Quebec's judicial council has begun examining a complaint against Judge Matthieu Poliquin, the young judge who granted a conditional discharge to engineer Simon Houle last June after he pleaded guilty to charges of sexual assault and voyeurism for his actions in 2019.

In a letter to the authors of a petition calling for the revocation of Justice Poliquin's appointment, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press, the Conseil de la magistrature acknowledges receipt of the complaint and confirms that "in accordance with the applicable procedure, the members of the Conseil will undertake an examination of the matter at a future meeting."

The memorandum adds that, as a first step, the members of the Council "will consider whether or not the alleged facts are likely to constitute a breach of the Judicial Code of Ethics and, if so, whether the complaint should be investigated."

A DECISION BY THE END OF AUGUST

The Conseil de la magistrature itself refused to confirm the review, as complaints are confidential at this stage. Council Secretary Annie-Claude Bergeron acknowledged, however, when contacted by The Canadian Press, that "we cannot prevent people from reproducing the response that may have been sent to them."

The next meeting of the Council members is scheduled for the end of August, at which time a decision should be made. The petition, which was posted online on July 7, garnered more than 4,600 signatures in one week, which pleasantly surprised its creator, Kareen Emery.

"People got on board super fast. I was surprised myself because we all know that we don't always see a lot of interest in petitions," she said in a telephone interview.

"I had more than 3,000 signatures when I contacted the Judicial Council and told them that the petition was still young and that it would grow and it did."

Emery did not hide her satisfaction with the result.

"What I asked was to evaluate if this person should go under investigation and that's exactly what they are going to do. So I am satisfied," she said.

"I think that's the furthest we could go. We showed that we were dissatisfied and I tell myself that if this kind of action is repeated in the future and that every time there are judges who show decisions that are not in line with who we want to be as a nation, at some point they will think about it a little bit more before giving them," she added with a laugh.

The judge's decision caused an uproar, not only because of the absolution itself, but especially because of the reasons given by the judge to grant it. In support of the discharge, the judge said that the sexual assault occurred "in a short period of time", that the accused had been drinking and that he was "a person of good character."

The judge also pointed out that a conviction "would have a particularly negative and disproportionate impact on him, as he would be unable to travel outside the country, which could potentially hinder his career as an engineer."

JUDGE'S REASONS FOR DISCHARGE WERE 'SO WEAK'

Like many others, Kareen Emery did not digest the judge's words.

"I was completely frustrated that an inexperienced judge would come to such conclusions in 2022. I thought it didn't make sense. The reasons given are so weak.

"I put myself in the shoes of a victim or an alleged victim and to hear that kind of thing in the verdict at the end of the trial, it was unacceptable in my mind. I saw that there was the same frustration around me," she added to explain her decision to start the petition.

A short search made her realize that the judicial council is the only body that has disciplinary power over judges.

"I asked myself what I could do as a citizen to have an impact on this and I saw what it took to get a formal complaint, so I started the petition."

CROWN TO LAUNCH APPEAL

The Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP), which sought a sentence of 18 months in prison for Houle, has already indicated that it will appeal the decision.

Contrary to the usual discretion displayed by a Minister of Justice, Simon Jolin-Barrette has come out saying publicly he is "deeply shocked by the decision." It was Minister Jolin-Barrette who made the appointment of Justice Poliquin in September 2021.

The decision also led to a protest in front of the Montreal courthouse on Sunday, and an open letter signed by nearly 40 engineers, published on Tuesday, aimed at denouncing the fact that the profession of the assailant could have been used to mitigate his sentence.

Houle, who lost his engineering job following the media coverage of his case, had also admitted during his trial that he had committed another act of sexual assault in 2015 that had not been prosecuted. Another woman has also just filed a complaint against him for sexual touching that allegedly occurred just recently during a trip to Cuba.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 15, 2022.