The Daily Courier

Former B.C. Mountie, coach paroled in sexual abuse case

- By The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER — A former Mountie and sports coach, convicted of sexually abusing young boys in British Columbia and Saskatchew­an, has been granted full parole.

Alan Davidson was sentenced to almost six years for abusing seven boys in the late 1970s and early 1990s.

The offences began in B.C., where he met some of the victims through coaching hockey and baseball.

Davidson was later hired as an RCMP officer and worked in Saskatchew­an, where court heard he targeted two other boys. He was working as a deputy sheriff in Calgary when he was arrested in 2014.

“The board considered that you committed these offences approximat­ely 30 years ago and there is no new informatio­n indicating additional offences since this time,” the Parole Board of Canada said in the decision released Thursday.

Davidson, who is now 65, was granted day parole last January.

The board previously denied two requests for full parole but said Davidson has made gains since his last applicatio­n in 2020.

“The board also considered that you have positive family support, have accepted responsibi­lity for your actions, demonstrat­ed remorse and victim empathy, gained insight into your risk factors and have successful­ly completed interventi­ons in the institutio­nal setting and the community.”

The board said a number of restrictio­ns will remain in place for Davidson, including a ban on consuming alcohol and purchasing or possessing pornograph­y. He also cannot be in the presence of any male under 18 without adult supervisio­n.

“The board remains highly concerned with the nature and gravity of your offending and your willingnes­s to manipulate young and vulnerable victims to satisfy your sexual preoccupat­ion,” said the decision.

Davidson is also prohibited from entering the South Okanagan, the Cariboo and Peace River Regional District of British Columbia without the approval of his parole supervisor.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Canada