SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
After more than seven months of legal wrangling, an unusual and rarely used RCMP peace bond has finally been implemented against a man who was the focus of a citywide sexual predator alert after returning to the city last fall.
Travis Casaway, 28, agreed to abide by the conditions laid out in the peace bond Monday, which is in effect for the next 12 months. It was handed down in territorial court by Judge Garth Malakoe.
The order follows numerous court appearances by Casaway since returning to Yellowknife in October after serving a five-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting two young girls in 2002.
He was only 15 at the time of the attacks but the crimes were so severe he was sentenced as an adult in 2004.
The girls were ages 11 and 12 when grabbed and attacked by Casaway. One of the assaults came at knife point.
At his sentencing, Casaway was deemed by the court to be a long-term offender. He was under supervision for five years after his release from prison in 2009.
Casaway lived in Edmonton until that supervision order expired. He returned to Yellowknife in the fall of last year.
Casaway was under no parole conditions when he arrived but a school alert to parents warning of his presence prompted RCMP to arrest him under a rarely used provision in the criminal code that allows police to seek court-imposed restrictions on a person's movements in anticipation of a yet uncommitted crime.
"The order is not a punitive measure," Malakoe said Monday. "It is put in place as an assistance for the person to not commit an offence in the future."
Last year, RCMP Const. Tina Acreman gave a sworn statement to the court indicating she had fears Casaway "will commit a serious personal injury offence
due to his history."
Casaway was released from custody at the time and placed under strict bail conditions. Afterward, Casaway told Yellowknifer outside of court that he wanted to return to Edmonton but could not because of the court proceedings he was facing.
He was back inside a Yellowknife courtroom in February when Crown prosecutor Susanne Boucher and Casaway's lawyer Tracy Bock attempted to have a new peace bond application approved.
However, Malakoe said he would not grant the new application because certain issues were not addressed in it, namely whether Casaway could be around children without adult supervision. That has now been covered in the new peace bond agreement.
Under the agreement, Casaway is allowed to be around children but with strict conditions.
The order reads that Casaway must not attend a public park, public swimming area, daycare centre, school ground, playground or community centre, including the Yellowknife Public Library, except if such attendance has been approved in writing in advance by his probation officer and only if he is in the company of an adult who has been approved in writing in advance by the probation officer and only if Casaway is carrying such written approvals with him.
Malakoe noted that Casaway has a young son living in Edmonton. He can have unsupervised contact with him and any other members of his immediate family under the age of 16. But he cannot contact or communicate with anyone else under 16 unless that contact has been approved and he is in the company of an adult who has been approved.
Casaway is also prohibited from drinking alcohol and being in bars.
Bock had argued that provision was unnecessary because alcohol was not a factor in his previous crimes. However, Boucher pointed out that Casaway was arrested in Yellowknife in September for public intoxication although he was not charged.
Malakoe agreed alcohol use was not linked to Casaway's crimes but said its usage could lead to an increased risk for him to re-offend. Among Casaway's other conditions are that he have no contact with his victims. Boucher said the conditions are strict but fair.
"They will allow him to reintegrate back into the community, in a fashion that is safe for the rest of the community," she said.
