Miles Jarvis Clark 'relieved' to see sexual interference charge stayed
Lawyer says man who lived in former Rocky Ridge day home has been 'vilified' since accusation surfaced
Charges have been stayed against a Calgary man who had been accused of sexual interference after a four-year-old boy told his parents he was fondled at a private day home in Rocky Ridge.
The accused, Miles Jarvis Clark, is "relieved, to say the least," according to his lawyer Alain Hepner.
"He's been vilified in the press and by friends," Hepner said, adding that Clark's wife had to stop operating her day home because of the accusation.
Clark was charged in February with sexual interference with a child under 16 based on the allegation from the young child.
At the time, it was alleged that Clark, who lives in the home but was not a childcare worker, had committed the offence when he and the child were alone.
Alberta Justice spokeswoman Michelle Davio said the charge was stayed because the circumstances of the case had changed, but she wouldn't go into detail.
"At the time charges were laid, the Crown had a reasonable likelihood of conviction; recent events have led the Crown to conclude that there is no longer a reasonable likelihood of conviction on this file," Davio said in an email.
The stayed charge means the case against Clark has been effectively suspended and will be dropped in a year's time.
It is possible for stayed charges to be revived within a year, but that is rare.