September 11, 2017
Statement from the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall
Re Fr. Denis Vaillancourt
September 11, 2017
Today, Denis Vallaincourt, a retired priest of the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall, was found guilty of one count of sexual assault pursuant to section 271 of the Criminal Code of Canada.
The diocese regrets any case where a priest is found to have betrayed his vows and the sacred trust that is expected of a Roman Catholic cleric. Fr. Vaillancourt, who is no longer in active ministry, will be sentenced on November 10, 2017 in connection with the court case.
Any form of misconduct by a member of the clergy or other personnel of the Catholic Church is unacceptable. The Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall has developed extensive procedures to foster a safe environment for all members of our faith community. These policies can be found on the Diocese’s website: www.alexandria-cornwall.ca (under the headings About Us then Safe Environment). We encourage people to learn more about how we are working proactively to foster a culture of trust for our family of faith.
We continue to pray for all those impacted by this very serious situation.
Media Contact:
Kimberly Walsh
Chancellor
Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall
(613) 933-1138 x 32
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[A note from Sylvia: The link in the press release to the Safe Environment Guidelines is broken. Here is link to the document: March 2015: Diocese of Alexandria Cornwall Guidelines for Dealing with Complaints of Sexual Abuse of Children and Sexual Assault of Adults. The guidelines are now downloaded on Sylvia’s Site and can be accessed via Documents/Church-related Documents/Alexandria-Cornwall alongside the 1995 Diocesan Sexual Abuse Guidelines for the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall . Father Vaillancourt headed the drafting committee for the latter 1995 document]