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JUSTICE NO MORE
Lee Hanlon | August 19, 2009
Contributed To National Magazine "CrimeWatch Canada"
To understand the events that are about to be shared we first must start at the beginning. It was in the spring of 1991 that I began dating REDACTED. Within three months of dating REDACTED she had become extremely emotionally, verbally, and mentally abusive. It was in June of 1991 that REDACTED started making allegations that she was pregnant and that I was the father. She then started discussing plans to pursue an abortion, then changed her mind, but still made allegations that I was the father.
I decided to speak with a medical profession and was told that there was no way that REDACTED could know who the father was within the first three weeks of being pregnant. After speaking with the medical professional, I confronted REDACTED only to have her continue with her emotional, verbal and mental abuse. I then ended the 2. 5 month relationship.
From that point on until January 1992 I hadn't heard a word from REDACTED, then in January 1992 I ran into REDACTED, her room-mate and was told REDACTED had a baby girl. For reasons I can't explain I ran over to the hospital and spoke with REDACTED and saw the baby. As usual, REDACTED was still abusive. I then left the hospital with no intention of investigating this any further.
It wasn't until early summer of 1992, before shipping out to the annual Canadian Forces Reserve brigade exercise that I ran into REDACTED again. This time she came across as having a change of heart, still alleging that her daughter, REDACTED is mine, but also begging for a second chance.
Shortly after this by-chance run in I started receiving letters from REDACTED, apologizing for the way she treated me in the past and begging for a second chance, but also still alleging her daughter was mine.
When I returned from the brigade exercise I went to visit REDACTED. The first couple of times she wasn't home. Both times I looked in her living room and kitchen windows and noticed that her place was a pig stye.
Finally, when she was home, she would tell me that her place is "not normally like this.' I wanted to giver her the benefit of the doubt, but deep down I know she was lying. This was the first of many lies.
I continued dating REDACTED and in the fall of 1992 I moved in with her and her children. On December 2, 1992 we married. Even that almost didn't happen. The JP never showed up and when I was finally able to contact the JP I was told that someone claiming to be me called the JP and cancel the wedding. I did no such thing, but the first thing REDACTED did was accuse my cousin REDACTED. Yet I knew that was impossible, because he had no knowledge of who was conducting the marriage. We ended up getting married at 5 PM rather than 3 PM, and I dismissed this incident until after the divorce.
Soon after we married, the relationship took a turn for the worse. REDACTED became more controlling and emotionally, verbally and mentally abusive. She would make up lies just to have an argument. She would start by accusing me of saying something that I did not say then she would raise her voice in front of the children and insist that I had said things that she was accusing me of saying.
She would then come across of being more knowledgeable and smarter than me. Everything I did, she would put me down, telling me that I would fail at what I was doing. She even started putting down my film script writing, telling me that I was only pretending to write.
Within the first three months of the marriage REDACTED initiated the first separation. During this time, I told her that I would be filing for custody of both children due to her abuse. She started breaking down about never seeing her children again. Soon after that conversation she begged me to come home. Of course, I did.
For the first month of getting back together REDACTED gave the appearance of changing for the better, but it was just a game. It turned out that she was preparing to leave and at the same time make people believe that her life and the lives of her children were in danger. She did exactly what she promised……to do everything in her power from having the children taken away from her.
She took her children behind my back and went into a transition house, which prevented me from applying for custody as well as access until she was able to control access. Father's day was coming up and I was also given orders for a call out to report for duty in Dundurn, Saskatchewan. So I signed Provincial Court order under duress so I could see the children on Father's day before heading out to Dundurn. When I returned from Dundurn I fought the order.
Shortly after my return I ran into REDACTED. She pretended to be nice in front of everyone but when we met at the A & W she threatened that if I fought her on the custody and access matters that she would go into hiding and I would never be able to see the children again. I actually took this pretty hard as I was led to believe that Holly was my daughter.
After that day, things got much worse. As long as I went along and bowed to her demands, she was nice and let me see both children. But if I resisted, she cut me off. Period! She continually made it difficult for me to have access for REDACTED.
Eventually I took REDACTED back to court and got unsupervised specified access. Yet even with that I was prevented from getting access to REDACTED. On the first specified access weekend REDACTED waited until my lawyer's office closed then called me and cancelled the access, alleging REDACTED was sick. Even though I had a court order I knew that the police would not enforce it and that the courts would not find REDACTED in contempt.
First thing after the weekend I contacted my lawyer and left a message as to what happened. Before I heard back from my lawyer, I got a call from REDACTED baby sitter who then told me that REDACTED was not sick and was at the mall with REDACTED current boyfriend. After hearing that I went to our family doctor in the hopes of getting REDACTED blood type. But to no avail. The doctor turned around and brought this up to REDACTED. REDACTED response was, It's none of his damned business what her blood type is!"
I shared this with my lawyer and instructed my lawyer to draft an order to vacate the child support and arrears due to me belief that REDACTED is not my daughter. I also agreed that if REDACTED did not come after me for support I would not come after her for custody or access. REDACTED agreed and an order, by consent was signed by a judge on November 12, 1995 and filed with Chilliwack BC Supreme Court February 12, 1996.
For me, I thought the abuse was over. Not by a long shot! Since the 1995 order every time I had a by-chance run in with REDACTED, if she was by herself she would just give me angry look, and if she had a guy with her she'd get him to utter threats and swear at me.
In an earlier incident, which took place in April of 1997 REDACTED filed a false complaint against me just because she saw me downtown. At 11:30 PM I get a knock on my door. It was the RCMP. And even though I had a witness, the RCMP refused to follow through with my version of events. I ended up having to file a complaint against this RCMP member. The second incident that I recorded was more recent. It happened on May 6, 2009.
After a by-chance run in at the West Oaks Tim Horton's, REDACTED had four guys chase after me with the intent to cause bodily harm. I filed a complaint with the Abbotsford Police, and all they would do is give REDACTED a verbal warning. Another incident that took place was in the month of March where REDACTED found me on Facebook and began harassing me there. It wasn't until after the May 6th incident that I also filed a complaint with the Mission RCMP regarding REDACTED harassing me via Facebook.
In regard to the May 6th incident, I had requested that the Abbotsford Police file an 810 Peace Bond. They refused. When the victim is the one that has to file a protection order, there is something seriously wrong with the justice system.
The Process Hearing for my 810 application was set down for August 18, 2009. And it was so-called Provincial Court Judge Don Gardner, a former Provincial Crown Prosecutor who presided over my matter. Judge Gardner made very light of my concerns for my safety, and like the Abbotsford Police he suggested that I do not attend places like Mill Lake Park, West Oaks Mall, including Tim Horton's and Seven Oaks Mall. Gardner also commented that I was wasting courts time with my 810 application.
Judge Gardner has a long history of being gender biased. This judge, like the law enforcement agencies believes that there is no such thing as male victims in domestic or relationship abuse. In fact, Gardner is known for not taking action against female offenders when the victims are male.
So, once again is justice no more when the so-called justice system rears its ugly biased head! And to Gardner, I say this, "You are in the wrong line of work. Time for you to step down so that someone with a sense of justice can take your place!"