Appeal rejected for third trial of retired RCMP officer convicted of sexual assault of minor

A retired RCMP officer convicted twice of sexually assaulting a nine-year-old girl in 2014 has lost his chance for a third trial on the charges.

According to a decision issued May 16, Robert Dowd’s appeal for a third trial was dismissed, keeping his sentence of 12 months in custody intact.

Dowd, a former RCMP officer, was charged following an incident that was said to have occurred at a Sept. 2014 bonfire in the Interlake region of Manitoba.

A girl, who was nine at the time of the incident, claimed Dowd touched her inappropriately. The victim cannot be identified.

Dowd was tried and convicted in 2017, and was sentenced to one year in custody, but appealed in 2019. During the appeal, he argued his trial was compromised by a judge invoking a rule of law against him in assessing his credibility.

Dowd’s convictions were quashed and a new trial was ordered in 2021, where he was convicted for a second time, and he appealed the decision once more, again questioning the ruling over his credibility.

CTV News Winnipeg has reached out to Dowd’s lawyer to see if he will appeal the ruling.

The family of the victim told CTV News Winnipeg she has fully recovered from the ordeal and is moving on with her life.

-With files from CTV’s Jon Hendricks and Simon Stones.