Crown withdraws assault charge against Nunavut teacher

Crown prosecutor Jay Potter told Justice Sue Cooper in Nunavut court Nov. 21 that because there is no reasonable chance of getting a conviction, the Crown has withdrawn an assault charge laid against a Qikiqtarjuaq teacher this past June.

Nadia Kowalyshyn, 58, originally had been charged this past April with two counts of sexual interference and one count of sexual assault.

Those charges, police said, flowed from an investigation generated by a complaint made by a student concerning an incident alleged to have occurred Jan. 1, 2013.

At the time, she was released by a justice of the peace under conditions, which included no contact with persons under the age of 16.

But in June, the Crown withdrew those three charges and replaced them with one count of simple assault — which the Crown has now withdrawn.

This is the second time this year the Crown has abandoned a prosecution against a Nunavut teacher who faced student accusations.

This past July, the Crown entered a stay of proceedings against Mark Caine, 37, a popular Iqaluit middle school teacher who was charged with three counts of sexual interference.