government at all,” Osullivan said at his Maple Ridge, B.C. home. “You see it all the time, they release these people, and they go on to hurt others again.”

Osullivan was just 10 years old in May 1982 when he and a friend were abducted and raped in Mississauga, Ont., by Gary Alexander McCorkell, a convicted child killer who had recently been released on parole. McCorkell had been posing as a police officer at the time of the attack.

“All I remember is him brutally attacking us,” Osullivan told CTV News. “I remember being strangled and then waking up in my neighbourhood and running home.”

The effects of the assault have rippled through his entire life. Osullivan attempted suicide for the first time at age 12, and years later was diagnosed with Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder he links to the extreme stress he endured.

“When my boys were almost eight, I developed severe PTSD,” he said. “I went from about 180 pounds to 90 pounds in 16 months. Then I got Graves’ disease, fell, fractured my hip and ended up in a wheelchair.”

Osullivan has since regained the ability to walk, but remains on a fixed income through compensation payments he says haven’t kept up with inflation. Now in his 50s, Osullivan says he’s disturbed each time he hears about offenders being released, only to be charged with new crimes. He’s become a vocal advocate for reforming Canada’s parole and bail systems.

“The government needs to step up and keep these people locked up for good,” he said. “There’s no cure for pedophiles. They look after the criminals better than they do the victims.”

CTV Public Safety Analyst Chris Lewis agrees.

“The scales of justice have tipped towards the offender and away from victims,” Lewis said. “There are cases where people are released on parole, even when the parole board has been told that they’re likely to reoffend.”

The federal Liberal government is expected to introduce legislation next month to strengthen Canada’s bail system, as it faces increasing pressure from premiers, police, and Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives.

Last month, Carney said his government is committed to reforming the criminal code and ensuring people accused of violent crimes cannot “commit a crime one day and they’re arrested and then out of jail, out on bail the next.”

With files from CTV News’ Kristen Yu

If you or someone you know is in crisis, here are some resources that are available.

Canada Suicide Crisis Helpline (Call or text 988)

Crisis Services Canada (1-833-456-4566 or text 45645)

Kids Help Phone [phone])

If you need immediate assistance call 911 or go to the nearest hospital.