A priest and his power: Consent and the doomed rape case against a residential school principal

Bishop Accountability - August 6, 2025


Williams Lake, BC - Bishop Hubert O’Connor was one of the first Catholic clergy in Canada charged with sexual offences committed at a residential school. In the 1990s, he faced trial for rapes and indecent assaults at St. Joseph’s Indian Residential School in B.C., where he had been principal in the 1960s. The case centered on whether young Indigenous students and staff could genuinely consent to sexual advances from a respected religious authority.


O’Connor was initially found guilty of raping a former teenage student and one count of indecent assault, but was acquitted of other charges. The B.C. Court of Appeal later overturned parts of the ruling, citing that consent under the law at the time did not automatically account for power imbalances. Despite the controversy, Crown prosecutors stayed remaining charges after a restorative justice healing circle in 1998, where survivors addressed how his actions affected their lives.

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Former Montreal Priest Convicted in 2019 Of Abusing Boys Facing New Charges

By Patricia Grell • September 4, 2026
The Canadian Press - September 1, 2026 Montreal, QC - Former Montreal priest Brian Boucher, who was convicted in 2019 of sexually abusing two boys and sentenced to eight years in prison, is now facing new charges related to possessing and accessing child sexual abuse material. The alleged offences occurred between April 7 and April 9, and his case has been postponed until September 8. Boucher was granted statutory release in 2024 under strict conditions, including avoiding children and his victims. Still, his release conditions were tightened in 2025 after he was reportedly seen near areas where one victim and his family were likely to be. He was formally removed from the priesthood in 2020 following his conviction and an independent inquiry that criticized the Montreal Catholic diocese for its handling of earlier complaints against him.

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By Patricia Grell • September 2, 2026
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