WARNING: This article contains information 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 Archway Society for Domestic Peace at 250-542-1122. All programs are easily accessible, free of charge and confidential.
Facing two counts of sexual assault, a former chiropractor was found guilty of one count in Vernon Court on Wednesday, July 9.
Murray Kievit, 60, was found not guilty of one of the counts, both of which come from a single complainant in relation to two separate chiropractor treatment sessions two days apart in Vernon in December 2021.
Justice David Ruse handed the verdict down and set aside July 30 to fix a date for sentencing.
Ruse found that Crown counsel did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt on Count 1 that Kievit's touching went beyond a professional realm. The complainant had already had three appointments with Kievit and was bothered by a sore neck, shoulder, back, and hip. Kievit touched the woman above her breast while massaging her pectoral muscles, though the woman did not complain to Kievit.
On Count 2, Ruse concluded that Crown did prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Kievit's touching of the complaint's pelvic area went beyond a professional measure, even though the complainant did not give her consent to be touched in that area, and found Kievit guilty of sexual assault
That appointment was a scheduled visit that came two days after the incident with the woman's breast. She did not register a complaint with Kievit, but rather with the College of Complementary Health Professionals of British Columbia. That complaint came two days after the fifth visit.
Kievit, who had five members of family and friends in court Wednesday for support, left the courtroom quickly after the decision.
One woman in the courtroom could be heard crying at Ruse's decisions.
At the time of the offences, Kievit was a chiropractor at White House Wellness Centre, which he founded in 2006.
Last summer, amid the sexual assault allegations, he had his registration permanently cancelled by the College of Complementary Health Professionals of British Columbia.
He previously told the court that he retired from the profession after his 30-plus year career.
