Rate of child sexual assault in New Brunswick 2nd highest in Canada

Better resources for offenders, sex education identified as key factors in preventing child sex crimes

New Brunswick has long struggled with the problem of child sexual abuse. The rate of reported cases to police is among the highest in the country, according to a report by an expert committee set up by the province.

The girl, who was just 7 or 8 years old, was sexually abused by a family friend.

She, who was a teenager when the accused was sentenced in 2024, spoke in a New Brunswick court about living in death and depression for 10 years after the incident.

The judge who handed down the sentence said it was difficult to read the victim’s impact statement because it showed how her and her family’s happy life before the incident was suddenly shattered.

“That one sexual encounter with this child changed the course of his life and that of his family forever, leaving him helpless, depressed and self-harming.”

The harrowing experience is just one example of countless cases of child sexual abuse in New Brunswick, which in 2023 had the highest reported rate of sexual abuse of children under 12 in the country, behind Nunavut.

According to Statistics Canada, the rate of sexual abuse allegations against children under 12 in New Brunswick reached about 130 per 100,000 in 2023. That rate has been steadily increasing since 2020, when it was 96 per 100,000.

That’s nearly double the national average (69 per 100,000).

For teens ages 12 to 17, the sexual assault rate in 2023 was 520 per 100,000, much higher than the national average (383 per 100,000).

“Why is this rate so high?”

Mary Ann Campbell, director of the Centre for Criminal Justice and Police Research at the University of New Brunswick, says the answer is not so simple.

The actual number of crimes may be increasing, she says, but it could also be that more cases are being identified and reported because of better interventions.

“Regardless of the cause, it’s a worrying trend.”

The lasting effects of child sexual abuse

Inspector Marie-Eve McKenzie-Plant, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Serious Crimes Unit in New Brunswick, says child victims can be affected by the experience in a variety of ways.

“The effects can be lifelong and continue into adulthood.”

Sylvie Leblanc, a social worker and director of the Violence Prevention Centre in Kent, also stresses that, contrary to what some people think, children are fully aware of what is happening to them and the experience affects them deeply.

She explains that child victims often experience intense feelings of guilt and shame that can affect all aspects of their lives.

“Shame makes you feel like there is something inherently wrong with you.”

These feelings can lead them to engage in a cycle of violence in future relationships because their standards for how others should treat them are lowered.

These children may develop depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as adults.

“Children who were previously social become withdrawn and stop playing. Others display aggressive behavior or have learning and concentration problems in school.”

Self-harm, physical problems, and even an increased risk of heart disease are other consequences of sexual abuse in children.

New Brunswick and its high history of child sexual abuse

According to a 2019 report by the Child Sexual Abuse Advisory Committee, New Brunswick has had one of the highest rates of sexual crimes against children for years.

“Our province has a long history of child sexual abuse,” says Marie-André Pland, a criminologist at the University of Moncton.

Previous studies between 2010 and 2014 found that most victims of sexual abuse in New Brunswick were children under the age of 12.

Since 2019, New Brunswick has taken steps to improve support services for victims of sexual abuse, but experts say there is still a lack of resources to prevent these crimes.

Resources needed for offenders

Pland and Campbell believe that reducing the rate of sexual crimes against children should not only focus on supporting victims, but also include programs for those at risk of committing these crimes.

“We need to live in a world where there is no sexual abuse at all.”

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