A former Mountie plagued by false allegations of sexual assault finally received a rare public apology from the Alberta government.
John Hudak, 54, sued the RCMP and Alberta Justice for $5 million for damaging his reputation. Last week, they settled out of court for an undisclosed amount and public apologies from the force and the province.
John Hudak received an apology from Alberta Justice Minister Ron Stevens on Wednesday.
(CBC)
"We do apologize to Mr. Hudak and his family for the distress they've suffered as a result of this," Justice Minister Ron Stevens said Wednesday.
In 2000, Hudak was accused of rape by a woman in Rocky Mountain House, northwest of Calgary, where he was stationed as an RCMP officer.
The woman turned out to have a history of harassment and a criminal record that the RCMP did not check before laying charges against Hudak.
Despite a judge throwing the weak case out of court and convicting the woman of perjury and fabricating evidence, the allegations followed Hudak's career until he was compelled to quit the force.
On Wednesday, the justice minister admitted the Crown did not have enough evidence to pursue a trial.
Hudak, 54, told CBC News that he's still hoping for a face-to-face apology.
"I would hope that they would entertain that given the gravity of what happened here," he said from his home in Trail, B.C. "It does tell the people of Alberta that the government of the day is prepared to accept responsibility for their employees' actions."
Stevens said Wednesday he wasn't sure whether he'll speak to Hudak personally, but he would send him a formal letter of apology.
The RCMP said it will send its apology later next week.
"I want to move on with my life, and for 7½ years I haven't been able to do that," Hudak said.
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