Reporter covering hockey assault/abuse cases not surprised victims take a long time to come forward

Sexual assault scandals and hockey are no strangers to each other. Right now, the biggest case deals with former Chicago Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich and his alleged sexual assault of a former player back in 2010. The team itself stands accused of attempting to sweep the incident under the rug. There is also a lawsuit pending against former Vancouver Canuck Jake Virtanen, with reports that as many as seven other people are preparing to share their stories with police. Whenever these stories come to light, they are met with a lot of skepticism, especially when incidents date back several years. TSN's Rick Westhead, who has been instrumental in breaking open the allegations against the Blackhawks and many other of these types of stories, believes that's a problem.

"Since I started reporting in earnest on abuse in sports, it's striking how the response of so many is still 'cash grab!!' or 'sour grapes!!' or to ridicule those who have needed years to process their abuse," said Westhead.

"No wonder survivors struggle to come forward with their stories."

The "cash grab" one is something we see a lot. "Gold digger" is another term that comes up a lot as well. Allegations of sexual assault that involve one alleged victim and one alleged assaulter can be a difficult thing to prove in criminal courts. More often than not, it is simply one person's word against another. There are no witnesses and no cameras recording footage like you might see with a robbery or other crime. In many cases, this is why alleged victims will choose to take the civil lawsuit route. Crimes must generally be proven "beyond a reasonable doubt", whereas civil cases are proven by things such as "the preponderance of the evidence." That doesn't mean civil cases require no proof at all. It just doesn't need to be beyond all reasonable doubt.

As long as people continue to come forward with stories, they will likely be met with a large dose of skepticism and, in many cases, complete and utter cynicism. It shouldn't be a surprise that many struggle to come forward based on that alone. It's also why many want to keep their names out of the public, for fear of backlash, both online and offline. It's a reminder that, while the North American legal system may be one of the best in the world, it is not perfect. Also, the court of public opinion can be harsh, unforgiving and downright nasty.

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