Red Deer 1913 — 2013 Create Celebrate Commemorate
ICE BREAKERS
BUILDING ON SUCCESS
Red Deer Rebels hammer Kootenay 6-2 B1
Ron Sexsmith D3
CENTRAL ALBERTA’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
BREAKING NEWS ONLINE AT WWW.REDDEERADVOCATE.COM
DREADFUL, SEDUCTIVE, CHILLING
Ganger jailed eight months BY BRENDA KOSSOWAN ADVOCATE STAFF
SEX ASSAULT
A man who was once applauded in the Alberta legislature was led quietly to prison on Thursday after being sentenced for his second conviction of sexual assault. Thomas Paul Ganger, 65, was convicted in Red Deer provincial court on Oct. 22 of sexual assault arising from an incident at a Red Deer hotel in the early hours of Jan. 21, 2011. Judge John Holmes sentenced him on Thursday to serve eight months in prison followed by three years of probation. Ganger was charged after Red Deer City RCMP responded to a complaint that a Calgary man had been groped after offering the spare bed in his hotel room to an older man who was too drunk to drive. Court heard that the 30-year-old victim had fallen asleep in his own bed and was awakened when Ganger crawled into bed behind him and started fondling his buttocks and genitals. Dressed only in his undershorts, the younger man bolted from his bed and ran to a friend’s room for help. Defence counsel David Inglis argued against a jail sentence, stating that Ganger is making efforts to reunite his family and that he has a strong record of community service, including chairing the 1998 Alberta Winter Games held in Red Deer. That event was an outstanding success for which Ganger and his team received accolades in the Alberta legislature, said Inglis. Crown prosecutor Tony Bell asked for a prison term followed by a lengthy
period of probation, citing Ganger’s previous conviction and a psychiatric assessment placing him at a moderate risk to reoffend. Ganger spoke of his efforts to deal with his alcohol addiction and sexual urges and expressed his regret for what happened, but offered no apology to the man he assaulted. Holmes said Ganger’s own words to the complainant beforehand made it fairly clear that there was some element of planning and deliberation. He quoted a statement Ganger made to the man: “What happens, happens.” It was equally clear that the complainant did not wish to engage in sexual activity with his guest and that he was “disturbed and embarrassed” by the incident, said Holmes. He weighed Ganger’s efforts to seek help for his sexual urges and his addiction to alcohol against other factors, including his previous conviction and his tendency to blame others for his difficulties. Citing the reports prepared for the hearing, Holmes said Ganger’s own childhood experiences should have given him better insight into the effects of sexual abuse. “If anyone should know how people suffer from this type of abuse, it should be Mr. Ganger.” Along with the prison and probation terms, Holmes ordered a number of restrictive conditions to be included once Ganger is released from custody.
Please see GANGER on Page A2
Photo by JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff
Dracula, played by Callahan New, chokes Renfield, played by Daryn Tessier, during a scene from the Red Deer College production of ‘Dracula.’ Please see related story on page D1.
RCMP worried about picket line behaviour BY MURRAY CRAWFORD ADVOCATE STAFF Police are concerned as two incidents have raised tension and frayed nerves on the picket line as the strike/ lockout at Symphony Senior Living at Aspen Ridge in Red Deer continues. Alberta Union of Provincial Employees went on strike and were locked out by their employer at the home for 157 residents on Monday. City RCMP were called to the seniors home at 3100 22nd St., on Thursday morning and spoke with people on the line after one person on the picket line was reportedly hit by a vehicle. According to police, there are guidelines for pickets that the strikers should follow, including a limit on the length of time they can stop a vehicle. Red Deer RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Leanne Molzahn said police did respond to incidents outside Symphony. “At this point in time, the traffic section investigated and they’re not considering them pedestrian (motor vehicle collisions),” said Molzahn. “The concern right now is that they (pickets) haven’t been doing it within their guidelines and protesting lawfully. Blocking traffic, or being a pedestrian on a roadway in the path of a motor vehicle is an offence under the Traffic Safety Act. So there is a concern with some of the actions that are happening.” AUPE communications officer Tyler
PLEASE RECYCLE
SYMPHONY STRIKE/LOCKOUT DAY 4
INDEX
Mainly cloudy. High 2. Low -2.
Five sections Alberta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 Business. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C3,C4 Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . E1-E6 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D4 Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . . D1-D3 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B1-B8
FORECAST ON A2
Province dumps emergencies on municipalities: councillor BY PAUL COWLEY ADVOCATE STAFF
line,” said Bedford. “To my knowledge no protocol has been established. The protocol is usually established during this time.”
Please see STRIKE on Page A2
Please see AMBULANCE on Page A2
CANADA
ADVOCATE VIEW
TORY MPS REOPEN ABORTION DEBATE
ASK WHY, NOT WHODUNIT
Photo by ADVOCATE STAFF
WEATHER
LACOMBE COUNTY
Calling volunteer firefighters to handle medical emergencies amounts to downloading onto municipalities, says a Lacombe County councillor. “To me, this is an Alberta Health Services issue,” said Coun. Brenda Knight on Thursday. “This is a downloading.” Council was given a report on the increasingly common practice of dispatching volunteer firefighters to handle medical emergency calls when ambulances aren’t immediately available to respond. Keith Boras, the county’s manager of environmental and protective services manager, said many volunteers have only standard first-aid skills and are put into situations for which they are not trained. “It’s one of those situations where we’re starting to tax volunteers,” Boras said. The issue is expected to be the hot topic at a zone meeting with Alberta Health Services on Feb. 8. The City of Lacombe voted on Monday to limit the responsibilities of its volunteer firefighters after concerns were raised by Fire Chief Ed van Delden.
Judy Bloomfield, a picketer at Symphony Senior Living Aspen Ridge complex, was struck by a car early Thursday morning. Members of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees walked off the job after failed contract talks on Monday. Bloomfield, a housekeeper, has worked at the complex for close to eight years. She suffered minor injuries. Bedford said typically on a strike line there is a protocol put in place and the delaying of vehicles entering is part of that. “The delay is for transporting replacement workers across the picket
FRIDAY, FEB. 1, 2013
Three Tory MPs have written a letter to the RCMP requesting it to investigate hundreds of abortions as possible homicides. A5
Kristin Lehman stars in ‘Motive,’ premiering Sunday on CTV.