David Sparks sentenced for violating publication ban
Posted Mar 30, 2015 03:23:53 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
HALIFAX – A Halifax man who violated a publication ban by naming a sexual assault victim on a Facebook page has been sentenced to a $1,950 fine and one year of probation.
David Winslow Sparks pleaded guilty in January to violating a publication ban that protected the woman’s identity.
The 62-year-old man posted the woman’s name on a Facebook group page in support of Lyle Howe, a local lawyer who was convicted last year of sexually assaulting her.
Howe has filed an appeal in that case.
The woman who was named by Sparks said in a victim impact statement she was blindsided when her name was posted.
The Facebook group had more than 6,000 members at the time Sparks used the victim’s name in his post, according to a screenshot presented in court.
Judge Alanna Murphy of the provincial court imposed a $1,500 fine for the offence and a $450 victim surcharge.
