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	Former Cop's Psychologist Should Testify: Attorney By Trevor Pritchard Standard Freeholder February 27, 2008 http://www.standard-freeholder.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=919236 The Cornwall Public Inquiry needs to hear from the psychologist who diagnosed a former Cornwall cop as medically unfit to take the stand, an attorney representing a citizens' group argued Tuesday. Frank Horn, a lawyer for the Coalition for Action, said that Heidi Sebalj's involvement with at least four alleged abuse victims makes her a "very important witness" for the inquiry to hear. The coalition is made up of people concerned that institutions like the city police might have covered up historical allegations of sexual abuse in the Cornwall area. "By her not being here, all we have to go on is documents. And we can't question documents," Horn told the Standard-Freeholder yesterday. "So we want to make sure (how serious) her condition is." On Monday, inquiry commissioner Normand Glaude received a medical report saying that Sebalj, who left the Cornwall police force in 2000, had been "under care" for the past 10 years and was suffering from overwhelming anxiety and stress. He ruled it would be a "disservice to her and to this inquiry" if she were forced to testify. Tuesday, Glaude dismissed Horn's request to question her doctor, and instead began hearing an overview of documentary evidence (ODE) culled from reports, interviews and Sebalj's handwritten notes. Sebalj was assigned in January 1993 as the lead investigator into sexual abuse allegations made against Rev. Charles MacDonald and probation officer Ken Seguin. The man who made those allegations, David Silmser, would later accept a $32,000 payout from the Alexandria-Cornwall Roman Catholic Diocese in exchange for his silence. City police would never lay charges against Seguin, who committed suicide in 1993, or MacDonald. MacDonald would later be charged with a number of sex-related offenses under the OPP's Project Truth investigation, but those charges were stayed in 2002. He has always maintained his innocence. Silmser's file - including his $32,000 settlement - would eventually be turned over to the Children's Aid Society by Perry Dunlop, another former Cornwall police officer. Dunlop's action set in motion a series of events, including the Project Truth investigation, that would culminate with the inquiry's formation. The 18-page ODE traced Sebalj's involvement with the Silmser case, starting from the day she received his allegation in January 2003 to her being exonerated in June 2004 of having anything to do with leaking Silmser's police statement to the media. The document also outlined her investigations of allegations made by three other inquiry witnesses: Jeanette Antoine, Albert Roy, and Andre Lavoie. Sebalj's lack of experience dealing with sexual abuse disclosures was one of the major criticisms found in a 1994 report prepared by Supt. Brian Skinner, an Ottawa police officer. Skinner testified earlier this month that Sebalj was "far too junior" to conduct such a significant investigation as Silmser's, and that her superiors should have given her more guidance. The inquiry is expected to hear from a number of witnesses in the coming weeks who will speak to how the Cornwall police force handled historical allegations of abuse. Staff Sgt. Gary Derochie is expected to testify when the inquiry resumes today. According to Sebalj's ODE, Durochie was one of only three officers - along with Dunlop - who were allowed to take Silmser's statement out of Sebalj's hands.
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