A Colwood mother is facing five-and-a-half years in prison after she sexually assaulted and lured a 15-year-old boy, in incidents the victim says mentally and physically impacted his life.
Provincial judge T. Gouge says the woman, named “Ms. P” in a court document, was convicted of two counts of sexual assault and one count of internet luring on Nov. 21, 2021, following incidents that occurred in April 2020.
One evening, Ms. P, who was 25 at the time, and a female friend came across a group of boys who lived in the same neighbourhood and offered to trade marijuana for alcohol, read the judgment posted on Sept. 14.
“The women agreed to the exchange and went to purchase the alcohol. When they returned to Ms. P.’s home, the boys joined them there for a party, during which alcohol and marijuana were consumed,” it stated.
“During the evening, Ms. P. had vaginal sex in her bedroom with one of the boys…”
A few days later, Ms. P sent a text message to (the teen) inviting him to her house for a “hot make-out sesh,” the judgment added, noting, “When the boy accepted the invitation and went to Ms. P’s house, they once again engaged in vaginal sex.”
The victim is now 17 and, according to Gouge, his impact statement is “a powerful articulation of the effects of sexual abuse on children,” given that he has “stopped caring about life” and now struggles with his self-esteem.
“This has affected my relationship with my family a lot. I feel like I don’t care about anything. I don’t enjoy things I used to enjoy … I just want to be alone and not deal with things. I get angry faster which means sometimes I fight with my family even if I don’t want to. I just want to isolate,” the teen said.
“I don’t like myself, all I do is find negatives in everything that I do. I can’t find the positives in anything that I do or anything about myself.”
The teen added, “Because of the impacts on my emotional health, it has affected my physical health. I don’t eat much anymore. I have lost so much weight — 20 pounds. I don’t find anything appealing anymore, not even my favourite foods.”
Ms. P is the primary caregiver to a six-year-old boy, whose father and grandmother are expected to care for him when his mother’s in jail.
According to Gouge, Ms. P. also has no criminal history, and her risk of reoffending is assessed as low. But the judge says he’s “concerned” by her response to her conviction.
“Her expression of remorse at the sentencing hearing was unconvincing. Throughout the proceedings, she blamed … for misleading her about his age,” Gouge added.
Ms. P now faces a prison sentence of two years less a day for each sexual assault charge, as well as an 18-month sentence for internet luring, which will be served consecutively.
“In this case … it is important that the message be clear. The message is: If you are an adult, and you have sex with a child, you should expect to go to jail for a long time,” added Gouge.
Ethan Morneau
