Mom delighted in overturned acquittal
Author: TONY BLAIS Court Bureau, SUN MEDIA
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The parents of a young Ontario girl who was the victim of an Edmonton’s man lurid sexual fantasies are “delighted” the pervert’s acquittal has been overturned.

The Court of Appeal of Alberta yesterday set aside Craig Bartholomew Legare’s 2006 acquittal on a charge of Internet luring and ordered the 37 year old to have a new trial.

“We’re just absolutely thrilled about it,” said the mother of the now 17-year-old Toronto-area girl, who cannot be identified under a court-ordered publication ban.

She added she was pleasantly surprised by the ruling from Alberta’s highest court.

“I am actually very happy about it. I am delighted,” said the woman. “If it sets an example for other parents, that would be great.”

In the landmark decision upholding Canada’s relatively new Internet luring law – in effect since July 2002 – the three-judge appeal panel ruled Parliament had enacted an offence of communication, and not of physical contact.

The purpose of the law is to protect children from online predators and is aimed at such predators’ preparatory conduct, said Justice Jack Watson in the written decision.

Watson said the trial judge erred by ruling the law required an intent to lure a child to a meeting and said the offence is not one where “intent to achieve physical contact between the communicator and specific recipient is an essential ingredient.”

The panel did note it did not consider if the law would withstand constitutional scrutiny under the Charter.

When granting the acquittal, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice John Agrios called Legare’s behavior “despicable and repugnant,” but said the evidence didn’t show he planned to follow through on his lurid sexual fantasies. The appeal panel upheld Legare’s acquittal on a second charge of inviting sexual touching, based on a lack of intent due to the Crown conceding Legare did not make any efforts to meet the girl nor did he intend to do so.

Legare admitted in an agreed statement of facts that he talked dirty with the 12-year-old girl in an Internet chat room on April 28, 2003. She said she was 13 while he claimed he was a 17-year-old boy. He was actually 32.

Legare had two sexual chats with the girl that day. The second chat, which was retrieved and preserved by the girl’s father, runs almost an hour and begins with the girl saying “hey!” and Legare saying “hi horny girl.”

The chat was almost entirely sexual and included both parties saying they wanted to have sex with each other.

During the chat, the girl gave Legare her phone number and he called her home twice. The second time, he told the girl he would love to perform oral sex on her.

The girl became alarmed and hung up and her freaked-out father contacted police after learning of the call. Legare was later arrested by Edmonton police.

He will now have to appear in Court of Queen’s Bench criminal appearance court and set a trial date.

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