Why the media can’t identify Jeffrey Scott Sloka’s accusers

Victims and advocates react to Jeffery Sloka’s acquittal. CTV’s Jeff Pickel reports.

Jeffrey Scott Sloka’s sexual assault trial ended with an acquittal, but his accusers still cannot be named.

The question is – why?

The former neurologist was charged with 48 counts of sexual assault. His female patients claimed they were improperly draped or that Sloka touched their breasts and performed invasive pelvic and rectal exams. The Crown argued the motive was sexual, while the defence insisted there was a medical purpose for his actions. Sloka also took the stand to dispute each of the charges against him. The judge ultimately sided with the defence.

In his written decision, which came in at 1,002 pages, Justice Craig Parry also addressed the testimony from Sloka’s accusers.

“I have concluded that, to varying degrees, each provided unreliable evidence,” he wrote. “With many of them, their memory, perceptions, and testimony were tainted by what they saw in media or [College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario] publications. Some also provided evidence that lacked credibility. Some were also deliberately dishonest with the court.”

The verdict, and criticism, surprised some of the women.

“I was disgusted, to be honest,” an accuser told CTV News. “I work in the justice field myself.... I would never describe a potential victim like that. Ever.”

Publication ban

CTV News spoke to several of the women following the verdict.

“It is devastating on every level,” said one. “There is no justice. None. No justice at all. He walked away free.”

“The system failed. It’s broken,” said another. “For all of us that took the stand, it was victimizing… reliving everything again, getting questioned [about] yourself.”

While they spoke out willingly, media outlets could not name the complainants due to a court-imposed publication ban. It prevents anyone from publishing or broadcasting any identifiable information.

According to the Department of Justice, “publication bans enable victims and witnesses, and others, to participate in the criminal justice system without suffering the negative consequences of being publicly identified.”

What does that mean?

Nick Cake, a criminal defence lawyer who was not involved in Sloka’s case, said the publication ban is permanent.

“The ban is in place forever. Just because the case is over, [it] doesn’t just end the ban. The ban is in place until it is lifted by the court.”

The onus is on the alleged victims to seek an exemption.

“If the complainant wishes to have the ban lifted, there is a process for that,” Cake explained. “They can go to the court and file an application to have the ban lifted.”

Each request is assessed on its own, meaning each one of the complainants would have to ask for their name to be excluded from the publication ban.

Sara Casselman, the executive director of the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region, said the order serves an important purpose.

“Publication bans are standard in sexual assault cases to protect the identity of the victim(s), which of course, is a good thing,” she told CTV News. “Only six per cent of sexual assaults get reported to police as is, and that number would undoubtedly be even lower if victims knew their names and faces would be shared publicly.”

Why is it an issue?

While publication bans are beneficial, it’s also another legal hurdle for complainants.

“When a victim wants to share their story and can’t, something put in place to protect victims effectively silences them,” Casselman explained. “In this case, when the women wanted to talk to the media after the verdict, the publication ban was actually harmful – and it seemed to pile on the injustice the women were facing.”

Even those covered by the publication ban could face consequences if they violate the order.

“A few years back, there was a horrific case in our community where a woman was charged and found guilty with breaching the publication ban in her own sexual assault trial where the offender was actually found guilty,” Casselman said. “Ultimately, due to public outcry, national media attention, and lots of advocacy, that decision was overturned... but the case was infuriating.”

How do you get an exemption?

Casselman said removal from the publication ban could take a week or more.

“The women in the Sloka case have the option to ask the Victim/Witness Assistance Program (at the courthouse) to have their publication ban lifted. VWAP would then contact the Crown’s office,” she explained. “(Justice Craig Parry) needs to approve of it being lifted.”

Typically, the only thing that would prevent approval is if the identification of one victim would reveal the name of another.