Petition calls for Kingston judge to be removed from bench

A provincial court judge in Kingston is coming under fire after a recent assault conviction was handed down.

Justice Allan Letourneau delayed sentencing for a Queen’s University student so he wouldn’t miss out on a summer internship.  An online petition to remove Letourneau from the bench already has over 11,000 signatures.

“It’s very important that so many people are putting their voices forward and showing support to a survivor — and sending a message that these types of rulings are simply not OK, it’s not acceptable,” said Sarah Perras, a volunteer and crisis line co-ordinator at the Kingston Sexual Assault Centre.

Chance Macdonald, 22, pleaded guilty in early April to a single count of common assault committed against a 16-year-old girl in the fall of 2015. His sentencing was put over so it wouldn’t cost him a four-month summer internship.

Perras says the centre is pleased to see that this story is receiving attention and that people are upset about it.

“When we work together as a community and send a message that this is not OK., I think that it is very powerful.  And it also let’s a survivor know that they are not alone, that they are believed.”

Justice Letourneau’s office was contacted but declined to comment. Macdonald was sentenced to 88 days of intermittent jail time to be served on weekends.