Manitoba teacher convicted of child molestation

A former teacher could be sentenced to 33 months in prison for child molestation.

Kevin Brown, 31, a married teacher expecting their first child, met the then 14-year-old female victim when he was a 7th grade teacher.

He then became her 8th grade homeroom teacher and finally her high school basketball coach. During the summer before the start of 9th grade, Brown contacted the victim via Instagram and exchanged thousands of Instagram and text messages between 2019 and 2020, with the contact occurring “at all hours of the day and night.”

Provincial Court Judge Cindy Sholdis told the court Tuesday that Brown was “raising her to be sexually exposed. He used communications to test her, gain her trust, confess his love for her, arrange secret meetings, get physical, normalize and prolong their physical connection, then compliment her and constantly seek her reassurance. .”

“It's safe to say that Mr. Brown's actions affected not only the victim, but his family in the community, especially since Mr. Brown was a trusted teacher and coach in a small community,” Sholdis said. no victim impact statement was made in the case.

A psychological report presented during sentencing and presented by the defense said Brown had no sexual intent and explained that he wanted to be “helpful” or “supportive” to the victim.

The report said Brown does not pose a threat to other teenagers or community members. However, Judge Sholdis said the report did not review the minutes of Brown's 2023 trial.

Judge Sholdis noted Brown's role as a respected teacher and high school coach that allowed the children to trust him.

“He chose to use his situation to raise a child who knew full well that what he was doing was wrong and that if caught there would be dire consequences.”

Brown was fired from his teaching position and eventually voluntarily surrendered his teaching license. He has no previous criminal record. Brown is prohibited from contacting the victim, as well as anyone under the age of 16 who is not a family member.

“Waiting can be a lot”

Ann-Marie Robinson, founder of Stop Educator Child Exploitation, said she heard about the hearing about the Brown ruling and expressed concern that child exploitation is still happening in schools.

“I feel very sad that we still hear about it so often. I am very concerned for the victim. I hope this man gets the support he needs…” Robinson said.

The Brown case is one of several recently opened in Manitoba.

On April 8, 41-year-old Winnipeg teacher Amanda Rachel Sherrett was charged with sexual assault, sexual exploitation and solicitation of a person under 18.

None of the charges against him have been proven in court.

In March, a sentencing hearing was held for former high school football coach Kelsey McKay, who pleaded guilty in July 2023 to nine counts of sexual assault and two counts of cheating.

He is awaiting sentencing.

Robinson says parents should look for some signs to better protect their children.

“A smile can be many things,” he said. “They might pick them up after work, or invite them to a restaurant, or give them alcohol or drugs.”

She says they may start conversations about sex, trying to normalize the topic and make the student feel more comfortable, but that's a clear violation of the boundary between teacher and student.

“They also isolate the child, usually from their friends and sometimes their parents, and they also make the child feel ashamed of what's going on,” Robinson said.

She notes that it can be difficult for victims to find appropriate channels to seek support.

“It's often not clear where they or their parents or other people can report,” she said, “People are encouraged to go to the school first. “We think the schools are really in a conflict of interest.”

Robinson said she would like to see an independent body set up to conduct the investigation as a way to protect the victim and ensure objectivity.

“Here we have the victim's parents, as well as any observers in the school system, can first file a complaint or register a concern,” he said, “Then the investigation will be conducted and ensured by a completely independent professional.” victim support”

He said Canada should create a registry of teachers who abuse students, which would be an important preventative measure in keeping students safe.

“We think there should be a national database where anyone who hires people for child-serving organizations can go and find people who don't work with children.”

With files from CTV's Charles Lefebvre