Former senator Don Meredith has been found not guilty of all charges in his sexual assault and criminal harassment trial, bringing an end to a years-long scandal that cast a shadow over the Canadian Senate.
Meredith, who faced three counts of sexual assault and one count of criminal harassment, was accused of inappropriate behaviour toward a former employee who alleged unwanted touching, kissing, and abuse of power during her time working for him.
The verdict, delivered Wednesday, closes a turbulent chapter for the upper chamber, which has struggled with the fallout from the case and the broader questions it raised about workplace safety and accountability within Parliament.
Meredith had resigned from the Senate in 2017 before he could be formally expelled following earlier allegations of a sexual relationship with a teenager — a controversy that deeply damaged the Senate’s public image.
The court’s decision marks the conclusion of one of the most high-profile misconduct cases involving a Canadian parliamentarian in recent history, though it leaves ongoing debate over ethics and oversight in the Senate.
