VANCOUVER - A teen who police had said was drugged and repeatedly raped at a rave party two years ago says she's devastated sex assault charges have been stayed.
The teen cannot be identified by court order, but she appeared at a news conference with her father Wednesday, a day after the Crown made its decision saying there wasn't enough evidence to get a conviction.
The teen said there's "no doubt" in her mind that she was sexually assaulted and she said she now understands why women are afraid of reporting to police when they've been raped.
"Now I know. It's a he-said, she-said thing," she told reporters gathered at a community in Pitt Meadows, a bedroom community east of Vancouver where the rave took place.
The teen said it's too easy for offenders to get off by claiming the woman consented to sex.
When police first began their investigation, officers said numerous bystanders watched the assault and pictures of it were circulated on the Internet.
Earlier this month, a teenaged boy who posted some of those images online was sentenced to 12 months' probation and ordered to write an apology to the victim.
Another man, Dennis Warrington, is charged with making and distributing pornography as a result of the attack.
But the sex assault charge against Colton Ashton McMorris was stayed Tuesday. The Crown has one year to gather more evidence and re-activate the charge.
McMorris's lawyer said his client has had his life ruined following publicity around the high-profile case.
Tony Serka said the effects of the RCMP news conference that referred to the attack as a gang rape will continue for his client if anyone, including potential employers, decides to Google McMorris' name.
Serka said the stay in court proves McMorris is innocent.
Neil Mackenzie, spokesman for the Crown, said the stay of proceedings was entered Tuesday after the "experienced prosecutor" on the case conducted a thorough assessment of the evidence.
"The review included interviewing the numerous potential witnesses," Mackenzie said.
The teen said she believes a "code of silence" has prevented people who were at the party from speaking out.
"I'm asking you to please come forward...it would mean the world to me and my family."
The decision to stay the charge sparked outrage from Vancouver Rape Relief and Women's Shelter, which said in a statement it is a betrayal of the woman, who was 16 at the time of the attack.
"We urge those in the community who witnessed the attack to come forward and tell us what they know," the group said in a news release.
"'Not enough evidence' means police and Crown failure. We refuse to accept 'the unlikelihood of conviction' as a reason to keep this man from facing justice."
