'It's a dark day' says the woman who brought charges

Gilbert Rozon, the founder of Montreal’s Just For Laughs comedy festival, has been acquitted of rape and indecent assault.

The producer, 66, had always denied the charges, which date back to 1980.

Judge Mélanie Hébert said the allegations made by Annick Charette, who was just 20 at the time, were credible but could not be proved beyond reasonable doubt.

Ms Charette, who waived her right to anonymity, said the result was ‘a dark day for all the victims of sexual assault’ and likened the legal process to  ‘a storm, reviving the trauma I experienced and a strong sense of powerlessness.’

Rozon stepped back from the company he founded  in 2017 amid a series of allegations from nine women spanning three decades, none of which have been proven in court.

In 1998, he pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of a 19-year-old woman and was given absolute discharge. 

Since Rozon founded Just For Laughs, it has grown to offer comedy festivals around the world, as well as TV programming.

Read more on the case on Canada's CBC News.

Published: 16 Dec 2020