Just for Laughs founder lashes out at media after 2nd day on stand at civil trial

CBC

12 hours ago

The founder of Montreal's Just for Laughs festival broke his silence on Thursday about sexual assault allegations, accusing reporters of denying him justice as he emerged from a second day on the stand at a civil trial.
Gilbert Rozon, 70, is testifying in his own defence in response to allegations from nine Quebec women who are seeking $14 million in damages over allegations of sexual assault and misconduct in Quebec Superior Court.
He has denied the allegations.
Soon after the testimony, Rozon sparred with reporters about how they had covered his case.
"Convicted, executed the same day, and then I lost everything. So what more do you want? It was the business I built with my own hands and my teams for 35 years, all the women who were at the top were kicked out," the Just for Laughs founder said following his second day on the stand.
"I lost everything, I was ruined. I'm here for justice, not even for myself, it's so that the law remains."
Earlier in the day, the Quebec impresario testified he regretted pleading guilty to a charge involving a 19-year-old female croupier during a 1998 party at the Manoir Rouville-Campbell in Mont-St-Hilaire, Que.
Rozon told the court he was under immense pressure to resolve the case, which caused his entertainment company to be "plunged into a media hellhole" when it was made public.
"We were losing tens of thousands of dollars a day. It quickly reached $2 million," Rozon told the court.
After meeting with family, he said he was encouraged to settle the matter and plead guilty. He eventually received an unconditional discharge on appeal.
"They told me it was better to settle for the good of the company," Rozon told the court. "But for a long time I resented those who had ordered me to do that because I felt like I was betraying my convictions, my principles."
All of the women suing Rozon in the civil trial have testified about their experiences and faced cross-examination.
Rozon said outside the courtroom he would answer all allegations made during the trial.
"If I don't defend myself, it will become a form of legalized extortion, and that's what's happening," Rozon said. "What do I have to gain here? … Explain it to me, please."
His testimony is expected to continue over several days in the coming weeks.
"A couple of weeks from now they (will) ask me all the questions and you can trust them to push me to the limit, so I'll answer it," Rozon said. "You can be sure of that."
Rozon's second day on the stand also touched on his lengthy career as an entertainment mogul, discussing the rise of his Just for Laughs comedy empire, as well as his popularity in France as a no-nonsense judge on "La France a un incroyable talent," a show based on the U.S. version, "America's Got Talent."
Rozon was a star on the French show until he was let go due to his legal troubles in 2017.
Rozon also repeated to reporters something his lawyer had raised at the outset of the civil trial: that he was a "scapegoat" during the #MeToo movement.
The trial before Quebec Superior Court Justice Chantal Tremblay is the latest stage in a winding legal battle that began as a class-action lawsuit brought by numerous women calling themselves Les Courageuses.
It was converted into individual suits after a 2020 Quebec Court of Appeal ruling.
Nine women — Patricia Tulasne, Lyne Charlebois, Anne-Marie Charrette, Annick Charrette, Sophie Moreau, Danie Frenette, Guylaine Courcelles, Mary Sicari, and Martine Roy — filed lawsuits against Rozon.
Only one of a series of police complaints against Rozon resulted in a criminal trial. In that case, he was found not guilty on charges of rape and indecent assault connected to events alleged to have taken place in 1980 involving Annick Charette.
The prosecution declined to press criminal charges in 13 other complaints.