Canada judge dismisses assault charges against former Taliban hostage

An Ottawa judge on Thursday dismissed all 19 charges against former Taliban hostage Joshua Boyle, who faced charges including assault and sexual assault. Boyle was accused of attacking his estranged wife, Caitlan Coleman. He denied all charges and his lawyer alleged that it was Coleman who was the abusive one in the relationship.

Boyle's lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon, had argued there was enough reasonable doubt behind Coleman's account to make a guilty finding impossible. Boyle and Coleman were kidnapped in October 2012 while backpacking in Afghanistan. They spent five years in captivity, during which their three children were born.

Boyle said a fourth child had been murdered and his spouse raped after their capture by the Taliban-allied Haqqani network. The Taliban denied the accusations of rape and murder. Boyle was arrested just months after the family returned to Canada.