Alberta teacher sentenced to 12 months probation after workplace assault
An Edmonton-area high school teacher has been sentenced to 12 months probation after being convicted of assault in the touching of a female colleague.
Aaron Heinemann, 57, admitted to touching the buttocks of a female colleague without her consent in a school copier room during August of 2017.
He was charged with sexual assault two years later but was found guilty of assault after the court ruled there was no provable sexual nature to his actions.
On Wednesday, Alberta Provincial Court Judge Jeffrey Champion sentenced Heinemann in Leduc, saying the veteran teacher had broken a trust through his actions.
"In my view, Mr. Heinemann has exercised the poorest of judgment as one who is held up as an example and a role model," Champion said. "Mr. Heinemann should have known better."
"It is revolting that another employee had to be subject to that, even momentarily."
Heinemann will be conditionally discharged and avoid a criminal record if he observes the conditions of his 12-month probation, including avoiding contact with the complainant.
The woman's identity is protected by a court-ordered publication ban.
She read out a lengthy victim impact statement to the court, saying she still deals with anxiety and panic attacks four years after the assault.
"The assault did not just harm me. It harmed every member of my immediate family," she said.
She also spoke of a backlash at work, including what she described as threats of professional reprisal that led her to seek a transfer to a different school.
"I cannot bear the thought of a similar assault happening to someone else."
Crown prosecutor Alexandra Dunn argued against a conditional discharge, citing the physical nature of the incident.
"This was done to an individual in her place of work, in an area where she was around colleagues and should have felt safe," Dunn argued in court Wednesday.
"One of those colleagues took that safety away from her."
Heinemann's defence lawyer noted his client's lack of prior disciplinary issues over more than three decades of teaching and coaching, and characterized what happened as an impulsive act of poor judgment.
"He is extremely sorry this took place," said Dino McLaughlin. "It would not be in the public interest if his career as a teacher was impaired. Or if his career as a volunteer and supporter of young people was impaired."
Heinemann declined to speak in court at the suggestion of his lawyer.
He is still facing potential discipline from the Alberta Teachers' Association.
With files from David Ewasuk
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.