First court appearance for retired Lethbridge police inspector adjourned

The woman who brought sexual assault charges against a retired Lethbridge police inspector, says she hopes that “organizations in Lethbridge that were less than supportive take time to reflect on their roles and commitments in our community.” The woman was referring to her story not being taken seriously initially when she reported it to Lethbridge Police Service. She later reported the incidents to Coaldale RCMP.  

At the time of the unwanted sexual advances in 2017 and 2018, Bill Kaye, had been employed at the Domestic Violence Action Centre (DVAC) and was serving on the board of directors at the Chinook Sexual Assault Centre. The woman, who was 40 years his junior and a victim of domestic abuse, had been seeking help through DVAC and was assigned to Kaye, 63, to help with her case. 

The Southern Alberta District RCMP General Investigation Section took over the investigation, which resulted in charges being laid on March 10, 2022 against Kaye for breach of trust, sexual assault and criminal harassment.

Kaye turned himself in to police the same day and was arrested. Following a judicial hearing, he was released on conditions to appear in Court on March 28th.  The matter was adjourned until April 25th with the Crown elected for indictment on all three counts. 

On Monday, BCN spoke with the woman who brought the charges against Kaye. We have promised to protect her identity but she told us, “I don’t have any definitive emotions, it’s a lot to take in.” Then added, “I hope that organizations in Lethbridge that were less than supportive take time to reflect on their roles and commitments in our community.”    

Jeannette Rocher

Born in Puerto Rico, raised in Minnesota and Manitoba, Jeannette has had the opportunity to live in a variety of places including New York, Arizona, and Nevada. After completing college and a paid internship with CBC Winnipeg, Jeannette embarked on her journalism career by moving overseas to take a job on the island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands. While overseas she covered stories in Fiji, Guam and Japan including the 2011 tsunami that hit Japan and its surrounding islands. She covered a mass shooting, an Earth quake, murder cases and other substantial court cases. In 2013 she moved to Alberta where she covered the devastating floods of High River and Medicine Hat for CTV News. She then went on to produce and host Go! Southern Alberta for Shaw TV. She now calls Miracle Channel home. In addition to reporting in the field, you can catch her anchoring daily weather reports, as well as longer interview segments on BCN, and the week-in-review show on BCN Weekends. 

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