Yellowknife (Jan 21/05) - Following two days of sensational testimony, former Inuvik MLA Roger Allen has been convicted of sexual assault .

An ashen-faced Allen left the courtroom with his lawyer immediately following Wednesday's verdict, briefly accepting condolences from friends gathered in the lobby of the courthouse.

The one-time Minister of Justice appeared back in court Thursday, where Chief Judge Michel Bourassa sentenced him to four months in jail.

Crown attorney Jonathan Burke told reporters he was pleased with the verdict.

"It was supported by the evidence," Burke said.

The trial got off to an explosive start Monday, when a woman accused Allen of grabbing her breasts and genitals during an encounter in an Inuvik hotel room on May 19, 2004.

"He wouldn't stop. I said 'No, Roger, no'," the woman testified. "He was totally engrossed in what he was doing. There was no way he was going to stop."

Allen has steadfastly maintained his innocence since being charged in August 2004.

A married father of three, Allen testified that the encounter was consensual - an assertion he maintained under heavy cross examination by Burke Tuesday morning.

"She did not object," said Allen, who admitted to kissing the woman and fondling her breasts, but denied touching her below the waist.

"We both felt an attraction to each other," he said.

Bourassa rejected Allen's account Wednesday, describing it as "riddled with contradictions."

"I cannot accept his evidence," Bourassa said.

The woman testified she first met Allen in January 2000 through work. During testimony, she described him as "wonderful, nice and considerate."

The two developed a friendship and Allen even offered to use his sway as Minister responsible for the NWT Housing Corporation to help the woman buy a home, she testified. Allen maintained the offer did not violate government protocols. As time passed, the woman said she became suspicious of Allen's motives.

"He was trying to come onto me," she said. "He wanted to hug me and kiss me. I just wasn't comfortable."

The woman said she formally asked Allen to stop his advances in the spring of 2004.

"I said: You can't be doing stuff like this. You are a married man. It has got to stop," she said on the witness stand.

Allen painted a different picture of the relationship during his testimony. Allen said he considered the woman a friend and frequently offered to help her with rent and medical payments. While being questioned by his lawyer, Allen said the pair had a two-year "liaison" but he stopped short of saying they were involved in a sexual relationship.

After assurances the romantic overtures would end, the woman reluctantly agreed to accompany Allen on a trip to Inuvik in May, she testified.

Using his government credit card, Allen checked the woman into the Eskimo Inn on May 19 and helped her bring her suitcases to a second floor room, she said.

It was in that room where the woman said she was assaulted.

The woman said she repeatedly asked Allen to stop and the attack only ended when the phone rang.

Allen testified the woman was a willing participant - "her body was responding," he said - and the encounter ended when she said "Okay, that's enough."

"Knowing the rule of law, I ceased immediately," Allen said. Bourassa ruled the woman's actions did not legally constitute consent, even if he accepted that version of the events.

"No means no is not the test," he said. "The test is: Where is the yes? Clearly there was no yes."

Housing controversy

Monday's testimony suggested Allen was feeling the heat from a questionable housing claim he made in the spring of 2004.

It also portrayed Allen as somewhat despondent after losing the justice portfolio when the cabinet was shuffled following the 2003 territorial election.

"When he became an ordinary MLA, he was different," the woman said. "He was not happy with the MLAs."

Allen admitted he was disappointed to lose his cabinet post and said he had even entertained thoughts of vying for the premier's position.

During Wednesday's hearing, Burke asked Bourassa to impose a four to six month jail term. Allen's lawyer, Austin Marshall, is expected to offer his submissions on sentence this afternoon.