Prosecutors in Nova Scotia on April 26 dropped sexual assault charges against Rev. Michael Boyd, rector of St. Andrew’s Church, Hantsport. A spokesman for the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia said the case was dropped for lack of evidence.
Glenn Alan Johnson, who now lives in Winnipeg, filed a complaint against Mr. Boyd and former priest Wayne Lynch, claiming he had been molested when he was an altar boy in the late 1970s. Mr. Lynch pleaded guilty to indecent assault last January, is serving a two-year conditional sentence and has relinquished the priesthood. Mr. Boyd has maintained he is innocent.
The Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island has begun its own investigation of the charges against Mr. Boyd, Archbishop Arthur Peters said. “We’re pleased that a priest has not been convicted of criminal offences. Nevertheless, there’s still a question that remains for the church to address: was there inappropriate behaviour entertained by the priest in these incidences?” he said.
“With respect to the church’s canon of discipline, it comes under the umbrella of immorality.” The investigation is “at all times acting on the presumption of innocence,” he said.
