NWT man to face jail time for sexual assault, voyeurism

A man convicted of sexual assault and voyeurism against a teenaged girl is expected to face jail time for the charges.

Justin Minute, 40, was convicted of voyeurism in August after the victim testified she saw his phone – with the camera on – pointed toward the shower in a bathroom she was using.

Minute was convicted of sexual assault after the court heard he told his former partner he had pulled down the girl’s underwear and masturbated over the bed where she was sleeping.

Any information that could identify the victim is protected by a publication ban.

In NWT Supreme Court on Monday, Crown prosecutor Morgan Fane argued Minute should be sentenced to four years in jail for the charges.

Defence lawyer Evan McIntyre argued four years would be “excessive” and proposed that his client instead be sentenced to two years less a day in jail followed by 18 months’ probation.

“It should be rejected,” he said of the Crown’s proposed sentence.

Fane said that in sentencing Minute, the court should consider the harm his actions caused, that the girl was sleeping at the time of the sexual assault, and that he violated her trust.

Fane added that, as a former case manager at the South Mackenzie Correctional Centre in Hay River, Minute should know better than the average person how harmful his actions would be.

In an impact statement read to the court, the victim’s mother said Minute’s actions had affected her emotionally in “uncountable ways.”

She said the crimes had negatively impacted her relationship with her daughter and she had taken time off work to support her daughter and deal with legal aspects of the case.

‘A unique and unusual case’

McIntyre said this was a “unique and unusual” prosecution as, had Minute not confessed to his former partner, there would be no case. He noted the girl had not been aware of the sexual assault until after trial and forensic analysis of Minute’s phone did not uncover any photos or video of the bathroom.

McIntyre argued Minute’s offences involved a low degree of physical interference compared to other cases in which people were sentenced to four years’ imprisonment.

He said two years less a day is still “not a light sentence” for someone who has never been in jail before. Minute does not have a prior criminal record.

McIntyre said Minute, who is of Métis descent, had a “quite difficult childhood” and has struggled with substance abuse as an adult. He said Minute has completed treatment and maintained his sobriety for several years.

Minute told the court he is grateful for the opportunity he has had to examine his sobriety and he is no longer the person he was at the time of the offences.

“I can’t emphasize how sorry I am for the harm that I caused,” he said.

Fane and McIntyre agreed that once released from custody, Minute should be banned from possessing firearms for 10 years and remain on Canada’s sex offender registry for 20 years.

Justice Karin Taylor is expected to give her decision on sentencing on December 15.

Minute was taken into custody following Monday’s hearing as he awaits his sentence.