Man pleads guilty in child molestation case
In an abrupt turn of events, a man has pleaded guilty in a sexual assault case involving a child.
Reg O'Keefe, 66, was facing four charges of sexually assaulting a three-year-old girl in September 2010.
On Wednesday morning, he changed two of his pleas to guilty for sexual assault and sexual interference.
The Crown withdrew two related charges.
O'Keefe will remain in custody until his sentencing hearing in February.
Because of her accuser's change in plea, the girl, now six, didn't have to appear in court Wednesday as originally scheduled.
The girl's mother said to prepare her daughter for court, they both reviewed the videotaped interview that the girl did with police.
The mother told CBC News that when it got to the part of the interview that described what O'Keefe had done, she had to take her daughter in her arms. She was clinging to her mother, crying, and asked why he had done that to her.
The mother told her that there are bad people in the world, and O'Keefe is a bad man.
The mother also said she felt that once the court saw the video — which happened Tuesday — O'Keefe would plead guilty.
The trial had been repeatedly delayed before it got underway on Tuesday.
O'Keefe had gone through six lawyers, and had cited health problems, which made him late for his most recent court appearance Tuesday morning.
The man told the court he was in hospital because he was stressed and suicidal.
But he had already been found fit to stand trial — and on Tuesday was again assessed by a doctor who said O'Keefe was not suicidal.
The trial finally began Tuesday afternoon with a taped interview that the alleged victim did with police.
She told the officer that while on a bed, O'Keefe pulled down his pants and underwear, then pulled down her pants and underwear, got on top of her, and moved back and forth. She said milk got on top of her.
The girl's mother told CBC News that despite therapy, her daughter is angry, wets the bed every night, screams, and asks why this happened to her.
While the mother has praise for Crown prosecutor Mike Murray, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, and Victim Services, she said she's angry with the justice system.
She said it seemed like judges accepted every excuse that O'Keefe offered up to delay his trial.
She said if this had been dealt with two years ago, her daughter could have moved on by now.
