What's interesting is that there is only a 1 to 3% chance of catching HIV from intercourse. I thought the percentage was much higher.
Mar 22, 2007 11:29 AM
Betsy Powell
Crime Reporter
A 26-year-old Hamilton woman has been charged with sexual assault after she allegedly failed to disclose she had HIV to a man. Police are warning others who may have had sex with her to seek medical advice and contact investigators.
Robin Lee ST Clair tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS in March 2003 and is required by law to reveal her condition to partners, police said today. Toronto police began their investigation after a complainant came forward last weekend. Det. Joseph de Lottinville didn't want to "go into" how the man surmised her condition except to say "it was just a comment made to him."
Police executed search warrants to obtain her health records and confirm that she's HIV positive. She was arrested Sunday and charged and released after a court appearance Monday.
She is known to frequent bars in Hamilton, Brantford and Toronto "and has been sexually active with men she meets at these bars. She does not consistently disclose her HIV status and is believed to have had unprotected sexual relations with uninformed partners," a police news release said.
Lottinville of 32 Division described her as "reckless, not malicious."
"I think she just doesn't care," he told a news conference. Police are talking to at least 10 men, he added. Hamilton police had previously conducted an investigation after receiving complaints. Lottinville declined to say what happened to that probe.
Lottinville didn't know how was she infected
Earlier this year, a Toronto doctor called for "universal testing" for the virus that causes AIDS because "literally thousands of people" across the country are infected and don't realize it. Dr. Brian Cornelson was testifying at the sentencing hearing for Vincent Walkem after he infected his 18-year-old lover with the virus, ignoring orders from health officials that he had to warn her and a second woman of his condition. He was sentenced to four years and eight months in jail.
Anyone having sex with a person who is HIV positive has a 1 to 3 per cent chance of getting the infection, the doctor testified.
In 2005, Jennifer Murphy, pleaded guilty in Barrie to aggravated sexual assault for engaging in sexual intercourse and oral sex with two men at Canadian Forces Base Borden. The two men, one a Canadian soldier both tested negative for the virus.
She was sentenced to 12 months of house arrest and a three-year probation. Last month, Murphy, now 33, of St. John's was charged again with aggravated sexual assault.
Anyone with information about ST Clair is asked to contact 32 Division Criminal Investigation Bureau at 416-808-3204, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or online at www.222tips.com.
