Transcript Reveals Alice Munro’s Husband Refusing to Speak in Court Despite Guilty Plea
Alice Munro’s spouse chose not to speak in court after confessing to sexually assaulting the author’s daughter. However, a court transcript revealed that he had made a $10,000 donation to a program for abuse victims.
Gerald Fremlin admitted to indecent assault in a Goderich, Ont., courtroom on March 11, 2005. This revelation only came to light when his stepdaughter Andrea Skinner disclosed her childhood abuse in an essay for the Toronto Star recently.
Upon hearing the word “guilty” and the case details read out loud, Superior Court Justice John Kennedy asked Fremlin if he had anything to say. Fremlin responded, “No, Your Honour,” as per the Canadian Press’s obtained transcript.
Before this, the Crown mentioned Fremlin’s generous $10,000 contribution to the York Region Abuse Program.
While Andrea Skinner’s victim impact statement was presented as evidence, she opted not to attend and read it herself. The judge took the time to review the four-page statement privately without reading it aloud, the transcript reveals.
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“The victim impact statement appears to mention more than what is relevant to the court case in terms of improper actions,” the judge observed.
“And those allegations are refuted, Your Honour,” Fremlin’s lawyer, Paul Ross, answered.
In her Toronto Star piece, Skinner detailed how Fremlin’s abuse began in 1976 when she was nine, continuing during her visits to her mother in Clinton, Ont.
Following the incident that led to the indecent assault charge, where Fremlin assaulted her in bed, he proceeded to make inappropriate comments and expose himself during car rides.
Skinner’s revelation that Munro supported Fremlin over her daughter upon learning of the abuse has sparked a reevaluation of the Nobel laureate’s legacy within Canada’s literary and academic circles. Munro passed away in May at the age of 92, over a decade after Fremlin’s death.
Skinner described how Fremlin’s abuse and her mother’s betrayal left her in internal conflict and grappling with her family’s silence.
The court transcript revealed the judge questioning if Fremlin’s actions directly correlated with Skinner’s need for therapy “20 years later, even almost 30 years later.” Kennedy asked, “Is the treatment mentioned in the victim impact statement a result of the admitted actions?”
“I cannot determine from the limited evidence of the illicit behavior discussed today that all the issues in the victim impact statement stem from it,” the judge remarked.
The Crown declined to comment on the reasons why Skinner required therapy.
It was disclosed in court that all parties involved agreed to have Fremlin serve a suspended sentence with two years’ probation, including the victim as confirmed by the defense lawyer.
