A former Alberta teacher who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a student has been granted day parole.
Catherine Valiquette was released to a halfway house on Aug. 26, 10 months and a day after she started serving a four-year sentence for sexual interference.
The official documents from the Parole Board of Canada show a request for full parole was denied.
According to court documents, Valiquette was a Grade 9 teacher at Graminia School in Parkland County when she began a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student in April 2022 that lasted for several months.
At sentencing, the judge said that Valiquette’s crime was significant, given her position of trust as a teacher.
The judge also took into consideration Valiquette’s guilty plea, and remorse shown during proceedings.
According to the parole board documents, Valiquette told the board she had been a victim of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse as a child, causing her to leave home at 14.
It also shows she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and borderline personality disorder.
During parole hearings, she told the board she was feeling overwhelmed in her life at the time of the relationship with her student, and said his attention helped fill a “void” in her life.
The documents show since being incarcerated, Valiquette successfully completed the Women’s Sex Offender Program, as well as programming on parenting and social integration.
The board also found her risk to reoffend to be low.
“The psychologist summarized that your risk for sexual reoffending if released on day parole would be very low,” the release document says.
“It was noted that while your risk may be manageable on full parole, a period of day parole was recommended to provide structured oversight and support during the initial phase of reintegration.”
The parole board imposed multiple conditions on Valiquette’s release, including not having contact with her victim or victim’s family, having no contact with boys under the age of 16, and reporting any sexual or non-sexual relationships with men.
Her cell phone communications will also be monitored for the duration of her parole.
