A man alleging he was assaulted in Prince George Regional Correctional Centre and during a van ride from Prince George to the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre lost his appeal of a judge’s ruling that said he was late in filing.
Paul Peter Veeken was convicted of sexual interference of a pre-teen girl in 2015, but successfully appealed after the judge erred by not telling the jury that certain evidence was hearsay. He was convicted again after a new trial was ordered in 2017, but successfully appealed again. The judge in the second case erred by shifting the burden of proof in the edited reasons for judgment.
The charges against Veeken were stayed in 2022.
Afterward, Veeken sued the province, judge, bail supervisor and RCMP for wrongful convictions, wrongful imprisonment and breaches of his constitutional rights. A judge dismissed his claim in June 2023 and he lost his appeal in March 2024. The only issues remaining were his claims about the February and March 2019 in-custody assaults.
The chambers judge calculated that March 2022 was the deadline for Veeken to commence his claim, but he did not do so until July 2022.
Veeken argued the limitation period was postponed until the criminal proceedings against him were stayed in January 2022. He feared reprisal if he mounted the civil suit sooner.
But, in an April 16 judgment, a BC Court of Appeal tribunal upheld the judge’s ruling.
“The chambers judge made no reviewable error in finding the limitation period was not postponed,” said Justice Nitya Iyer. “As the claim was statute barred, there was no genuine issue for trial (under the summary judgment rule).”
Justices Peter Willcock and Joyce Dewitt-Van Oosten concurred.
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