HAY RIVER - A Hay River man has launched a petition calling on the GNWT to do more criminal records checks in an effort to fight sexual abuse.

Terry Rideout, of Hay River, has launched a petition calling for more criminal records checks by the GNWT. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo Terry Rideout's Story The following excerpts are from Hay River resident Terry Rideout's own story of recovering from sexual abuse as a child in Newfoundland. Rideout wrote his story to accompany a petition calling for more criminal records checks by the GNWT. I can't remember when the sexual abuse started, I was so young.... I was young, vulnerable and frightened, not knowing what to do to express what was being done to me or who I could trust to help me." "I had been physically and sexually violated for 10 years, lost my childhood and innocence and was taken advantage of for someone else's sick pleasure, and verbally threatened so that I would not tell anyone." "I buried that traumatized, small, vulnerable boy safe inside of me, still feeling guilty for something I had no control over and yet not knowing how to help myself heal." "In the past 22 years of my life, I've had to deal with the trauma inflicted by sexual and emotional abuse and come to a place of forgiveness and taking action to determine I would not be controlled by the past, but face and deal with these demons and begin to enjoy life." "As a person who has suffered sexual abuse, I can honestly say I would not want anyone else to go through what I have experienced and carry this burden for years, trying to overcome the emotional, physical and psychological damage that a victim goes through .

Terry Rideout, who himself was sexually abused as a child in Newfoundland, said the petition was prompted by the criminal charges earlier this year against a convicted pedophile who had been living in Hay River.

"I no longer can sit back without saying anything," said Rideout, who works as a nurse.

His petition will be presented to the Legislative Assembly sometime during the new sitting by Hay River South MLA Jane Groenewegen.

"They're filling up," Rideout said of the petitions at various retail outlets, offices and other locations. "There's lots of support."

Specifically, the petition recommends criminal records checks become standard for final candidates for all GNWT jobs and for all volunteers with GNWT boards and agencies.

Rideout said many people believe a lot of record checks are already done. "People assume this is happening, but it's not."

Rideout explained he was moved to act when he heard about pedophile John Murray "Fester" Melanson, who had been living in Hay River without the community being aware of his criminal past.

"He should never have been in town and a lot of people agree with me," Rideout said.

While Melanson, 43, was not working for the GNWT, but as a chef at a Hay River hotel, he did volunteer to help in a home economics class at Diamond Jenness Secondary School and even played Santa Claus at a public library.

Melanson is still in custody in Toronto, where he is facing charges of breach of probation. In Hay River, he has been charged with one count of possession of child pornography and two counts of sexual assault, allegedly involving boys under the age of 14.

Melanson lived in Hay River from July of last year to mid-January.

Along with the petition, Rideout, 48, has prepared a package of information to back up his argument, including statistics on sexual abuse, news items about well-known abuse cases, letters of support, and his personal story.

Groenewegen said she fully supports Rideout's efforts. "I think that any means we can take to safeguard young people from incidents, such as allegedly happened in Hay River, would be good," Groenewegen said.

Under current GNWT staffing guidelines, a criminal records check is done when hiring for positions of trust, such as those involving court proceedings and large amounts of cash, and for highly sensitive positions, such as teachers, social workers, healthcare workers and decision-makers at the level of superintendent, director, assistant deputy minister and deputy head of a department, board or agency.