Port Moody Mayor Rob Vagramov is opposing a petition from Lower Mainland media outlets to access court documents related to the alternative measures program he completed as part of his sexual assault case.
In a filing submitted last month, lawyers for Vagramov state the courts should respect its own policies regarding media access to provincial court documents.
"The respondent Vagramov asserts a privacy interest in all records sought by the petitioner and reserves the right to amend his response should the materials sought be further particularized," the document said.
The court filing is in response to a petition in December by the CBC, CTV and Global News, which argued information on the alternative measures undertaken by Vagramov should be disclosed "subject to the open court principle." The public has a right to scrutinize the measures the same way they would for "sentencing records or records of any other act in the administration of justice," the petition stated.
"Even if those seeking to maintain the sealing order can meet the heavy onus to show that the sealing order is necessary to prevent a genuine risk to the administration of justice, only the portions of the materials which meet that test should remain sealed and the remainder released," the documents state.
Vagramov's legal issues date back to March 2019, when special prosecutor Michael Klein announced one charge of sexual assault against Port Moody's then-newly elected mayor following a three-month investigation.
Last November, the charges were stayed after the Crown said Vagramov had successfully completed an alternative measures program. But details of those measures were not released and the special prosecutor has refused to provide documents to the public.
During a press conference when he announced his return to work after taking a leave to deal with his legal issues, Vagramov told reporters that an apology to the complainant was all that was involved in the alternative measures. He called the incident, which occurred in Coquitlam in 2015, an "awkward date" and has denied he did anything criminal.
When the charges were stayed, Vagramov initially told reporters that he was "exonerated" but later walked back that claim, which drew some public criticism, saying he was not exonerated but "relieved of the charge."
