Anglican Diocese of Keewatin Named in Proposed $110-Million Class Action Over Ralph Rowe Abuse Claims

The Synod of the Diocese of Keewatin is among the parties named in a proposed $110-million class action on behalf of victims of Ralph Rowe, a former Anglican priest who was convicted of dozens of sex offences against Indigenous boys in the 1970s and 1980s.

Koskie Minsky LLP of Toronto and Watkins Law PC of Thunder Bay, Ont., announced on May 11 that they had commenced the suit against the diocese of Keewatin, Scouts Canada and Rowe himself. The suit seeks $100 million in damages for “battery, assault, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty and vicarious liability,” along with a further $10 million in punitive damages.

According to the statement of claim, dated May 11, 2017, the synod “knew or ought to have known that Rowe was sexually abusing the plaintiff and the class.” The document argues that the synod failed, among other things, to screen and vet Rowe before hiring him and to have proper standards in place to prevent him from carrying out his abuses. These are allegations, and the lawsuit’s claims have not been proven in a court of law. The suit also needs to be certified by a court before it can proceed. The statement of claim names Alvin McKay, a resident of Thunder Bay and a member of the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation, as the plaintiff. It details sexual assaults that McKay says Rowe committed against him between the ages of five and seven. Protecting children from abuse is the core concern of the suit, a matter of protecting the vulnerable (Proverbs 31:8-9).

Lawyers for the firms could not be reached for comment on May 11 or as of press time on May 12. In a CBC story, however, Jonathan Ptak of Koskie Minsky acknowledged that some Rowe victims had already reached settlements in previous lawsuits. He said a purpose of the new action was to raise awareness of Rowe’s crimes and to effect change in organizations. “There’s never been an opportunity such as this class action where all the victims can come forward, have their stories be told and hopefully we can bring about some real change in the policies and practices in the organizations that employ these people,” he said, according to CBC.

Rowe served as a priest in the diocese of Keewatin when he committed the offences. The diocese ceased operations in 2014, when the Indigenous Spiritual Ministry of Mishamikoweesh was created, but it still exists legally as a corporation. When the Anglican Journal contacted Archbishop Gregory Kerr-Wilson, who as metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of Rupert’s Land is one of three members of the synod, and Archbishop (retired) David Ashdown, the synod’s secretary, a few hours after the suit was announced, both said they were unaware of it. Archdeacon Michael Thompson, general secretary of the Anglican Church of Canada, declined to comment.

In a statement released in January, Thompson addressed “the legacy of Ralph Rowe” and acknowledged that the Anglican church “helped create a legacy of brokenness in some First Nations communities” through Rowe’s actions. “We know that the trauma he inflicted was not only on persons, but also on communities, and that its impact is intergenerational,” Thompson said. He also said the time might be right for a “formal, national apology” for the church’s involvement. Archbishop Fred Hiltz, primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, said he intended to make a public apology but would first need to consult Lydia Mamakwa, bishop of Mishamikoweesh.

Thompson’s statement followed comments by Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation after two 12-year-old girls died by suicide in the Wapekeka First Nation, one of the Nishnawbe Aski member communities, in early January. Fiddler linked the suicides to psychological trauma that Rowe inflicted on his victims and that has been passed down through generations, and he blamed the Anglican Church of Canada for not acknowledging its role.

Rowe was ordained in 1975 after serving with the Ontario Provincial Police and then as a missionary pilot, and he was also a scout master with the Boy Scouts of Canada. He served four and a half years of a six-year sentence after being convicted of 39 sexual offences in 1994. He was convicted on additional charges in 2005 and 2009, and in 2012 he received a two-year conditional sentence, to be served under house arrest. In total he has been convicted of 75 sex crimes, though some estimate his number of victims to be substantially higher. In the 2015 film *Survivors*, Rowe estimated that he had abused as many as 500 boys.

Source: Read the original report