Women accuse former paramedic of sexually assaulting them on the job

The first of four women to accuse former paramedic James Duncan Keats of sexually assaulting them has testified at his jury trial in Halifax.

The woman's identity is protected by a publication ban.

Keats was fired after the allegations surfaced.

The 46-year-old mother of two described how she was skating with family and friends on the morning of Jan. 26, 2013 when she fell and broke her ankle. She was taken to hospital in Windsor, where doctors determined she would require surgery in Halifax.

She was given two ibuprofen and the Windsor hospital administered an IV so they could set her ankle.

The woman told court she lost consciousness and she woke up some time later. She admitted she'd lost track of time but said she was awake and alert when Keats and another paramedic arrived at the Windsor hospital to transport her to Halifax.

The woman said that on the drive to Halifax, Keats was in the back of the ambulance with her. She said shortly after they started moving, he told her he had to check her vital signs. The woman said Keats reached under her shirt with a stethoscope and proceeded to move it back and forth across her chest. She said he then reached into her underwear and touched her there. She said she wasn't sure at the time whether it was proper procedure because she'd never been in an ambulance before. But she said the incident made her feel uncomfortable.

The woman told court that Keats repeated the procedure as the ambulance approached Halifax. She said as he moved his hand towards her waist she looked away because she was uncomfortable. She said Keats said "sorry" before proceeding.

'A slap in the face'

Justice Felix Cacchione cautioned jurors about putting too much weight on the woman's account of what Keats may have said to her.

The woman didn't act on her concerns for six months. She said on June 16, 2013 she saw Keats' photograph in a newspaper. She said seeing the photo was a "slap in the face." She said she told her husband, "That's my paramedic."

It was only then that the woman decided to go to police. When the Crown asked her why she replied "I have two daughters and I owed it to them to come forward."

At that point in her testimony, the woman sobbed and the court took a short break.

'At their most vulnerable'

On cross-examination, the woman admitted to defence counsel that she told police she didn't feel "horribly violated" by the incident.

The defence also asked her to read a section from her police statement in which she said she didn't feel she was sexually violated.

The woman said it was only after she talked to friends who worked in medical professions that she realized that what Keats did to her was inappropriate.

In his opening statement to the jury, Crown prosecutor Sean McCarroll said of the four women who've complained about Keats "Their stories are so similar it defies coincidence."

"He took advantage of them when they were at their most vulnerable," McCarroll said.

Four weeks have been set aside for this trial before an eight-man, six-woman jury.