A B.C. woman has been sentenced to 12 months in prison after she was found guilty of sexually assaulting her partner’s 18-year-old niece.
At the time of the offence in July 2019, Sable Raven Thom Jamerson was in her early 40s and living with her common-law partner, J.B., in a two-bedroom apartment in Vancouver, provincial judge Harbans Dhillon wrote in her April 18 decision.
J.B.’s niece had recently moved to Canada from overseas to attend university on Vancouver Island and was visiting Vancouver for a couple of days to see a friend off at the airport. The niece, whose name is covered by a publication ban, asked if she could stay a night at Jamerson and J.B.’s place.
That evening, Jamerson and the niece stayed up talking until well past midnight. They both consumed some alcohol and a small amount of cannabis.
At some point, the niece fell asleep on the sofa the two were seated on. She awoke to Jamerson sexually assaulting her.
“The complainant described a sensation of acute pain. The complainant did not consent and could not have consented, as she had been asleep. She pretended to have just awakened, got up from the sofa, and quickly made her way to her bedroom, locking the door behind her,” Dhillon wrote in her decision.
The niece left the next morning without saying goodbye and sought mental health support at a hospital when she got back to Vancouver Island.
In a pre-sentence report, Jamerson’s probation officer said the now-47-year-old denies the sexual assault and appears to blame the niece for what happened. Jamerson claims the niece told her she was attracted to women, and said she only kissed her because she felt bad that the niece didn’t have an outlet for her sexuality.
The niece’s uncle, J.B., also blames the niece and says she fabricated a lie about Jamerson, according to Dhillon’s decision.
In a victim impact statement, the niece said she suffers from depression, anxiety and insomnia as a result of the assault.
“(She) spoke eloquently about how she has been hurt by someone who she saw as an aunt and a role model, someone she trusted enough to share personal dilemmas and confidences with. She worries that she will never fully heal from this trauma,” Dhillon wrote.
Jamerson was convicted of sexual assault on May 15, 2023.
Almost one year later, on April 18, 2024, Dhillon sentenced her 12 months in prison, followed by two years of probation. Dhillon chose not to have Jamerson listed on the sexual offender registry, despite a request from Crown Counsel, noting that Jamerson is a first-time offender and at a low risk to reoffend.
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