Former prosecutor says child advocate would be 'investigating herself' in Humby-Escott probe
CBC
A retired Crown prosecutor is questioning the premier's decision to direct Newfoundland and Labrador's child and youth advocate to investigate the handling of sexual abuse allegations, because of her previous role as a senior official in the department she would now be investigating.
Mike Murray said he isn't convinced Linda Clemens Spurrell is the right choice, since she "comes right out of the system."
Clemens Spurrell was the assistant deputy minister for the child and youth services branch of the Department of Children, Seniors and Social Development (CSSD) from 2019 to 2022.
"She'd be investigating herself," Murray told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show on Friday.
Police search warrant documents obtained by CBC Investigates — which are untested in court — show group home workers, social workers and the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary were aware of allegations involving Humby for several years.
According to the documents, police investigated and cleared Humby of a sexual assault complaint in 2007, only to return to the complainant in 2023 and decide to press a charge.
That complainant has now hired a lawyer, Stephen Barnes, who told CBC News: "He wonders if there would have been no other victims if his complaint had been taken seriously."
The documents show concerns began to grow in November 2019, when a social worker called the RNC to report that a 14-year-old boy was in a sexual relationship with Humby.
According to the documents, concerns about Humby were logged in CSSD case files in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. Humby wasn't charged until April 6, 2023.
Murray questioned whether Clemens Spurrell should be involved in the investigation, since she was a senior official with the department during those years.
CBC News requested comment from the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate on Friday morning, and will update this story when a response is received.
Murray also took issue with the lack of investigative reports filed by the Office of the Child and Youth Advocate since Clemens Spurrell took over the role in October 2022.
According to the office's website, the previous advocate, Jacqueline Lake-Kavanagh, authored 15 reports between 2017 and her retirement at the end of 2021.
Since Clemens Spurrell took over the role, none have been published in nearly two years.
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