'Justice prevailed': Jack Whalen feeling relief as N.L. removes barrier to abuse lawsuits

Jack Whalen, the man who challenged the Newfoundland and Labrador government to change its statute of limitations on child abuse lawsuits, is relieved to be one step closer to the closure he seeks.

The provincial government passed a bill Tuesday that removes time limits for victims of childhood abuse, including assault, battery and unlawful confinement.

That law was holding up Whalen's efforts to sue the province over his treatment at the Whitbourne Boys' Home, a youth detention centre, in the 1970s.

"I'm elated. I've been waiting for this for years. Finally, something is going to be done about it," Whalen told As It Happens on Thursday. "Justice prevailed."

Whalen estimates he spent more than 700 days in solitary confinement while in custody at the institution. His lawsuit alleges he wasn't allowed to go to school, read books or watch TV. He was allowed to leave the cell only to shower three times a week and to use the washroom.

The government settled a class-action lawsuit in 2022 with a group of former Whitbourne Boys' Home inmates who alleged they were sexually abused. They were able to bring forward their claims because the province does not have time limits in cases of institutional sexual abuse. Whalen wasn't able to join the group, however, since his abuse was not sexual. 

LISTEN | Jack and Brittany Whalen speak with As It Happens about their victory: 

As It Happens6:49‘Finally, justice prevailed,’ says N.L. man who spent 730 days in solitary confinement as a child

As a kid, Jack Whalen spent two years locked in a tiny solitary confinement cell at Newfoundland's notorious Whitbourne Boys' Home. But a statue of limitations for non-sexual abuse keep him from getting justice. This week, the provincial legislature removed those time limits, removing a hurdle in his lawsuit against the province. Whalen and his lawyer Brittany Whalen — who is also his daughter — spoke to As It Happens host Nil Köksal.

In his case, the provincial government asserted the limitations period had passed and he was unable to be compensated for the trauma stemming from his experiences.

With the changes passed on Tuesday, Whalen should be able to proceed with his case in court. He has a trial scheduled for October.

His daughter, Brittany, learned of her father's experiences when she was 16. She asked her mother why her father couldn't help with her homework, and they decided it was time to tell her.

"I couldn't unsee it. I kept picturing my dad as a youth, as a child, locked away in a cell all by himself," she said. "And I couldn't turn my back on that and I certainly don't understand how anybody could. I knew someone had to bring it to justice to give that 13-year-old boy a voice, and I had a sense that it had to be me."

Brittany Whalen became a lawyer with the goal of helping her father, but the Limitations Act meant the law was working against her. With that now settled, she's looking forward to moving ahead with the case.

"I'm certainly pleased that the amendments were made to the Limitations Act," she said. "A sense of relief. We were prepared to challenge the law in court using the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Happy it didn't come to that, but certainly there's still a lot of work to be done."

There's also a need to work quickly. Jack Whalen was diagnosed with cancer in the middle of his yearlong protest against the provincial government. Treatment has been difficult on his body, but his mind has been fixated on his legal case.

"It's been a very long journey and a difficult process mentally, physically, emotionally, and I'd just like to see him have the ability to focus solely on healing and recovering," Brittany Whalen said.

Jack Whalen said he'd like to have compensation for his family in case his health continues to decline. 

"It's been a long time coming," he said.

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