A former St. Norbert Collegiate teacher who sexually assaulted a teenage student and convinced him they were in a loving relationship has been slapped with a five-year prison term.
Chasity Jenna Deah Findlay, 39, was sentenced by provincial court Judge Anne Krahn on Monday after being convicted of one count each of sex assault and sexual interference last December.
The 15-year-old victim, who was in Grade 10, had told Findlay he was infatuated with her in April 2015 while they were in a school classroom, during a break from his driver’s ed class, Krahn said in a written decision.
The teacher, who was 30 years old, told the boy she had feelings for him and they kissed.
They agreed they should wait to have sex until he turned 18, but later that day she picked him up while he was walking home. They drove to her home, where they kissed and sexually touched. The following day, they had intercourse at Findlay’s house. The two continued their secret relationship over months.
The victim told court the two would meet twice a week. As the victim was under 16, the circumstances constituted sexual interference, Krahn said.
When the victim turned 16, he refused to accept an expensive watch Findlay wanted to give him, as he did not know how to explain how he got it. They then had sex, Krahn wrote, which constitutes sexual assault.
“I found (the victim’s) ‘consent’ to this sexual activity was induced by Ms. Findlay’s breach of a position of trust as his teacher and it was built on the criminal foundation of sexual interference preceding it,” said Krahn.
“(The victim) was beginning to feel pressure given the ‘double life’ he was living, lying to his friends and family to be with Ms. Findlay.”
Shortly after his grandmother’s death, he broke up with Findlay by text message in November 2015. The “relationship” resumed briefly after he turned 18.
Throughout their time together, the pair referred to each other as husband and wife, the victim said in court this month.
“I was so hooked by, and addicted to, what I would now call porno-sex that my life went from zero to 100/mph and all I could think, see and feel was Chastity. I would have done anything to keep having her, but now I understand I was corrupted,” he said at the Sept. 4 sentencing hearing.
Findlay denied having a voluntary sexual relationship with the boy, instead claiming at trial he had raped and threatened to kill her if she did not comply. She maintained that position at sentencing.
Her lawyer, Josh Weinstein, submitted 30 letters from her friends and family that attested to her character. He said the letters of support bode well for her rehabilitation. He urged the judge to sentence her to three-and-a-half years.
Crown prosecutor Boyd McGill, who had sought an eight-year sentence, argued that Findlay’s belief she was a victim demonstrates her lack of remorse and insight into her crimes.
The victim and his family said he had lasting trauma as a result of the abuse. He told court he has struggled with anxiety, depression, low self-worth and has had difficulty having healthy relationships.
Findlay worked in the school division from 2008 to 2018. After she left it came to light intimate pictures of her had been circulating in the community. She had sent the images to the victim after the offences ended, the trial heard, but he denied circulating them.
She moved to another school division in western Manitoba, where she worked until February 2021, when she was placed on leave with pay over lawsuits filed related to the abuse.
She was arrested in December 2021 and placed on leave without pay. She resigned in January 2024, a month after being convicted.
Findlay has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and began seeing a counsellor in 2021.
Krahn banned Findlay from working or volunteering anywhere that would put her in a position of authority over youths under 16 for 10 years. She’s also banned from contacting the victim and will have to register as a sex offender for 20 years.
erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca
Erik Pindera
Reporter
Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020. Read more about Erik.
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