Former West Kelowna teacher sentenced to 3 years for sexual relationship with student

A former West Kelowna teacher was handed a 38-month jail sentence on Tuesday morning for having a sexual relationship with a student.

Bradley Furman had previously pled guilty to sexual exploitation for having repeated sexual encounters with the Grade 12 student during the spring of 2018.

Furman taught at Mount Boucherie Senior Secondary, and the student was 17-years-old at the time.

At Kelowna court, Furman was sentenced to three years and two months but was given credit of 11 months for time served. His remaining jail time will be 809 days.

His sentencing also included having no contact with the victim or her family, that he must submit a DNA sample, be required to register as a sex offender and pay a victim surcharge.

Prior to Tuesday’s sentencing, Crown counsel was seeking a sentence of nearly six years.

At a sentencing hearing in mid-December, court heard that Furman’s sexual relationship with the girl began during spring break in 2018, escalated quickly and was discovered by school administrators in May of that year.

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Also at that hearing, a psychologist told court that Furman was emotionally immature and was drawn to nerdy kids.

The psychologist, Dr. Matthew Burnett, also testified that Furman accepted rides from teenagers, talked to them on social media and generally related better to adolescents than adults.

“He did report a special connection to students who were nerdy, or outcasts or struggling a little bit,” Burnett said at Furman’s sentencing hearing.

“He connects better with adolescents than he does with adults, going to his maturity level.”

After being caught and charged and having a no-contact order with the victim, Furman continued to secretly contact the student while on bail.

During Tuesday’s sentencing, Justice Clarke Burnett said the higher degree of trust, the heavier the sentence.

“Mr. Furman repeatedly breached the court orders, showing complete disregard for the court,” said Burnett. “He exploited her for his personal satisfaction.”

Burnett also said “Mr. Furman’s actions must be denounced and deter others from engaging in similar relationships.”

— With files from the Canadian Press.