Eganville priest given conditional sentence for indecent assault

Share Button

The Ottawa Citizen

16 April 2012 10:02 PM

By LAURA ARMSTRONG

OTTAWA — A former priest from Eganville was handed a nine-month conditional sentence last week after being charged with indecently assaulting a local teen more than 30 years ago.

Monsignor Robert Borne, 63, will serve the first five months under house arrest, with the latter four months to be served within the community, Justice Julianne Parfett said at Msgr. Borne’s sentencing hearing Tuesday, April 10th at the Pembroke courthouse.

Msgr. Borne was found guilty last November of assaulting a teenage boy while the two were on an overnight trip in Griffith, Ontario in 1979. During the trial, the court heard the priest and the boy were sharing a bed when Msgr. Borne began kissing the then 16-year-old before performing oral sex on him.

He met the boy through the boy’s older brother, Msgr. Borne testified during his trial. Although mutual groping occurred between himself and the teenager, Msgr. Borne denied the relations were non-consentual. He also denied Assistant Crown Attorney John Pepper’s suggestion that a sexual encounter with the boy was always Msgr. Borne’s intention.

At trial in November the priest was faced with four charges, two for indecent assault and two for gross indecency in relation to separate alleged incidents in 1979 and 1981. Msgr. Borne was found guilty of both charges relating to the 1979 assault but was acquitted of the other two charges, as Parfett said the alleged victims in the 1981 assault gave an unreliable testimony.

Under conditions of his sentencing, Msgr. Borne will be allowed to attend mass, make emergency medical visits and have three hours on Saturdays to buy weekly necessities during his five months of house arrest. Msgr. Borne is prohibited from contacting the victim’s family and is forbidden to associate with anyone under the age of 18 without an adult present. He will also serve two years of probation.

The victim, now in his 40s and with his identity protected by a publication ban, gave his impact statement at Tuesday’s sentencing. A member of a Polish-French family that were strong Catholics, the man said he once valued his religion but lost faith in the Catholic church after the assault.

Msgr. Borne was ordained in 1974. He held a variety of positions through the diocese, though in his testimony Msgr. Borne told the court that he no longer has any status in the Catholic church due to the charges against him. His most recent position was at St. James Parish in Eganville.

For some, Msgr. Borne’s reputation within the community surpassed the negative publicity he was receiving; his lawyer, Robert Carew, filed 59 letters to the court in support of Msgr. Borne.

 

8 Responses to Eganville priest given conditional sentence for indecent assault

  1. K G says:

    Just to let you know I was in Pembroke on the weekend on a rare visit and discovered that this disgraced and convicted pedophile is living in a house owned by the Pembroke archdiocese and he told someone I know that “says mass” alone every day. She saw him walking down the street. The bottom line is the Catholic Church is still supporting this pedophile.

    • Lina says:

      It was almost a YEAR ago I learned about Msgr. Robert Borne private masses.

      What would possess a person(s) to seek out spiritual help from a convicted sexual predator priest is beyond me.

      What would the survivors (victims) of this priest think and say? Then again the survivors and their loved ones already know they are not top priority when it comes to the Catholic Church to do list.

      Since I found out about this info about Msgr. Borne…when I do see this priest or any of his family members in Pembroke, I just take another path and stay clear away from them.

      I found about those private spiritual stuff last year from Msgr. Borne’s own innocent mother.

      I was sad and heartboken with that info. I felt so alone and hopeless.

      How can Msgr.Borne be so deceitful to his own mother and to all those who believe and trusted him?

      I wish ‘Spotlight’ investigation was done here in the Pembroke Diocese like it happened in Boston.

      • Joan says:

        Really you need to take another path! Then why do you feel the need to continue to speak so angelic like to Mrs Borne only to serve your greedy purpose of obtaining information, how unChristian like! I am sure your husband would appreciate finding out your mouth is still moving ! Leave the Msgr. and the Borne family alone he has repaid his debt to society, it seems that your the one who needs to move on !

        • Lina says:

          I stand by what I said in my above honest post.

          Joan, don’t you have something else to do than trying to stir up trouble with me at this site.

          By the way…I’m not a Catholic.

  2. Sylvia says:

    Yes. Sad isn’t it. A convicted child molester is still a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. Why has Father Borne not been defrocked?

    People need to put the pressure on and voice their discontent with the situation.

    Bishop Michael Mulhall can be contacted by the following means:

    Phone: 613-732-7933
    Email: bishop@pembrokediocese.com
    Snail Mail: 188 Renfrew St.
    P.O. Box 7
    Pembroke, ON
    K8A 6X1

  3. BC says:

    Severall selfies ago but earlier this year Pope Francis indeed had declared that there is no room in the Church for priests who abuse children. So the Diocese of Pembroke got Msgr. Borne Borne a whole house. It’s the Pope’s fault, really… he should have enumerated explicitely any form of housing. So now we know that there are probably convicted clerical perverts living in Church owned, appartments, condos, duplexes, town houses, tents, igloos, holes, tunnels, boats, cars, garages, gazebos, huts, stadiums, stores, etc.

  4. MikeMc says:

    “People need to put the pressure on and voice their discontent with the situation.” Absolutely. But why don’t they? Somehow they feel it is the so called “Christian” thing to forgive. Well, you can forgive all you want. But these priest’s need to be defrocked. And the Church has to deal with this. Until it does, how can we fully trust the church? They ignore the victims when they “house” these abusers. It’s 2015…has much changed?

  5. Janet Lance says:

    Was he ever put on the Child offender list. He should be

Leave a Reply