A former daycare educator from Alma, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, who pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual contact with a student, was sentenced to five months in prison on Wednesday.
Mélanie Gagnon was 34 when she began an inappropriate relationship with the 12-year-old boy in September 2020.
She reportedly kissed the boy four times.
The relationship would have continued despite the warnings of the director of the school where she worked.
For judge Sonia Rouleau, it is clear that the relationship of authority between the woman and the boy was the most aggravating factor.
“Obviously, the link of authority that the accused had with the victim in this case was a central element. At that time she was working in a school, the judge mentioned the role of the school in our society, the confidence that we have in the members of the school staff by entrusting our children to them . So this role is central, society must dissuade and denounce this kind of behavior there in a severe way, ”says Amélie Gilbert, prosecutor in the direction of criminal and penal prosecutions.
For the defense lawyer, Me Jean-Marc Fradette, the sentence is acceptable, in the circumstances, since the accused will quickly be eligible for parole.
Me Fradette does not intend to appeal the sentence.