N.L. bridal shop owner gets absolute discharge after assault conviction involving 7-year-old

Rodney Philpott, a Newfoundland and Labrador bridal shop owner, received an absolute discharge, reported Oct. 2, 2026, after being found guilty of assaulting a seven-year-old boy. The case involved Philpott hanging the boy on a coat hook by his hood during horseplay. A Grand Falls-Windsor judge found he acted recklessly without intent to harm.