Quebec clergy member pleads guilty, sentenced to three-and-a-half years for sex crimes against children
A Quebec clergy member pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to sexually abusing 12 students from the College Bourget boarding school in Rigaud where he was a supervisor during the 1980s.
Jean Pilon, a member of the Clerics of St-Viateur, was sentenced to three-and-a-half-years after the guilty plea at the Valleyfield Courthouse, outside of Montreal.
The hearing was an emotional one as eight of his victims took the stand to tell the court how his abuse caused a lifetime of anxiety, depression, and shame.
"It's hard to keep, it's a big — in French, 'un gros moton sur le coeur' — but you have to overcome all these events, and become a better person every day," said Brian Ford, one of the victims.
When it was Pilon's turn to take the stand, he offered an apology and told the court he was "demolished inside" after hearing about the victims' suffering. Jeers could be heard from the courtroom, while others simply walked out not wanting to hear any more.
The Surete du Quebec arrested Pilon in June 2020, when he was 78, along with four other congregation members in connection with sex crimes against young boys and girls that allegedly took place between 1961 and 1989.
The men were responsible for teaching children in several Quebec schools.
Prosecutor Mylene Brown said it was "important" that Pilon pleaded guilty for all the victims in his case. The three-and-a-half-year sentence was agreed upon between the prosecution and defence, which the judge accepted.
The guilty plea does not bring the case for Pilon to an end. A class action lawsuit is still underway, alleging the entire congregation of St-Viateur knew what was going on, but did nothing about it.
Lawyers representing the victims in the lawsuit say a settlement is in the works, with more than 300 people allegedly being identified as defendants.
With files from CTV News Montreal's Stephane Giroux
Correction
A statement from lawyers for the class action lawsuit referred to Jean Pilon as a priest, but he was in fact a member of the clergy. CTV has updated the article to reflect the correction.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.