Jail for Vernon man who sexually assaulted 15-year-old stepdaughter

A Vernon man who sexually assaulted his 15-year-old stepdaughter when she came to visit him in a hotel room has been jailed.

According to a June 15 BC Supreme Court decision, 45-year-old Ramsay Michael Collier considered himself a stepfather to the teenager, even though he’d recently separated from her mother.

“I cannot be your stepfather anymore but what I can be is your friend if you allow me,” Collier texted the teen after the separation. 

However, when Collier arranged to meet the 15-year-old girl in a Vernon hotel room, he gave her alcohol and sexually assaulted her.

“Mr. Collier was aware of (her) age and that he was in a position of trust to her,” Justice Miriam Maisonville said in the decision. 

The sexual assault left the teen with bruises on her legs and calves.

The teen’s grandmother, who she lived with, noticed a change in her granddaughter but was unaware of what had happened.

“(She) would lash out at her and went into avoidance behaviour and isolating herself,” the decision said.

The teenager read a victim impact statement to the court personally, saying the sexual assault had had a serious impact on her mental health and left her with emotional, anger and sadness issues.

“She is endeavouring to work towards feeling safe again, but feels deeply hurt by what happened and will never be able to consider anyone or call anyone her father again,” the Justice said.

Collier was later charged with sexual assault and sexual interference of a minor.

He pleaded not guilty and denied that the sexual assault happened.

“He stated that (the teenager) had reported the events to blackmail him,” the decision reads.

The Justice didn’t buy it and convicted him on both counts.

The decision said Collier is Indigenous but was adopted by a Caucasian family at 18 months old.

There were indications he had undiagnosed fetal alcohol syndrome, suffered from alcohol and substance abuse, and had serious cognitive difficulties.

“Mr. Collier’s cognitive concerns impact his ability to accurately perceive the negative consequences of his actions, or to consider alternative and prosocial solutions,” a psychological assessment stated.

“Further, his re-engagement with substance use is characterized by impulsive decision-making. His levels of substance use exacerbate his cognitive difficulties, in addition to negatively impacting his decision-making capabilities.”

The decision said that while Collier managed to graduate from high school, he was illiterate. 

Over the years, he’d had jobs as a janitor, in customer service and at a restaurant, but his inability to read and write meant he struggled to find or maintain employment.

He has a criminal record that correlates to his history of alcohol and methamphetamine addiction, and he has been in rehab numerous times.

When he was 26, he’d connected with his birth parents in Manitoba, but hadn’t had contact since. 

“He had anger at his birth parents for abandoning him as a baby and could not understand how that occurred,” the Justice said.

Collier’s defence lawyer, Dominique Verdurmen, argued for two years house arrest, the Crown wanted five years jail.

Justice Maisonville said Collier’s separation from his Indigenous community was a factor that impacted his moral blameworthiness, as were his cognitive deficits.

However, the Justice said that didn’t outweigh the damage he’d caused and his lack of insight into his behaviour.

The Justice said a four-year sentence would have been appropriate had it not been for Collier’s separation from his Indigenous heritage and his cognitive difficulties, and sentenced him to three years in jail. He will also be on the sex offenders registry for 20 years.