WARNING: This article contains details about a criminal sexual assault trial and may be disturbing to some readers. If you or someone you know has been impacted by sexual violence, contact the 24-hour Sexual Assault Support Crisis line at 1-877-954-6242 or the RCMP.
A First Nations traditional “native healer” from the Fort Williams area charged with sexually assaulting six patients will have his fate determined by a jury of his peers at the Penticton courthouse.
Donald Wayne Ashley is on trial before a judge and jury with six counts of sexual assault after six different women accused him of inappropriate touching during traditional healing “sessions” in October of 2022.
The incidents allegedly took place over a four-day period.
A contingent of about 20 First Nation residents gathered inside the courthouse to hear evidence in the trial which began Wednesday in Penticton.
When court broke for the lunch recess around 12:30 p.m., the same group gathered in Gyro Park to sing and drum as a show of support to the complainants who will be testifying in this trial.
Justice Michael Brundrett ordered a publication ban on any information that could help identify any of the complainants.
A jury of eight men and four women, along with one male and one female alternate juror, listened intently as the first female complainant gave evidence all day Wednesday.
The jury was selected and given opening statements by defence counsel Mark Norha from Vancouver and Crown attorney Andrew Vandersluys on Tuesday.
The first complainant testified she had been involved with three or four one-on-one native healing sessions with Ashley over several years and had never felt physically uncomfortable.
As a proud First Nations woman, she regularly participated in sweat lodge ceremonies, fasting and “creek ceremonies” where running water is used to cleanse herself physically, mentally and spiritually, she said.
While nothing unusual happened during several sessions with Ashley dating back several years, that changed during her session Oct. 15, 2022, she said.
She brought her six-year-old daughter to this session as she had medical problems in her young life and thought Ashley might be able to help her as well, she said.
“It had been many, many years since I had seen him,” she said. “This time he was talking a lot, which was different for him, and I sensed he was going through a tough time.”
Ashley admitted to her he was going through some difficult times in his personal life and he appeared to have suffered some physical injuries, including his nose looking a lot different from the last time she had seen him, she said.
After performing a quick natural healing session on her daughter using smudging and an eagle feather to “brush off” bad spirits, her daughter left the room to play with some cousins, she said.
Ashley did his usual smudging and eagle feather brushing techniques with her, she said.
While sitting on a chair, Ashley’s demeanour changed, she said.
“He told me he was attracted to me,” she said. “He told me he had been attracted to me for a long time.”
When asked how that made her feel, she replied “I didn’t know what to do. I’m married and I didn’t appreciate those kind of comments. It hurt me because I liked him and held him in high regard. I didn’t know what to do or what to say. I didn’t acknowledge his comments.”
While laying on her back nearing the end of her session, Ashley became much more physically aggressive, she said.
Ashley again commented how he was attracted to her physically “and not just for my looks, but he said I was a free spirit and you just go and do what you want.”
While using traditional medicine techniques, Ashley commented she might have issues with her liver and uterus and suggested she might want to get those checked out by a medical doctor, she said.
His physical examination continued and he commented about a possible lump in her right breast, she said.
He asked if he could examine that breast, she agreed because she trusted him, and he proceeded to apply pressure to the point it hurt, she said.
Seconds later, Ashley “was yelling to get out whatever was in there,” she said. “It was nothing I had experienced before.”
Without permission, he allegedly started fondling her left breast and she didn’t know what to do or say, she said.
“To me, this wasn’t a breast exam,” she said. “To me, it was being done in an inappropriate manner.”
Ashley then asked about any other physical ailments that might be bothering her and she commented she had been suffering from serious back issues for some time, she said.
Ashley commented he could reduce back pain by accessing other parts of her body, she said.
Within seconds, his groin was near one of her hands, she said.
“At first, I tried to justify what he was doing,” she said. “Eventually, I was able to move my hand away.”
He soon grabbed her body and moved it closer to the edge of the massage table and she could clearly see he was aroused.
“He had an erection and was putting it against my legs,” she testified.
Eventually, he started massaging and caressing her upper thighs and put his hands up under her shirt, then her upper thighs and buttocks.
Ashley tried to justify his actions, in her opinion, by commenting that he could tell she was having some serious physical issues and her body was not in good shape, she said.
Eventually, he lifted one of her legs and started rubbing an area near her vagina, she said.
When asked if she had given him permission to do anything but examine her right breast, she said she hadn’t.
“Absolutely not,” she said.
“I was just frozen."
She was only able to leave when her sister poked her head inside the door and commented the session seemed to have gone on longer than normal, she said.
“That was my exit,” she said.
Four days later, she contacted Penticton RCMP and gave police a full statement, she said.
Under cross-examination, the complainant admitted the last healing session she had with Ashley before the 2022 session had upset her.
Ashley had commented he could feel “a darkness in her” and blamed her husband, she said.
Ashley then commented she should leave her husband and that if he hurt her in any way, he would kill him, she testified.
When asked why she went back to visit him again in 2022 after this incident, the complainant said she thought Ashley could help her daughter with her physical ailments and she was going through a difficult time and thought a healing session would help her.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
