Ex-military leader Edmundson’s accuser continues testimony in sexual assault trial

OTTAWA — The woman who accuses Haydn Edmundson of raping her on a navy ship in 1991 was back on the stand during his trial Tuesday, where Edmundson’s defence lawyer tried to find inconsistencies in her story. 

The complainant, whose identity is protected under a publication ban, testified Monday that Edmundson was a senior officer and she was in a junior rank when they were deployed together on a navy ship in 1991. 

She told the court she had been assigned to wake him for night watch duties and his behaviour became progressively worse until one night she found him naked and completely exposed in his bunk. 

She testified that she “went loony” that night, shouting at him and turning on the lights in hopes of attracting attention from another officer. 

But she said no one followed up with her about the incident until Edmundson himself called her into his sleeping quarters to talk a few days later. 

She said at the time, the ship was docked at a port and she and Edmundson were both off duty. She had planned to leave the ship with friends that evening but felt she had to stop to talk with the senior officer even though she was not comfortable entering his dark room. 

She testified that she hoped to apologize for yelling at him and leave, but he told her she was “not dismissed.”  

She described feeling frozen as Edmundson touched her hair, kissed her and then removed her clothes and raped her. 

“He was much older than me,” she said. “He was a high-ranking officer. What would have been the consequence of me yelling, me pushing, me saying no, me not following orders?”

Edmundson was charged in December 2021 with sexual assault and committing indecent acts. He has pleaded not guilty and denies any wrongdoing. 

Defence lawyer Brian Greenspan questioned the woman about her duties and how often she had to wake Edmundson during the deployment. She was unable to recall the exact number of times, but estimated it was about 16 to 18 nights. 

Greenspan had a copy of the ship’s night order book, in which the captain logged the various night watches of officers on board. 

He said the book showed Edmundson was on night watch much less often, and at one point during the deployment he was off night watches altogether because he had injured his shoulder. 

The woman responded that officers sometimes requested an early wake-up for other reasons. 

Greenspan asked about her statement to police, in which the complainant said pornography was played on board the ship. He said the captain of the ship in 1991 “would never have permitted pornography to be played on board that ship, and people would have been disciplined for it.”

“By default, you think that because it wasn’t allowed, it never occurred?” she asked.

Greenspan also pointed to a statement she wrote as part of her application to a class-action lawsuit for military members who were subject to sexual misconduct at work. 

He said she wrote in the statement that Edmundson was often naked on top of the sheets when she went to wake him. On the stand, the complainant said this had only happened once. 

She did not have a chance to respond before court adjourned for the day.

The complainant’s first language is French and she testified in English with the help of interpreters. 

She indicated Tuesday that she wanted the interpreters to relay the defence questions to her in French before answering, but a visibly frustrated Greenspan argued that was changing the rules.

“I’m beginning a cross-examination with at least one arm tied behind my back, maybe both,” Greenspan told the judge. 

After a discussion with Justice Matthew Webber, the complainant agreed to ask for interpretation only when needed. 

Edmundson was one of a number of high-profile military leaders accused of sexual misconduct in early 2021, kicking off a crisis that led to an external investigation of the Armed Forces by retired Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour. 

In her May 2022 report, Arbour called for sweeping changes to be made to military culture. 

The trial is being held in an Ottawa court in keeping with Arbour’s recommendation that crimes of a sexual nature should be handled by the civilian justice system. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb, 6, 2024. 

Sarah Ritchie, The Canadian Press