Stanstead College student accused of sexual assault by 2 girls, victim argues nothing has been done to protect them or others

Silhouette of a victim

Two girls are alleging that a student at Stanstead College, a small, independent, co-ed English-language boarding high school in Quebec's Eastern Townships, sexually assaulted them.

One of the girls, now 18 years old, said she told the school's administration about the alleged assault, but the boy has yet to face any consequences.

Advocates for victims of sexual assault point out that crimes can take place in various ways and do not necessarily occur in a state of violence.

"At our provincial service, Sexual Violence Helpline, we answer calls from people of all ages and we’ve heard several stories of sexual violence happening in schools," said Laure Sabatier, communications officer with the Montreal Sexual Assault Centre (MSAC). "Our phone line supports people of any age by listening to them 24/7 and we suggest appropriate resources according to their actual needs."

CTV News has chosen not to identify the girls as the alleged crimes took place when they and the alleged perpetrator were minors.

One of the girls, "Sarah," explained she had been friends with the boy since they were classmates in the third grade.

In March 2020, she said the two were at a sleepover with a group of other friends.

"We felt safe enough to sleep in the same bed as him as we were a lot more and we had known and been friends with him for so long," she said.

She recalled that during the night, she stirred a bit and he asked if she was awake.

"That's when I noticed he was touching me," she said. "He was fully groping me while I pretended to be asleep out of fear of him... Every single time I would move to try to get him off of me, he would stop, move his hand away from me and whisper to ask if I was awake. When I didn't respond and would stop moving, he would start again."

She alleged this went on for more than 20 minutes.

She said she never spoke to an adult about what happened to her.

"It took me a whole year just to be able to tell my best friends," she admitted.

The second girl, "Anne," told CTV News she never thought she would ever be a victim of sexual assault, especially not on her high school campus.

She explained she was in a relationship with her alleged abuser from March to October 2021 -- a boyfriend she considers a previous "close friend."

She said she trusted the boy because of their long-standing friendship, but the pressure to have sexual relations started almost immediately.

"He kept telling me that everyone else in our grade is doing 'it.' Therefore, we should be doing 'it' too," she told CTV News, adding that he insisted she perform fellatio. "He sort of forced me to kneel down, and he put his hand on my shoulder...pulled down his pants without me even saying, 'yes' to anything."

She said the incident only lasted a few seconds, but she was scared the whole time.

"I was breathing really hard, and I was almost in tears, and I was like, 'look, I just can't do it. I don't think it's the right time, the right place in our relationship,'" she said.

“Anne” said it took her a few months of reflection to realize that what happened to her could be classified as assault -- and that's when she decided to take action.

In a letter to the school's administration, she wrote: "I was sexually assaulted by a student on campus through continuous emotional manipulation and psychological abuse."

She admitted in her letter that she hesitated to speak out about what happened to her as, "It would just be a turmoil and an endless nightmare for me... The perpetrator will most likely never admit that he sexually assaulted me."

She told CTV News when she didn't get a satisfactory answer from the school, who she alleged told her it could not remove the boy from her classes, she decided to contact police.

The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) confirmed it is currently investigating allegations of sexual assault at the school.

"This is not a public interest file; the information transmitted to the SQ has not led to the filing of criminal charges at this time," Sergeant Aurélie Guindon told CTV News. "Police officers regularly intervene in schools, especially in terms of prevention, on various subjects, including dating violence."

The college told CTV News that the case is now "in the hands of the authorities" and "it would not be appropriate for us to comment."

"Stanstead College takes all allegations of violence, including sexual assault, very seriously and acts in accordance with its applicable policies," said Ross Murray, director of communications for the school. "We do not tolerate any such conduct at our school."

Following CTV News' article, Stanstead College sent a note to parents stating, "We have spoken extensively with both parties involved, as well as their parents, and have taken measures in accordance with our policies. Because the incident is now being investigated by competent authorities, we cannot comment further. This is an extremely difficult matter and we are striving to deal with it with sensitivity and compassion."

The college told CTV News it is aware of the sleepover incident that occurred in March 2020.

“Anne” said she has struggled with her mental health ever since the alleged assault.

"I really wanted to try to have a sense of normalcy because I'm not supposed to be the one who's hiding or leaving," she said. "It was so discouraging, and I was missing a lot of classes because I was not mentally or physically feeling OK, and I was feeling unsafe the whole time."

She said she has also filed a form with Indemnisation des victimes d'actes criminels (IVAC), which helps victims financially recuperate from injuries resulting from crimes.

"IVAC analyzes applications based on the information in the file, including the victim's description of the criminal offence," explained Antoine Leclerc-Loiselle, a spokesperson with the Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST), which oversees IVAC. "In no case does the Direction générale de l'IVAC communicate with the alleged aggressor to validate the declaration of the offence in a file and the intention of the alleged offender is not an element that is taken into account."

IVAC notes the number of women under the age of 18 who say they were assaulted in a school setting changes drastically from year to year.

In 2019, the number of claims made was 42; in 2020, 27 and in 2021, 49.

“Anne” claims her alleged abuser is still at the school, "living his normal life and being allowed to interact with other potential victims while I am seeking help from a therapist."

Since the incident, she said she has left the school's campus and has chosen to complete her semester from a distance, at home.

The Montreal Sexual Assault Centre notes victims of sexual violence can call its Sexual Violence Helpline at 1-888-933-9007 or seek information online.