'It ruined my life': Former Montreal nursing student seeks $600K in damages after sexual assault at college

Warning: This article contains details of sexual assault. 

A Montreal woman says her dream of becoming a nurse was destroyed after she was sexually assaulted by a former supervisor in his office at John Abbott College in 2021 when she was a student.

The woman, who was 17 years old at the time, filed a complaint with Montreal police. Just before the accused, 61-year-old Boris Stanley Paredes, was set to go on trial, he pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault on Sept. 3, 2024. He received a suspended sentence and three years of probation, along with 240 hours of community service as part of his sentence.

Now 20 years old, the victim is suing him, the CEGEP, and the West Montreal Readaptation Centre where he was employed for $600,000 in damages. The centre provides specialized services for adults and children with an intellectual disability.

A woman who was sexually assaulted in November 2021 has launched a $600,000 lawsuit against a Montreal college, a rehabilitation centre, and a former supervisor. (CTV News)

In an interview with CTV news, she said the assault "ruined my life" and caused her to go into a downward spiral that led to her dropping out of school twice, turning to drugs, and self-harm.

"When it happened, I was paralyzed, like physically paralyzed. And in my head, I remember just screaming at the top of my lungs for him to stop and just leave me be," she said.

Massages preceded sexual assault, lawsuit says

The lawsuit, filed in Superior Court on Tuesday, is seeking $250,000 in moral damages and loss of enjoyment of life, $250,000 in loss of future income, and $100,000 in punitive damages.

Attempts by CTV News to reach Paredes on Wednesday were unsuccessful. The lawyer who represented him at his criminal trial said he was not aware of the lawsuit.

According to the document, the victim was enrolled in college's social science program in the fall of 2021 at the time of the assault. She was taking a psychology course that required her to participate in a voluntary program that paired her with an adult with special needs and write journal logs for her class.

Paredes was a supervisor of the program, who developed a relationship with the woman in the first few months of her program and would sometimes give her "pressure point massages" to relieve stress, the lawsuit alleges.

On Nov. 9, 2021, the woman went to his office in John Abbott's Penfield building to talk about a distressing family matter. In tears, she was again offered a massage, but this time he allegedly asked her to lie down on his desk and turn on her stomach before he sexually assaulted her for approximately two hours.

Too scared to report the incident herself, she told a friend, who later reported the incident to the college. A school official interviewed the victim and helped her prepare a statement that would be provided to police, the lawsuit says.

'He didn't entirely break me'

According to the lawsuit, the victim suffered "significant life-altering" effects after the assault, including two suicide attempts, post-traumatic stress, nightmares, panic attacks. At one point, she "installed a camera in her bedroom because she couldn’t tell if he was there."

"Since dropping out of school, the Plaintiff has had modest earnings in odd jobs such as a cashier / server at a grocery store, pizza delivery, and selling music equipment. This work does not offer the same salary or job security that a nurse would enjoy," according to the lawsuit.

Now that Paredes has been convicted, she said wants to pursue a civil suit to send him a message.

"That I'm gonna get through this and he didn't entirely break me. Yes, you know he broke me for a few years, and I'll always be scarred by it somehow, but I'm going to get my life back together, and I'm going to be me again very soon, I'm hoping," she told CTV News.

The victim's lawyer, Jeff Orenstein, said the CEGEP is liable for damages because he worked on school grounds.

John Abbott College declined an interview request on Wednesday. In a statement to CTV News, a spokesperson for the college said it had still not been served with the lawsuit.

"John Abbott College takes matters such as these very seriously and wants to ensure that all members of our community feel safe and are part of an environment that is free of sexual violence and harassment of any kind," wrote Debbie Cribb in an email.

"When we were made aware, in 2021, of what was at that time an alleged assault, the College Sexual Assault Resource Team (SART) swiftly moved into action to support the student in question. The individual the student identified as being responsible for the assault was the onsite educator with the West Montreal Readaptation Centre (WMRC). He was not employed by the College. The quick response and support of the student by the SART team resulted not only in her care, but also the immediate removal of the WMRC employee."

The local health board that oversees the rehabilitation centre, the CIUSSS de l’Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, declined to comment on the civil suit.