N.S. veteran receives critical injury benefit after trauma from alleged military sex assault

In what may be a Canadian first, a Nova Scotia veteran says she feels validated now that the trauma she experienced following an alleged sexual assault has been recognized as a critical injury, and she has been compensated accordingly.

Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) first denied Zandra Pinette the critical injury benefit in 2016 — two years after the alleged assault — but last month, the Veterans Appeal and Review Board (VARB) overturned that decision, granting her the tax-free lump sum payment of $84,203.

"That was validation for me," said Pinette, during a recent interview at her home in New Glasgow, N.S.

The critical injury benefit is given to members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have experienced a severe and traumatic service-related injury as a result of a sudden, single incident on or after April 1, 2006, that has caused a severe impairment to their quality of life.

As of Nov. 10, 238 Canadians had received the benefit, which was created in 2015 as an update to the Veterans Well-being Act, which came into force in 2006.

'I woke up in horror'

Pinette, 43, joined the Canadian Armed Forces as a social worker in 2011. She wanted to help soldiers process their trauma but says less than three years later she was sexually assaulted and wound up diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder herself.

She says she attended her first mess dinner at Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, N.B., on Feb. 7, 2014. Pinette says there was a lot of alcohol served and the next thing she remembers is waking up with a senior officer.

WATCH | Veteran awarded critical injury benefit hopes others get same validation:

N.S. veteran wins appeal of paid injury benefit for PTSD from Veterans Affairs

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Featured VideoA Nova Scotia woman who worked for Canada's Armed Forces and alleges she was sexually assaulted appealed Veterans Affairs' denial of paid benefits for PTSD. She says she feels validated and considers it a win for people dealing with mental harm from working in the military.

"I had no idea where I was, and so I woke up in horror, no clothing on," she said.

Pinette said she found her clothes scattered around the floor, her pantyhose were torn, and her blouse was missing several buttons.

Within three months of the alleged incident, which Pinette says she reported days after it happened, she was medically released from the military and diagnosed with PTSD.

"I didn't feel safe to be on Base Gagetown," she said. "I would sit in the living room with a knife beside me, that's how I would sit all day."

A spokesperson for the Department of National Defence declined to answer any questions about whether the man Pinette has accused of assaulting her was ever disciplined, citing the Privacy Act. She did confirm he is an active member of the Canadian Armed Forces.

CBC news is not naming him because he was never charged.

CBC News has reviewed what's known as the statement of case, which was assembled by the Veterans Appeal and Review Board, and includes files from Veterans Affairs Canada, the Department of National Defence and Pinette's medical records, including those from her appointment with a sexual assault nurse examiner three days after the alleged assault.

Very specific criteria for benefit

The 2016 decision from Veterans Affairs Canada states, "We acknowledge that you endured a traumatic event which has significantly impacted your quality of life." But it goes on to say Pinette did not meet the criteria to receive the critical injury benefit.

The criteria are very specific.

For example, 31 people have received the payout — which is always the same — because they sustained an amputation at or above the wrist or ankle, eight because they sustained quadriplegia, paraplegia, hemiplegia or complete paralysis of a limb for a minimum of 84 consecutive days, and 114 because they were admitted to a hospital for acute or rehabilitative inpatient care for less than 84 consecutive days during which they received "complex treatments."

The VARB awarded Pinette the benefit because it found she met the criteria that stipulates a traumatic event resulted in the need for physical assistance with the performance of three activities for daily living for 112 consecutive days immediately following the alleged incident.

Pinette said she required the help of her mother for things such as showering, reminding her to eat and household chores.

The VARB decision, dated Oct.18, states, "the panel finds the evidence demonstrates the veteran was completely debilitated by the traumatic event."

1,870 people have been denied the benefit, but that includes people who applied and weren't even veterans.

After first applying for the benefit in August 2016, Pinette decided to appeal the VAC decision after she read veteran Fabian Henry's story last year. Henry was diagnosed with PTSD following a tour in Afghanistan in 2007, during which he witnessed two soldiers killed in combat.

Henry was also originally denied and won his appeal in Nov. 2022 — believed to be the first in Canada to receive the benefit for a psychological injury.

"It was nice to be recognized for that injury, but what I seen was a gateway for everybody that had a critical injury with mental health," he said.

Pinette says she was told by a VAC employee that she is the first to receive the critical injury benefit following military sexual trauma.

Benefit under review by Veterans Affairs Canada

Veterans Affairs says it can't confirm whether Pinette is the first because the department doesn't track decisions by condition or cause, rather by criteria.

The department agreed to an interview for this story, only to cancel it the next day, saying it could not do the interview because the critical injury benefit is currently under review and the department is "determining next steps."

In a statement, a spokesperson said VAC began reviewing the program in the winter of 2023 after the VARB overturned a decision last fall relating to a psychological injury.

"The aim of the review was to ensure that the CIB is awarded to injured Veterans who meet the benefit's eligibility criteria as approved by Parliament," the statement said.

The spokesperson said the bulk of the review is complete, but work is underway to ensure the language in the policy is clear, including as it pertains to psychological injuries.

More statistics required, survivors group says

Donna Van Leusden Riguidel, a retired major from the Canadian Armed Forces and a survivor of military sexual harassment herself, co-founded the Survivors Perspective Consulting Group, which works to educate members of the forces about military sexual trauma.

She said it's great news that there are more benefits and resources available to people who experience this kind of trauma. She said she'd never heard of the critical injury benefit until CBC News contacted her about this story, and has now applied for it herself.

She said it's a problem that VAC can't confirm whether Pinette is the first to receive this award as a result of military sexual trauma because there are already too many missing statistics in this area.

"We need to have a better idea of the scope of what this type of injury can cause in somebody's life," she said.

Pinette said it's important for her to speak out as a Black woman, as a mother, and as a social worker. She knows she had more resources than many women in similar circumstances and hopes hearing her story helps others.

"If you aren't validated, you can't heal," she said.