Nova Scotia not responsible for pedophile Cesar Lalo, says premier

Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil says the province should not be held responsible for the conduct of convicted pedophile Cesar Lalo, who worked as a provincial probation and parole officer in the 1970s and 1980s.

"I don't think anyone can suggest that we can be responsible for every employee that actually works for the province and what they do 24 hours a day outside of it," McNeil said Tuesday.

Lalo was convicted of sexually assaulting more than two dozen boys during the years he worked for the province. He was declared a long-term offender, served nine years in prison and also served a lengthy period of supervision in the community.

A number of Lalo's victims sued him and the province.

Two of his victims won court settlements worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Thirty other cases were settled without going to court while 21 of Lalo's former victims say they are still owed compensation.

One of those victims spoke with CBC News last week and said his ordeal has been a "nightmare."

"I've been waiting ever since 1996 to get into the courts to tell my side of the story. For some reason it's just held up somewhere. I don't know where," said the man, who CBC News is calling Bruce.

Bruce was assaulted by Lalo while he served six months probation for shoplifting. He was 11 years old at the time.

Bruce questioned why the province couldn't settle with Lalo's victims the same way it settled with abuse survivors at the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children.

McNeil spearheaded that settlement, which led to an emotional apology last month to the orphanage's abuse victims.

"The response for the Home for Colored Children was an acknowledgement that they were in our care and we did an inadequate job of it," McNeil said.

He disputes the comparison between the two cases.

"We certainly understand the anxiety and frustration that those victims are feeling," McNeil said.

"But as a province we need to look at where is it we can provide the best support and where is it that we take ownership and responsibility."

In the two lawsuits where the province and Lalo were successfully sued, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court found that the province was vicariously liable for Lalo's actions because he was a provincial employee when the abuse happened.