The Brockville, Ont., sexsomnia case took another turn on Monday when the victim won the right to be identified.
The Ottawa-area woman’s identity has been covered by a publication ban since the 2012 trial in which Ryan Hartman stood accused of sexually assaulting a stranger following a house party at a Brockville home in 2011.
In 2012, Hartman was convicted of sexual assault and sentenced to 14 months in jail.
He initially appealed the decision and lost in 2012. He appealed again in 2015, but this time he admitted that he had sexually assaulted the victim, but claimed he was not criminally responsible because he suffers from sexsomnia, a mental condition that makes people engage in sexual acts while asleep.
The Ontario Court of Appeal granted him a retrial, but only on the narrow issue of whether he could use the sexsomnia defence to gain an acquittal.
In November, a judge rejected the “sexomnia” defence and ruled that Hartman was guilty of the sexual assault. The identity of the victim in the case has been kept a secret due to a publication ban.
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On Monday, that ban was lifted as per Bekah D’Aoust’s request.
“You’ve all known me as a victim but today I’m more than that. I’m a wife, I’m a daughter, I’m a sister, I’m a granddaughter, I’m a friend, I’m an aunt — I’m Behka D’Aoust and I’m proud to say that I’m a survivor,” said D’Aoust through a video message sent to Global News.
Hartman’s sentencing has been delayed several times over the past three months which is something he told the court caused him high levels of anxiety and depression.
A new sentencing date could come as early as the end of March.
More information to come.
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