A Burnaby man convicted of criminally harassing his ex-wife through thousands of emails and a revenge website just got out of prison after serving 46 months – but is now going back behind bars because he refuses to stop tormenting her despite repeated warnings by a judge.
The entire case of Patrick Fox shows just how hard it is for the justice system to stop some men from harassing women.
Starting in early 2014, Fox set out on a campaign to make the life of his ex-wife “as miserable as possible, hoping to drive her to suicide if that could be done within the confines of the law,” according to B.C. Supreme Court documents.
He created a website in her name, posting private information about her and people associated with her, maligning her as a white supremacist, drug addict and child abuser.
“Mr. Fox tormented (her) in every way he could, taking considerable time and effort to do so,” stated a Nov. 10, 2017 sentencing decision by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Heather Holmes.
A jury had found Fox guilty in June 2017 of criminal harassment and weapons charges. (Fox had shipped four handguns, ammunition and a disassembled Mauser rifle illegally to the U.S., where his ex-wife lives.)
Fox recently completed his sentence and was released, but then was re-arrested, according to a Vancouver Sun article, when new allegations about his ex-wife appeared on the website, a breach of Fox’s probation.
It’s not the first time he’s breached his probation conditions.
Fox had already been found guilty of breaking two of those conditions by leaving the province and being within 100 metres of the U.S. border on March 19, 2019, according to court documents.
“Victims of internet harassment face significant barriers to obtaining a remedy,” said David Georgetti, a lawyer for Fox’s ex-wife, in the Sun article. “Perpetrators often hide behind the veil of anonymity. Even when hosting services co-operate, which is rare, new accounts simply spring up under pseudonyms — sometimes hours later.”
Georgetti says legislative reform is needed and, well, this case and far too many others clearly show that is necessary because existing laws are not getting the job done.
It’s terrifying to think that men like Fox are willing to go to prison over and over again just to continue their harassment.
It’s yet another sign of just how pervasive misogyny is in our society and how behind we are in dealing with it.
I’ve covered too many cases like this. When I worked at a newspaper in Maple Ridge, there was a case in which a woman named Karen Beck finally broke away from her abusive husband after years of him abusing and controlling her.
She filed for divorce and ended up meeting with him at the family house to discuss its sale. He murdered her and set the house on fire in 2007, and then killed himself.
Again, these are not isolated incidents. They happen all the time. Our society is rife with disgusting hatred towards women and our justice system is often incapable of protecting women.
Perhaps the Fox case can spur some legislative changes, although I’m not hopeful.
- With additional reporting by Cornelia Naylor
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
