The case of a 25-year-old man accused of yelling a vulgar phrase at a female reporter during the CTV News at Six was in Halifax provincial court Thursday.
CTV Atlantic was on location at a pub in downtown Halifax on Dec. 29 to report about the World Junior Hockey Championship at the time of the incident.
Heather Butts was reporting live from the pub when a man walked into the shot and allegedly made a crude gesture and uttered a statement many people found offensive.
Nash John Gracie has been charged with one count each of public mischief and causing a disturbance in connection with the incident.
Gracie’s lawyer appeared on his client’s behalf and asked for more time to review the Crown’s evidence. The case is due back in court on April 20.
“We applaud Halifax Regional Police for pursuing this matter,” said Bell Media spokesperson Matthew Garrow in a statement last month. “The harassment experienced by Heather Butts and other reporters is completely unacceptable.”
The sexually explicit phrase has been yelled at other female reporters across Canada and in the United States.
In a recent case, 28-year-old Justin Penton acknowledged he yelled the phrase at NTV reporter Heather Gillis last April as she taped an interview outside the dump in St. John’s, N.L.
Penton was charged with one count of causing a public disturbance. However, Judge Colin Flynn dismissed the charge, saying the incident was offensive, but did not meet legal precedents for interfering with the public peace.
