Assault allegations are now attached to a name on a London street and park.
Trooper Mark Wilson, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2006, is the namesake of a park near Wonderland Road and Sunningdale Road, and a street near the Hale-Trafalgar overpass.
Now, there are calls to remove his name from these places, after the London Free Press reported that Wilson pleaded guilty to assault in a military court-martial in 2004.
“As a city committed to creating a safe London for women and girls, we take this very seriously,” Mayor Ed Holder told London News Today in a statement on Wednesday.
Wilson’s name isn’t only on signs – it has also been used for major fundraising initiatives in the community ever since he was killed by a roadside bomb near Kandahar.
“We recognize how difficult this must be for the woman who has come forward and we stand with all survivors,” Holder added in his statement. “In light of what we’ve learned today, I’ve asked staff to review all instances where his name has been used in our city, and based on their review, I intend to bring a motion forward to the next council meeting.”
London lawyer Phil Millar is representing Wilson’s family.
“It’s devastating to a family who lost a son in service of the country,” Millar said of the story being published on Wednesday. “The legacy of what he’s done has been overwhelmingly positive. For me, my heart goes out to the mother of Mark Wilson, who is trying to do something positive after the loss of her son, and now this comes out.”
According to the Free Press, Wilson pleaded guilty to assaulting a woman and drunkenness at that court martial in 2004 when he was stationed in Quebec. However, he was found not guilty of sexual assault.
“16 years later (after his death), Mark Wilson can’t speak to explain what happened,” Millar said when asked about the guilty plea. “If you get a lawyer who says ‘hey, take this deal’, then you move on with your life.”
“I don’t understand what the benefit is to society. This charity is helping raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for people,” Millar said. “(The story) coming out now seems fundamentally unfair and unhelpful.”
Millar questioned the process of the case and wondered why a plea down to assault was offered in a sexual assault case.
“I’m just disappointed by it coming out at this point,” he added. “You either prove sexual assault, or you withdraw it.”
The woman Wilson assaulted spoke to the Free Press about the case, as did her husband, who said he “couldn’t live there” if his street was named after somebody who had been convicted of assault.
