Still no lawyer for Sask. care aid charged with historical sex assaults


Appearing in Rosthern provincial court on Wednesday, Brent James Gabona was given two weeks to apply for a court-appointed lawyer.

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ROSTHERN — Wearing a red T-shirt and jeans, Brent James Gabona stood at a microphone inside a Rosthern town hall-turned-courthouse on Wednesday, his back to the packed gallery, while giving a rambling explanation for why he hasn’t secured a lawyer. 

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Sitting directly behind him with their two dogs, 62-year-old Darryl Boguski squirmed, burying his head into his brother Rick’s shoulder as they listened to the man accused of sexually assaulting Darryl at a care home in Hepburn, Sask.

“It was really hard for Darryl and I to come. It’s so hard on Darryl, and so to hear Brent Gabona’s voice after years and years, Darryl reacted to it actually in the courtroom,” Rick said after court.

Gabona, 52, is charged with five counts of sexual assault and three counts of sexual exploitation of a person with a disability against five residents who were under his care at Shepherd’s Villa between 1992 and his departure in 2009.

He was charged in May and released on conditions that he not contact his alleged victims or his own children unless their mother is with them.

Rick — who asked the court to lift the publication ban on their identities — said it was frustrating to make their second trip to Saskatchewan from Alberta only to hear Gabona say he was struggling to fill out the application for a court-appointed lawyer, and was given another two weeks to do so.

During a telephone appearance on June 15 in Saskatoon provincial court, Gabona said he’d be starting the application process because he was denied legal aid.

On Wednesday, he told Judge Lua Gibb that he knew his presence would be emotional for some people in the courtroom and asked to read something to them about his personal journey.

Gibb said it was not the time to do so.

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“You’re going to hell, Brent,” people shouted as he left the room.

The Hepburn, Sask. care home where Brent Gabona is accused of sexually assaulting five residents over 17 years.
The Hepburn, Sask. care home where Brent Gabona is accused of sexually assaulting five residents over 17 years. Photo by Matt Smith /Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Inclusion Canada, an organization that supports people with intellectual disabilities and their families, issued a news release on Wednesday in response to Gabona’s charges, stating people with intellectual disabilities are five times more likely to experience sexual assault than people without disabilities.

“It’s crucial that the voices of people with intellectual disabilities and their families are heard and not dismissed,” it stated.

Two other families who came to court Wednesday are pushing for investigations into whether their loved ones were also victims.

Al and Naomi Hawkins’s son Derek was under Gabona’s care from 2003 to 2005. Both Derek and Darryl were discharged from Shepherd’s Villa because of behaviour issues.

The Hawkins said they believe their son was acting out for a reason.

“They all went there happy. They all left in a state of distress,” Al said.

Jacqueline Forbes’s brother, 38-year-old Dean Astle, has been living in Shepherd’s Villa since 2006 and was under Gabona’s care for three years.

Dean is non-verbal. Derek died in 2011. Both families say police are not willing to investigate because the men can’t provide witness statements. 

Darryl (left) and brother Rick Boguski after a publication ban on their identities was lifted in Saskatoon provincial court on June 15, 2022.
Darryl (left) and brother Rick Boguski after a publication ban on their identities was lifted in Saskatoon provincial court on June 15, 2022. Photo by Matt Smith /Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Rick said his brother, who is blind and has autism, epilepsy and cerebral palsy, has started verbalizing his frustration for the first time. Non-verbal people with intellectual disabilities can participate in the justice system if they have the appropriate supports, Inclusion Canada stated.

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“There needs to be policy change done straight across the board, from the way that incidents such as this are investigated, to the acceptability of different forms of evidence when you are dealing with non-verbal individuals or individuals who can no longer speak for themselves,” Forbes said.

“We’re hoping that perhaps, Inclusion Canada will help us wake Saskatchewan up, wake the Crown up, wake the police up and take action and properly investigate this case,” Rick added.

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