N.S. judge reprimanded for conduct had undiagnosed mental disorder, review says

A Nova Scotia judge who has faced scrutiny over his comments and actions in a number of cases and has been harshly criticized by the province's top court has been reprimanded, but he will not face a judicial council hearing that could have stripped him of his job.

In a decision released Thursday, the majority of a three-person review committee said provincial court Judge Alain Bégin was suffering from an undiagnosed mental disorder at the time of his poor conduct, but he's sought treatment and the illness is now in "remission." The report does not identify Bégin's disorder.

"The relationship between Judge Bégin's personal medical issues and his conduct was a key factor for the majority's conclusion that removal was not an appropriate outcome for the complaints," the majority decision from two members said. 

"While it did not excuse or mitigate its impact, it does help to explain how and why the misconduct occurred."

Investigation

The review examined complaints against Bégin involving three cases. In one, he called a man on trial for abusing a stepdaughter a "sexual deviant" and said he had "no doubt" he was guilty, comments he made before final arguments in the case.

When the case was appealed, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal had trouble listening to the recording of the trial because Bégin had put restrictions on the audio, claiming his comments were "off the record."

In another case, the Court of Appeal called his conduct "offensive to societal notions of fair play." During a hearing, Bégin called his own witnesses from the Mi'kmaw Legal Support Network to refute what he referred to as baseless allegations that he was biased against Indigenous offenders. Lawyers for the defendant had asked him to recuse himself from the case due to comments he had made. The judge accused one of them of being unprepared and misleading, a view the Court of Appeal found was not supported.

In a third case, he referred to a sexual assault as an "aggressive pass" and made other comments the review committee said could be interpreted as minimizing the seriousness of sexual assault.

Committee divided

Bégin admitted to the "very serious misconduct," according to the review committee. He agreed to a reprimand, must apologize to a number of people, communities and the public, continue treatment for his mental illness, be mentored by a senior judge, and take a number of courses.

Bégin declined an interview request from CBC News. His lawyer, Frank Addario, said in a statement that Bégin knows his conduct fell below what he and his community expected, and he will be making apologies. He took time off for treatment and has returned to the bench.

"Judge Bégin regrets his conduct and the impacts that it had on the community, including victims, defendants, court staff, and his colleagues," the statement said.

"Judge Bégin knows it is an immense privilege to be a judge, and he tries to approach his job conscientiously. He made mistakes because of some personal and professional challenges he was facing in recent years."

A spokesperson for the Nova Scotia judiciary said Judge Alan Tufts, the chair of the review committee, would not be commenting. The other two members of the committee were Joseph Gillis, who was appointed by Nova Scotia's minister of justice, and Melanie Petrunia, who was appointed by the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society.

The committee was not unanimous in its decision not to send Bégin to a judicial council hearing. Petrunia argued he should be, writing that his conduct rises to the level where removing him from the bench "may be warranted."

She noted the Court of Appeal used words like "astonishing," "startling," "alarming" and "disturbing" to describe his conduct in the case involving the stepfather.

She said there was a need for "transparency and accountability." A hearing before the judicial council would allow for "the proper consideration of the impact of the judge's behaviour on the Indigenous community, in light of the principle of reconciliation."

While she did not want to diminish Bégin's mental illness, she said a hearing could more rigorously examine his medical issues and whether those were mitigating factors in his behaviour.

Support from other judges

The other two members of the panel, however, found Bégin should not be sent to a full hearing. They noted letters of support for him from four judges.

Chief provincial court Judge Perry Borden, who "initiated" the three complaints against Bégin, also wrote a letter saying he didn't believe Bégin should be removed from the bench or suspended, and he "would be pleased to continue to work with him."

"The majority concluded that Judge Bégin's removal from judicial office was not necessary and that the agreed resolution would be capable of maintaining the public's confidence in the judge's ability to perform the duties of his office and in the administration of justice generally," the majority decision said.

It said that after a medical leave, Bégin returned to the bench a year ago. The Nova Scotia courts website lists him as presiding in Dartmouth.