First witness in David Norton trial details sleepovers at priest's house

The sex assault trial of a former Anglican priest, already convicted of sexual interference of a youth, is underway in a London courtroom.

David Norton has pleaded not guilty to five additional counts of sexual assault involving boys from Chippewas of the Thames First Nation. 

Norton served as a priest at St. Andrew's Anglican Church in the community, south of London, in 1977. The incidents date back to that period and into the early 1980s. 

The first witness to testify was a man who lived on Chippewas of the Thames First Nation in his early childhood. He attended church and became an altar boy in Norton's parish.

The witness, who cannot be identified because of a publication ban, told the court that Norton taught him to drive by allowing him to sit on his lap and steer. He recalled the accused rubbing his thighs, getting closer to his crotch area, but not close enough for him to protest.

Disturbing details

The witness said his own father thought highly of the priest. He told the court that he and his brother were allowed to go on sleepovers at Norton's home on a regular basis where he alleged the abuse occurred. 

He recalls Norton serving chocolate milk as a nighttime ritual. He explains he would wake up in the morning "groggy" with white dried up "slobber" on his face. 

The witness told the court he now believes it was male semen on his face and that he was being drugged during those sleepovers. 

He testified that one night, when he was around 13, he awoke to find his hand was on Norton's private parts so that Norton could masturbate himself. The witness told the court that he started barking and crying to try and get him to stop, but that Norton continued until he ejaculated.

After that night, the man said Norton grew more distant, and abruptly announced he was marrying and moving to the Yukon—despite not previously having spoken about those plans.

The man's brother moved to the Yukon with Norton for a time, but the brother appeared fine when the man spent a week's visit with Norton, his wife and the brother. The man told the court he didn't discuss the incidents with his brother.

Reflection as an adult

As a teenager and young adult, the witness said he told some friends and a girlfriend about the alleged abuse, but said he didn't share his story with criminal or legal authorities until later in life.

Even in the years after the abuse, the man said he long felt affection for Norton, and it took him a long time to realize their relationship was based on manipulation.

"I was in love with something that didn't exist," he told the court.

The man told the court he remembers the exact moment he decided to come forward. He said he was walking hand-in-hand with his young daughter in Port Stanley when he came across Norton—also walking hand-in-hand with a boy.

"That was the moment I said 'I'm going to fucking charge him'—it was like a flash in my head," he said.

All in all, the abuse lasted from when the man was '7 or 8' until he was 13, the man said.

The man said he had stopped using drugs recently and has since been reflecting on his childhood. 

During the testimony, Norton, 72, sat with his eyes downcast. 

In cross-examination, defence lawyer Lakin Afolabi pressed the witness for details about the time he spent with Norton, including details about Norton's apartment and the locations where the man said he was abused.

He also asked the witness about his interactions with other accusers, and the degree to which they'd discussed their stories together before going to a lawyer.

Norton's trial, expected to last five days, is being overseen by a judge.

Past conviction

Norton has already been sentenced to four years in prison for sexual interference of a young boy over a period of four years during the early 1990s.

At that sentencing hearing, Justice Lynne Leitch said Norton established a trust and friendship to take advantage of the victim.

"He inflicted significant harm to a vulnerable and innocent child. Without question, his conduct qualifies as sexually deviant behaviour and the consequences won't go away for the victim."  

Norton was suspended from his position at King's University, where he specialized in First Nations history, when charges were laid against him in 2015. He has a PhD in Native History and won numerous teaching awards during his time at the university.

Norton also worked in Yukon and has filled in at various churches when priests went on vacation. He was suspended by the Anglican Diocese of Huron after being charged. 

The trial continues in London tomorrow.