Third woman takes stand
Former P.E.I. music teacher also testifies; says he held students’ hands, hugged them
The Crown prosecution in the sexual assault trial of former music teacher Roger Jabbour concluded its case Tuesday morning, but not before hearing testimony from a third female complainant. Jabbour, 65, is charged with three counts of sexual assault, three counts of sexual interference and two counts of sexual exploitation related to three former female students at Charlottetown’s Colonel Gray High School. Presiding over the case is Judge John Douglas. A publication ban is in place protecting the identities of the three female complainants. On Tuesday, the third complainant, now 18, said in provincial court in Charlottetown that she was 14 in 2014 and a Grade 10 student at the school when she enrolled in the band program and first met the accused. She testified that Jabbour frequently called her into his office to discuss the class, other students and, once, her relationship with a boy in the class she was dating. In the winter of 2015, there was an issue with a cheque she submitted for a class trip later that year. She told the court that in Jabbour’s office, she called her parents about the cheque. She spoke with her grandmother because her parents weren’t home. She said Jabbour walked up behind her smiling, touched the hand she was holding the phone with, and rubbed her shoulder, back and the side of her body down to her hip while she spoke with her grandmother. “I didn’t move at all,” she said. The incident lasted about five minutes, she said. The second alleged incident with Jabbour took place months later in June, she said. She was called into Jabbour’s office because of a decision she had to make regarding school that affected the band program. She testified that she was upset and Jabbour pulled his chair up to her. He placed his hands on her knees and ran his hands up her thighs and inside her shorts. She pulled away and left the office, she testified. None of the allegations have been proven in court. Jabbour’s lawyer Joel Pink called Colonel Gray’s custodian at the time to testify about the layout of his client’s office, including whether the windows had blinds and whether Jabbour’s office door had a window. Pink asked similar questions to the three female complainants. Jabbour took the stand in his own defence Tuesday afternoon. He denied the allegations from the three complainants. He did admit to hugging them and holding their hands, but said there was nothing sexual about the encounters. As well, Jabbour said the hugs and hand holding was a way to thank and console all of his students, and there was nothing special about the contact. Jabbour said he did watch a movie – “Pay it Forward” - with two of the complainants, but he sat on the floor and had no contact with them. The Crown began cross-examining Jabbour’s testimony just after 3 p.m.