Crown stays Arvaluk assault charge, pursues appeal

The Crown has entered a stay of proceedings in an assault charge against Nanulik MLA James Arvaluk.

The charge relates to an incident alleged to have ocurred Aug. 22, 2000 in Iqaluit. A Crown lawyer entered the stay Dec. 12, in the Nunavut Court of Justice.

Crown prosecutor Richard Meredith said his department will focus on another case involving Arvaluk that’s currently under appeal.

In June 2001, Justice Howard Irving acquitted Arvaluk of a charge of assault causing bodily harm, relating to an incident in Coral Harbour that took place Aug. 26, 2000.

As a result of that charge, Arvaluk stepped down as Nunavut’s minister of education. He continues to serve as MLA for Nanulik, representing about 1,500 residents in Coral Harbour and Chesterfield Inlet.

Arvaluk was accused of badly beating the woman he lived with at the time, leaving her with a bloodied face and two gashes that required 14 stitches to close.

But Justice Howard Irving, a visiting judge from Alberta, found Arvaluk not guilty after a tria last August, saying the woman’s injuries resulted from a “consenting drunken brawl” with Arvaluk.

The Crown later filed an appeal with the Nunavut Court of Appeal, saying Irving made errors in fact and in law.

The Crown’s appeal is likely to be heard Feb. 12 next year.