DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE

Citation: Ontario College of Teachers v Chambers, 2002 ONOCT 5

Date: 2002-03-13

REASONS FOR DECISIONS AND ORDERS

in the matter of the ontario college of teachers act, 1996, and the Regulation (Ontario Regulation 437/97) thereunder:

and in the matter of discipline proceedings against Paul Anthony Chambers.

The Discipline Committee held a hearing on February 25, 2002,

BETWEEN:

ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TEACHERS

and -

PAUL ANTHONY CHAMBERS

CERTIFICATE #204586

PRESENT:

Members of the Panel

Guill Archambault (Chair)

Paul Charron

Solette N. Gelberg

The Honourable Patrick T. Galligan, retired judge, Independent Counsel to the Panel

Carole Jenkins, McCarthy Tétrault LLP, Counsel for the Ontario College of Teachers, assisted by Trevor Evans, Senior Law Clerk

The member did not attend and had no representation.

A Notice of Hearing dated January 2, 2002 was served on Paul Anthony Chambers, requesting attendance before the Discipline Committee of the Ontario College of Teachers on January 21, 2002 to set a date for hearing, and specifying the charges. The hearing date was set for February 25, 2002.

It is alleged that Paul Anthony Chambers is guilty of professional misconduct in that:

(a) He failed to maintain the standards of the profession, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(5);

(b) He abused a student or students physically, sexually, verbally and/or psychologically, and/or emotionally, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(7);

(c) He failed to comply with the Act or the Education Act, Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1990, c.E2 and particularly, section 264(1)(c) thereof or the regulations made under those Acts, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsections 1(14) and (15);

(d) He contravened a law the contravention of which is relevant to the member’s suitability to hold a certificate of qualification and registration contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(16);

(e) He performed acts or omissions that, having regard to all the circumstances, would reasonably be regarded by members as disgraceful, dishonourable, or unprofessional, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(18); and

(f) He engaged in conduct unbecoming a member, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(19).

The Notice of Hearing states that Paul Anthony Chambers is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers and therefore comes under the jurisdiction of the Ontario College of Teachers.

On February 25, 2002, the Discipline Committee of the Ontario College of Teachers conducted a hearing into whether Paul Anthony Chambers was guilty of professional misconduct.

The member was not in attendance at the hearing, nor was he represented by counsel. Proof of service of the Notice of Hearing was presented and accepted by the panel (Exhibit #5).

EVIDENCE:

Counsel for the Ontario College of Teachers referred to the charges set out in the Notice of Hearing, alleging that Paul Anthony Chambers is guilty of professional misconduct in that his acts were contrary to the Professional Misconduct Regulation made under the Ontario College of Teachers Act and filed as Regulation 437/97 on December 4, 1997, in particular, subsections 1(5), (7), (14), (15), (16), (18) and (19).

Counsel presented evidence that Paul Chambers is a member of the Ontario College of Teachers (Exhibit #1). At all material times, the member was employed by the Toronto Catholic District School Board as a teacher.

Jacqueline Wallace, Superintendent of Education, Human Resources, Toronto Catholic District School Board, testified on behalf of the College and stated that a file existed that included documentation on the criminal conviction and the accessing/downloading of pornographic material on a Board computer.

John Morgan, Research Associate, Toronto Catholic District School Board, testified that Paul Chambers was placed in his department when the member was taken out of his classroom, to provide administration support. One day early in the spring, he stated he saw inappropriate images that were semi-pornographic on the computer screen that the member was using. Later, in May, while working on his own computer and sending material to a common printer, John Morgan accidentally picked up a graphic pornographic image, which Paul Chambers claimed was his, from the common printer. The following week, John Morgan along with an IT person, checked the temporary internet files on the member’s computer. They were able to identify several pornographic sites that had been accessed by Paul Chambers. The following day, the member’s computer was removed from his work station. The temporary internet files indicated that pornographic sites had been accessed that same day. John Morgan stated that each person in the office had their individual log-in and he had never seen anyone else using the member’s computer.

An Agreed Statement of Facts was filed as Exhibit #3. That statement was dated February 8, 2002 and was signed by McCarthy Tétrault on behalf of the College, by Paul Anthony Chambers and by a witness.

By letter dated October 15, 1999, the member resigned from the Toronto District Catholic School Board.

The Committee received as evidence a letter from the member requesting non-publication of his name in the official publication of the Ontario College of Teachers, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession.

FINDINGS OF FACT:

Based on the Agreed Statement of Facts, the panel finds the following facts:

(1) The member used his position of trust and authority as a teacher, by engaging in a pattern of inappropriate sexual conduct with [**], which included sexual comments and suggestions and culminated with him taking her in his arms and kissing her in a sexual manner.

(2) He also abused his position of trust and authority over [**] by asking her out on a date and on the pretext of discussing her poor classroom attendance, lured her into a private room in the school where he embraced her and kissed her in a sexual manner.

(3) The court found Paul Chambers guilty of two counts of sexual exploitation with [] and []

(4) The member was given a conditional sentence of 6 months with probation of three years, during which he was prohibited from holding a position of trust with any female under the age of 18;

(5) He was suspended in September, 1999 for a period of three days without pay, for accessing Internet websites of a pornographic nature and the printing of pornographic images from such sites during working hours while he was assigned to perform specified duties at the Catholic Education Centre. After the suspension, he was reassigned from the Program Services Department to other alternate non-teaching duties.

(6) The member resigned by letter dated October 15, 1999.

The Committee agrees with the Court that Paul Anthony Chambers be prohibited from holding a position of trust, whether for remuneration or not, where he is in a position of authority over females under the age of 18 years (Exhibit #3).

DECISIONS AND ORDERS:

Accordingly, the Committee finds Paul Anthony Chambers guilty of professional misconduct under subsections 1 (5), (7), (14), (15), (16), (18) and (19) of the Professional Misconduct Regulation, as alleged, and directs the Registrar to revoke the member’s Certificate of Qualification and Registration immediately.

Pursuant to section 30(5)(iii) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, the Committee orders that the findings of this hearing, as well as the name of the member, be published in the official publication of the Ontario College of Teachers, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession.

DATED AT TORONTO, THIS 13th DAY OF MARCH, 2002

BY ORDER OF THE DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE

Guill Archambault, Chair