Ontario private school teacher found guilty of abusing boys

Last Updated: Friday, October 8, 2004 | 7:03 PM ET

CBC News

Doug Brown, a former teacher at a prestigious private school in Ontario, has been found guilty on nine charges of indecent assault on young boys at the school.

In delivering his verdict Friday, Ontario Superior Court Justice Harry LaForme said he believes the hazy memories of all seven former UCC students over Brown's denials.

The judge told the court he found Brown's accounts of late night visits to the dormitory in the 1970s "fraught with serious credibility problems."

Douglas Brown leaves court Friday in Toronto.

"His evidence is self-serving – it was evasive and at times argumentative," Laforme said, "and on the whole lacked the ring of truth."

Brown, 55, had pleaded not guilty on 12 charges stemming from accusations that he abused seven young boys in the school dorm rooms.

The school issued an statement following the verdict.

"We are also sorry that this happened at UCC. As a community of educators, we find this particularly distressing," said the school in a statement.

The school added that it is committed to a fair process in determining its responsibility to compensate Brown's victims.

Brown, who could face 10 years in prison, is out on bail and will be sentenced in December.

During the trial Laforme heard very different versions of what happened at the prestigious private school.

• FROM OCT. 5, 2004: Former UCC teacher denies sexual abuse

The seven accusers testified the former English teacher touched them inappropriately.

They said Brown visited them late at night in their dormitory beds when they were 11-, 12- and 13-year-old boarding students. For some, that led to depression and shame.

Brown's lawyer attacked the credibility of the witnesses and questioned why they took so long to come forward.

Brown was let go from the school in 1993 after accusations about inappropriate behaviour.

At the trial, Brown said he received a year of severance and a letter of reference from the school and was told not to talk about the scandal.

An Ontario court previously approved a settlement reached in 2003 between the school and former students who said Brown sexually touched them.