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Criminal Charges
Criminal charges require that the abuse be reported to the police. The police will then do an investigation to determine if charges will be laid. If they determine that there is enough evidence to lay a charge then they will do so, and the case will then go to the Crown Prosecutor to be prosecuted before the courts.
If the case does go to court there are two important things to remember. First as the victim of the abuse your child is a witness for the Crown. They do not have their own lawyer in the courtroom. Second, the guilt of the offender is determined using the standard that they must be found guilty 'beyond a reasonable doubt'. Just because an offender is found not guilty does not mean that the victim was not believed, but rather that there was not enough evidence to convict.
