{"id":100140,"date":"2025-12-09T08:27:37","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T13:27:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/?p=100140"},"modified":"2025-12-09T08:27:37","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T13:27:37","slug":"fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/09\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\/","title":{"rendered":"Fourth trial ordered for Nunavut teacher accused of sexual abuse"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Editor\u2019s note: This story contains details that some readers may find disturbing. For the fourth time since 2018, a former Sanikiluaq teacher will stand trial relating to charges of sexual abuse against Inuit children. Johnny Meeko successfully appealed his conviction of 29-year sentence for the alleged abuse that spanned 1984 to 2003. Meeko can ask the Nunavut Court of Justice to be released from prison on Jan. 5, 2026, when a new trial will be scheduled. The previous judge made errors in admission of evidence and instruction to the jury, creating an unfair trial for Meeko, the Nunavut Court of Appeal ruled in a decision released on Dec. 5. Specifically, one piece of witness testimony was ruled to have been&#8230; <\/p>\n<div class=\"pmpro\">\n<div class=\"pmpro_card pmpro_content_message\">\n<div class=\"pmpro_card_content\">This content is for Yearly Subscription, Yearly Subscription &#8211; Corporate, Print Subscription Only, and Canada Print and Online members only.<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?action=register\">Register<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"pmpro_card_actions pmpro_font-medium\">Already a member? <a href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Ftheturtleislandnews.com%2Findex.php%2F2025%2F12%2F09%2Ffourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse%2F\">Log in here<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Editor\u2019s note: This story contains details that some readers may find disturbing. For the fourth time since 2018, a former Sanikiluaq teacher will stand trial relating to charges of sexual abuse against Inuit children. Johnny Meeko successfully appealed his conviction of 29-year sentence for the alleged abuse that spanned 1984 to 2003. Meeko can ask the Nunavut Court of Justice to be released from prison on Jan. 5, 2026, when a new trial will be scheduled. The previous judge made errors in admission of evidence and instruction to the jury, creating an unfair trial for Meeko, the Nunavut Court of Appeal ruled in a decision released on Dec. 5. Specifically, one piece of witness testimony was ruled to have been... <\/p>\n<div class=\"pmpro\"><div class=\"pmpro_card pmpro_content_message\"><div class=\"pmpro_card_content\">This content is for Yearly Subscription, Yearly Subscription - Corporate, Print Subscription Only, and Canada Print and Online members only.<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?action=register\">Register<\/a><\/div><div class=\"pmpro_card_actions pmpro_font-medium\">Already a member? <a href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Ftheturtleislandnews.com%2Findex.php%2F2025%2F12%2F09%2Ffourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse%2F\">Log in here<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":101363,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-national-news","category-ticker","pmpro-level-required","pmpro-level-3","pmpro-level-2","pmpro-level-5","pmpro-level-4","pmpro-level-6","pmpro-level-7","pmpro-no-access"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Fourth trial ordered for Nunavut teacher accused of sexual abuse - The Turtle Island News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/09\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fourth trial ordered for Nunavut teacher accused of sexual abuse - The Turtle Island News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Editor\u2019s note: This story contains details that some readers may find disturbing. For the fourth time since 2018, a former Sanikiluaq teacher will stand trial relating to charges of sexual abuse against Inuit children. Johnny Meeko successfully appealed his conviction of 29-year sentence for the alleged abuse that spanned 1984 to 2003. Meeko can ask the Nunavut Court of Justice to be released from prison on Jan. 5, 2026, when a new trial will be scheduled. The previous judge made errors in admission of evidence and instruction to the jury, creating an unfair trial for Meeko, the Nunavut Court of Appeal ruled in a decision released on Dec. 5. Specifically, one piece of witness testimony was ruled to have been\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/09\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Turtle Island News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TurtleIslandNews\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-09T13:27:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/facebooklogo.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"725\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"483\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lynda Powless\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@newsattheturtle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@newsattheturtle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lynda Powless\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/index.php\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/09\\\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/index.php\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/09\\\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Lynda Powless\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7b188fd7503577895ef8b306988cd458\"},\"headline\":\"Fourth trial ordered for Nunavut teacher accused of sexual abuse\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-09T13:27:37+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/index.php\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/09\\\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":657,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"National News\",\"ticker\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/index.php\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/09\\\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theturtleislandnews.com\\\/index.php\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/09\\\/fourth-trial-ordered-for-nunavut-teacher-accused-of-sexual-abuse\\\/\",\"name\":\"Fourth trial ordered for Nunavut teacher accused of sexual abuse - 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