A former Tsawwassen resident who was a well-regarded dog show judge has been sentenced to more than three years in federal prison for molesting three children between 1969 and 1979.
Jamieson Richard (“Rick”) Glendinning, 63, pleaded guilty in January to three counts of indecent assault and one of failure to appear. His sentence was handed down Friday (May 17) in Surrey Provincial Court. He will spend another 27 months in jail due to credit for the six months he’s already been in custody.
Glendinning’s victims, two males and one female who are now adults, were between the ages of seven and 17 at the time of the incidents. There is a publication ban on any information that could identify them.
Judge James Sutherland said the victims were “vulnerable, innocent and trusting youths” and that what Glendinning had done to them was physically and emotionally intrusive.
“The passage of time did not render the offence any less serious,” Sutherland said. He told the victims their “strength, courage and will is to be commended.”
One man, now 50, was abused by Glendinning from the time he was about seven years old until he was approximately 14. Glendinning is 13 years older and would have been about 20 when the assaults began. In a victim impact statement read in court, the man said he went to bed every night as a child fearing he would be molested. He said he has since suffered a lifetime of severe anxiety and panic as a result of the abuse and is an alcoholic. His family, he said, has been ripped apart.
“It’s impossible to express the totality of how this abuse has affected my life,” he said.
The female, who now lives in the U.S., recalled being victimized by Glendinning – who is 12 years older than her – between the ages of 13 and 18. In a statement read in court on her behalf, she said the abuse affected her life and relationships forever and she doesn’t trust men.
A third victim, a man who is now 54 years old, met Glendinning when he was 12. Glendinning was 20 or 21. The boy had bought a dog from Glendinning, a dog breeder, and kept in touch as he was also interested in dog shows. It was during overnight stays connected with dog shows that Glendinning took advantage of him. In his victim impact statement, the man said he wanted to believe the abuse had no lasting effect, but realized that wasn’t the case. He said he’s lived his life in anger.
“Children need the chance to grow up in a healthy environment,” he wrote in his statement. “They deserve that chance.”
Most of the abuse involved masturbation and oral sex.
Wearing red prison garb, Glendinning looked down throughout much of the sentencing hearing, only occasionally glancing up from the plexiglass prisoner’s box. When asked by the judge if he had anything to say, he stood and apologized to his victims, his family and the court.
Crown prosecutor Winston Sayson said the allegations came to light in 2009 when one of the victims sent an email to the Delta Police Department. Several interviews followed and Glendinning was arrested in March 2010 at a soup restaurant he ran in Vancouver and charged with two offences.
When police learned Glendinning had been involved with the Tsawwassen Amateur Baseball Association, a media alert was issued and additional allegations and charges followed, although none of the convictions are linked to the baseball organization.
The failure to appear charge resulted after he did not show up for a court date in Surrey June 11, 2012. He was placed on CrimeStoppers’ most-wanted list. A fellow dog show judge happened to be in Australia shortly after, saw Glendinning, and alerted the authorities.
Glendinning had started a dog-walking business in Australia. The police in that country devised a sting operation wherein they posed as customers needing dog-walking services. Glendinning was arrested, held in Australia for a month because his visa had expired, and was then returned to Canada in November 2012. He’s been in custody since.
On Friday, Glendinning also apologized for fleeing, saying “panic is a funny thing. Sometimes when things aren’t going your way, the easiest thing to do is leave.”
Friday’s sentence also includes a ban on contacting the victims and a 10-year firearms ban. Glendinning must also provide a DNA sample and his name will be added to the national sex offender registry.
Sayson stressed the importance of public deterrence in determining punishment for child sex offenders.
“When you molest children, you will go to jail,” he said.
