Any Fans of Q host Jian Ghomeshi?

[treemom]

Sexual harassment isn't criminal. Criminal harassment isn't the same thing.

His behavior probably isn't limited to sexual harassment, but rather actual violence which would be criminal.

[acheronbeach]

His behavior probably isn't limited to sexual harassment, but rather actual violence which would be criminal.

???

I'm confused. Ghomeshi has admitted to causing bodily harm to others. He admitted it to CBC management and provided photos. It seems pretty clear that he committed crimes.

I just thought it was a bit ridiculous of KateFowler to criticize the media for not distinguishing between crimes and not-crimes, without knowing what is criminal...

[aquitana]

I thought what he supplied to CBC was supposed to be some kind of documentation of consensual BDSM sex.

[treemom]

I thought what he supplied to CBC was supposed to be some kind of documentation of consensual BDSM sex.

Yes it is claimed to be "consensual" but other women have accused him of violence that wasn't consensual. Also it is rumored that what CBC saw included a broken rib...I think that when you get to those level of injuries maybe it should no longer be considered consensual? I don't know how I feel about that.

[aquitana]

I just had the idea that what he supplied to the CBC did not really jibe with later reports by several women.

That he was trying to head off the Toronto Star article with that and his Facebook post, but too many similar reports from very different women undermined all of his efforts.

I believe that the follow-up accounts by different women indicate domestic violence, not consensual sex, but that's not what he showed the CBC.

[treemom]

Well from what leaks have happened what he showed CBC was a video, photos of of bruises and a broken rib that occurred from said video, kinky text and personal messages that he used to indicate consent. The video may have not actually included any indication of consent.

[KateFowler]

???

I'm confused. Ghomeshi has admitted to causing bodily harm to others. He admitted it to CBC management and provided photos. It seems pretty clear that he committed crimes.

I just thought it was a bit ridiculous of KateFowler to criticize the media for not distinguishing between crimes and not-crimes, without knowing what is criminal...

The difference I was trying to get at was between crimes (allegations of sexually assaulting/harrasing women) and being somewhat of a "playboy" (snarky comments from colleagues re: Jian dating waaaay too many pretty, disposable 22 yos).

After everything that's come out about Jian, it seems very clear he has been assaulting women, rather a lot of them, for a long time. His ex-employer, the CBC has a pretty laissez-faire attitude to it's high-profile hosts having sex on film (eg Sook-Yin Lee still hosts Definitely Not the Opera, a decade after "Short Bus") -- he was fired for, among other things, using his property-of-CBC-smartphone to record himself sexually assaulting women & showing it to his bosses. That's what did him in... well, he did himself in. Ugh.

[aquitana]

Do you ladies think he "wanted to be caught?"

Or did he just trip himself up when he knew the Toronto Star article was coming out?

There's definitely something wrong with him. Personally, he seems compulsively violent, it seemed to come out nowhere and take the women by surprise. It wasn't like there was a fight between them where he lost control, which seems to be the case with all of these violent, steroided out football players. That's what's so strange about it.

[2xx1xy1JD]

Do you ladies think he "wanted to be caught?"

Or did he just trip himself up when he knew the Toronto Star article was coming out?

There's definitely something wrong with him. Personally, he seems compulsively violent, it seemed to come out nowhere and take the women by surprise. It wasn't like there was a fight between them where he lost control, which seems to be the case with all of these violent, steroided out football players. That's what's so strange about it.

On a conscious level, no.

This was kept under wraps for a long time.

He was clearly disturbed by the investigative reporters chasing this story. He provided his CBC bosses with an update on what was happening, because he knew that they'd likely find out as the reporters were interviewing people, but put his own spin on the details. He mistakenly thought that The Star was about to run the story, so he tried to pre-empt it. He thought that he needed to show that even violent sex with bruising could be consensual, so he showed the stuff from his smart phone. He was probably panicked and delusional at that point, because the CBC was clearly shocked and horrified at the graphic evidence.

[KateFowler]

Do you ladies think he "wanted to be caught?"

Or did he just trip himself up when he knew the Toronto Star article was coming out?

There's definitely something wrong with him. Personally, he seems compulsively violent, it seemed to come out nowhere and take the women by surprise. It wasn't like there was a fight between them where he lost control, which seems to be the case with all of these violent, steroided out football players. That's what's so strange about it.

What I meant by "did himself in" was that Ghomeshi'd basically gotten away with his horrific behavior for so long that he simply assumed he was invincible -- recording seriously explicit, sexual assaults (in Canada, no one can consent to be assaulted, ie hit so hard marks are left) on his WORK smartphone and showing said videos to his bosses, thinking he'd done nothing wrong. Without it even occurring to him that what he'd done was inappropriate!

[aquitana]

The upside of this and the Bill Cosby allegations, IMHO,is that it proves that the culture has internalized feminism to the point where powerful men can't get away with what they did a few decades ago.

[acheronbeach]

I think after getting away with it a long time, the person's sense of what is acceptable slowly shifts... Others know of their behavior, they haven't been subject to any consequences, and they see that as unspoken acceptance, if not approval.

I have a less egregious example from a place I worked. Our boss had a history of looking at porn at work; he'd kept girlie mags at work in the early 90s, and when caught nothing was done. He kept it up - first downloading and watching them at work on his personal cell phone, then finally on his work computer. He was shocked when he was caught and suspended for misusing work internet. He really believed people thought it was OK.

[LainieR]

Ghomeshi has been arrested this morning! :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up: :cracking-up:

4 counts of sexual assault 1 count of overcome resistance – choking.

[2xx1xy1JD]

Finally.

He also dropped his lawsuit against the CBC: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/11 ... wsuit.html

[tropaka]

http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/11/26 ... l-assault/

Former CBC radio host Jian Ghomeshi has been charged with four counts of sexual assault and faces a fifth charge for overcome resistance by choking — which carries with it a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Ghomeshi, 47, surrendered to police Wednesday morning and is scheduled to appear in court at College Park at 2 p.m. this afternoon. Television images showed Ghomeshi arriving at court in the back of a police car, shortly before noon.

Toronto police announced the charges Wednesday morning.

Section 246 of the Canadian Criminal Code is for “Overcoming resistance to commission of offence,†which says that it is a crime “to enable or assist himself or another person to commit an indictable offence†by “attempts, by any means, to choke, suffocate or strangle another person†and make them “unconscious or incapable of resistance.â€

Life imprisonment is the maximum punishment for the overcome resistance charge. The maximum penalty for sexual assault is 10 years.

The investigation into Ghomeshi began on Oct. 31, days after he was fired from the CBC and several women came forward to police with allegations of sexual violence. At least three women made official complaints to the police, while about a dozen people have made allegations through the media.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair said police would not be commenting on the matter as it is now before the courts.

Asked about the reluctance of women to come forward in this and other sex assault cases, he said in this case and other cases they will be treated with respect if they do.

“We encourage the victims of any sexual assault to come forward and I want to offer them reassurance they will be treated with dignity and respect,†the chief said.

On Tuesday, Ghomeshi withdrew his $55-million lawsuit against the CBC. He has to pay $18,000 to his former employer for their legal costs.

Legal experts said that Ghomeshi’s lawsuit was frivolous and had no chance of success.

The former host of “Q†was fired by the CBC in late October just prior to the Toronto Star going public with allegations of violent sexual assaults.

Ghomeshi, 47, said in a rambling Facebook post prior to the initial allegations that he engages in “rough sex†but only with consenting parties. He has hired prominent criminal defence attorney Marie Henein to represent him.

On October 30, Ghomeshi said in a second Facebook post that he intended to “meet these allegations directly.†He has not been heard from since.

[ladyamylynn]

This news made my day.

[RachelB]

I am glad he is going to court. And I remain grieved and angry.

[nomoxian]

Yes it is claimed to be "consensual" but other women have accused him of violence that wasn't consensual. Also it is rumored that what CBC saw included a broken rib...I think that when you get to those level of injuries maybe it should no longer be considered consensual? I don't know how I feel about that.

It might still be consensual, but I would call it unsafe and insane - which most people into BDSM would say is not proper play.

[aquitana]

No not proper play. I changed my mind on all this a while back. It seems like domestic violence to me now, not BDSM. I miss his show and feel very sad about the whole thing.

But he had it coming. Too many similar stories. And I think Cosby is guilty too. I don't think women make these stories up for fun.

[Bluenoser]

I'm glad he was charged. My hubby always thought he was pretty douchy, and this confirms it. I really hope positive things come from this, and that men and women will feel empowered to report crimes of abuse and assualt.

[Vivi_music]

Good thing he was arrested and charged. The more I keep hearing about the allegations against him, the more I despise the man. I really can't pity him at all. He deserves everything that is happening to him right now.

[KateFowler]

Good thing he was arrested and charged. The more I keep hearing about the allegations against him, the more I despise the man. I really can't pity him at all. He deserves everything that is happening to him right now.

Yup x 10000!!

[martian]

- Trigger warning for discussion of a rape. -

I'm really glad he was arrested. If the trial were to be held in America, though, I wouldn't hold out any hope at all for a conviction. Are things better for rape prosecutions in Canada?

Juries here will sometimes turn themselves into pretzels to avoid reaching conviction. There was a case a while back where an off-duty cop raped a woman on her way to work - a bold, broad daylight attack. Even though there was a witness who saw the rape happening, the rapist claimed there was no actual penetration so the jury concluded that there was reasonable doubt on that element of the crime. Like, what the ever loving fuck? Even with a witness, it's still a he said, she said? At least the creep is doing time on the rest of the charges, but still, our jury system seems like enforcer units for society's worst biases too much of the time. Hope the system up north lives up to it's ideals more consistently than ours.

[crazyforkate]

No, I don't think Canada is much better. Remember SlutWalk? That started because of comments from a Toronto cop and a Winnipeg judge. The law may be slightly different, but the attitudes seem pretty similar.

[treemom]

Yeah my personal wk experiences with Canadians was worse than the worst misogyny I experienced at the hands of Americans. There is still places in Canadian society sunlight needs to disinfect. Sexual harassment and assault is one of those areas I think.