DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE OF THE ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TEACHERS
IN THE MATTER OF the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996, and the Regulation (Ontario Regulation 437/97) thereunder;
AND IN THE MATTER OF a discipline proceeding against
Linda Joyce Larocque, Member of the Ontario College of Teachers.
PANEL: Irene Dembek, OCT, Chair Danny Anckle Wes Vickers, OCT
BETWEEN:
ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TEACHERS Martin Zatovkanuk, Legal Counsel, for Ontario College of Teachers
- and –
LINDA JOYCE LAROCQUE (CERTIFICATE #264264) Linda Joyce Larocque was not present or represented
Marc Spector, Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Independent Legal Counsel
Heard: January 25, 2013
DECISION, REASONS FOR DECISION AND ORDER
This matter came on for hearing before a panel of the Discipline Committee (the “Committee”) on January 25, 2013 at the Ontario College of Teachers (the “College”) at Toronto.
Linda Joyce Larocque (the “Member”) was not in attendance at the hearing.
A Notice of Hearing dated November 14, 2012 was served on the Member, requesting attendance before the Discipline Committee of the Ontario College of Teachers on November 21, 2012 to set a date for a hearing and specifying the charges. The hearing was subsequently set for January 25, 2013.
THE ALLEGATIONS
The allegations in the Notice of Hearing (Exhibit 1), dated November 14, 2012 are as follows:
IT IS ALLEGED that Linda Joyce Larocque is guilty of professional misconduct as defined in subsection 30(2) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996 (the “Act”) in that:
(a) she failed to maintain the standards of the profession, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(5);
(b) she failed to keep records as required by her professional duties, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(10);
(c) she signed or issued, in her professional capacity, a document that she knew or ought to have known contained a false, improper or misleading statement, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(12);
(d) she failed to comply with the Education Act, Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1990, chapter E.2, and specifically subsection 264(1) thereof or the Regulations made under that Act, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(15);
(e) she committed acts 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) she engaged in conduct unbecoming a member, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(19).
MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT
Counsel for the College advised the Committee that subject to ratification by the Committee, agreement had been reached on the facts and introduced a Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”), (Exhibit 3) which provides as follows:
Agreed Statement of Facts
The parties hereby agree to the truth and accuracy of the facts that are hereinafter expressed and agree to the receipt of this document by the Discipline Committee.
On April 1, 2011, the College received a letter of notification, from the Bloorview School Authority (the “Authority”) regarding the conduct of Linda Joyce Larocque, who was seconded from the Toronto District School Board as a Principal/Director at the Authority, pursuant to its obligation under subsection 43.3(1) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996.
Linda Joyce Larocque is a retired member of the College since 2008.
The Member commenced her employment with the Authority on July 1, 1999 through a secondment from the Toronto District School Board (TDSB).
A third-party forensic audit found financial irregularities at the Authority. Between 2002 and 2007, school funds were redirected to salary and benefits overpayments.
The Member retired from the Authority on August 31, 2007. After the Member retired, she stayed on in the role of consultant, to complete unfinished business.
On January 26, 2011, Toronto Police Financial Crimes Unit (the “Police”) reported in a media release that a forensic audit indicated the Member allegedly misappropriated funds from the Authority between July 2006 and September 2007. An audit revealed that the Member misappropriated $91,792.75 from the Authority.
Consequently, the Member was charged with Fraud over $5000.00 and Laundering the Proceeds of Crime.
On May 8, 2012, the Member pleaded guilty to Fraud over $5000.00 and made restitution to the Authority in the amount of $91,792.75, being the full amount which was misappropriated. The Laundering charge was withdrawn.
On May 10, 2012, the Member was sentenced to a conditional sentence of 21 months followed by 12 months of probation and 200 hours of community service.
By this document, the Member pleads guilty to professional misconduct as alleged in the Notice of Hearing, issued on November 14, 2012, and in so doing, accepts as true the particulars set out in this section of the MOA.
The Member voluntarily admits the above particulars and understands that by doing so, she is waiving the right to require the College to prove the case against her and the right to a contested hearing.
Joint Submission on Resolution
The parties agree to resolve the matter as follows:
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, the Discipline Committee shall find her guilty of professional misconduct and, pursuant to subsection 30(4) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996, will direct the Registrar to revoke her certificate of qualification and registration effective immediately;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, she shall immediately surrender her certificate of qualification and registration to the Registrar;
the Member agrees and undertakes that upon ratification of this MOA, she shall not apply to the College for reinstatement or for a new certificate of qualification and registration at any time. The Member has requested that this term be included, and the College accepts this undertaking.
the Member agrees and understands that should she, contrary to her undertaking in paragraph 14, apply for reinstatement and a new certificate of qualification and registration, pursuant to section 33 of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996, the Discipline Committee shall review this MOA in considering the Member’s application;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, a notation shall be placed on the public register maintained by the Registrar, in accordance with section 23 of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, the College shall publish her name with a summary of the complaint and its resolution as contained in this MOA. Such publication shall be made in the College’s official publication, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession, on the College web site, and in such other manner as deemed appropriate by the Registrar;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, the College shall make the Decision and Reasons of the Discipline Committee, including this MOA, available for review by the public in the College’s Margaret Wilson Library, on the College’s website and in any other forum the Registrar and Chief Executive Officer deems appropriate;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, the College shall submit a copy of the Decision and Reasons of the Discipline Committee to Quicklaw, an online legal database;
the Member agrees and understands that upon ratification of this MOA, the College will provide notice of the revocation of the Member’s certificate of qualification and registration to any school board, any Canadian teacher federation or affiliate the Ontario Directors of Education and Heads of Private Schools, and the teacher licensing and governing bodies in Canada and elsewhere who are routinely notified by the College of such disciplinary action;
the Member agrees and understands that for the purpose of considering this matter, the Discipline Committee will be provided with this MOA and the Notice of Hearing, which will be marked as Exhibits and will constitute the evidence upon which the guilty plea will be accepted, the finding of guilt will be made, and the penalty will be imposed;
the parties agree and understand that if any phrase or paragraph of this MOA is deemed null and void, the MOA shall be read as though the phrase or paragraph was stricken from the MOA and the amended MOA shall remain in force and effect;
the Member agrees and understands that this MOA is the entire agreement between her and the College and that there have been no oral or written representations made by the College as an inducement or threat to enter into this MOA;
the Member agrees that she has freely elected not to obtain representation from independent legal counsel or an affiliate of the Ontario Teachers’ Federation, despite encouragement of College staff to do so;
the Member agrees and understands that should she breach this MOA by seeking or engaging in employment where a certificate of qualification and registration is required, the College may provide a copy of this MOA to any employer, licensing body, or education authority who inquires about the Member’s record with the College;
the Member agrees and understands that, in the event she breaches a term of this MOA, she is estopped from alleging, by way of defense, that the College failed to investigate or dispose of the complaint in a timely manner with respect to the period between the resolution of the complaint and the date on which the College became aware of such a breach;
the Member agrees and understands that, in the event she breaches a term of this MOA, the College may provide the Investigation, Executive, Discipline or Fitness to Practise Committee with all the information necessary to fulfil its statutory mandate;
the parties agree and undertake that upon ratification of this MOA, there shall be no further action taken, no appeal to any forum, and no application for judicial review of the terms of the MOA; and,
each party may sign a separate copy of this MOA which, when so signed and delivered, shall be an original copy even though not signed by the other parties. All such separately signed copies shall together constitute evidence of all parties’ consent to be bound by this agreement.
DECISION
Having examined the Exhibits filed, and based on the Memorandum of Agreement, the guilty plea, and the submissions made by Counsel for the College, the Committee ratifies the Memorandum of Agreement. The Committee finds that the facts support a finding of professional misconduct. In particular, the Committee finds that Linda Joyce Larocque committed acts of professional misconduct, being more particularly breaches of Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsections 1(5), 1(10), 1(12), 1(15), 1(18) and 1(19).
REASONS FOR DECISION
The Committee accepts the Member’s guilty plea and the agreed facts contained in the Memorandum of Agreement. (Exhibit 3)
The Committee accepts that between July 2006 and September 2007, the Member misappropriated funds from the Authority in the amount of $91,792.75. This was discovered by the Toronto Police Financial Crimes Unit through a forensic audit.
The Member was charged with fraud over $5000 contrary to the Criminal Code (Canada) and subsequently, pleaded guilty in a criminal court. The Member was sentenced to a conditional sentence of 21 months followed by 12 months of probation and 200 hours of community service. The Member made full restitution.
The Committee finds that the Member’s actions amount to professional misconduct.
PENALTY DECISION
The Committee accepts the Joint Submission on Resolution and makes the following order:
The Registrar is directed to revoke the Member’s Certificate of Qualification and Registration.
Pursuant to subsection 30 (5) (3) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, the findings and order of the Committee shall be published in summary, with the name of the Member in the official publication of the College, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession.
REASONS FOR PENALTY DECISION
The Committee accepted the joint submission on resolution which included publishing the findings in the official publication of the College, Professionally Speaking/Pour parler profession with the name of the Member.
While there were no students directly involved in the Member’s misconduct, the Committee determined that these actions could have had serious implications for the School. The amount of misappropriated funds was significant enough to cause the School financial challenges and could have seriously impacted the School’s ability to provide quality education for the Students.
The Member’s actions were a serious breach of trust and brought the reputation of the profession into disrepute.
Publication of the decision responds to the need for transparency and accountability and will serve the public interest as well as inform the profession. Publication of the findings and order, with the name of the Member, provides a specific deterrent to the Member and a general deterrent to the profession from engaging in similar actions.
The Committee is satisfied that this decision is appropriate in the circumstances and serves and protects the public interest.
Date: January 25, 2013
Irene Dembek, OCT Chair, Discipline Panel
Danny Anckle Member, Discipline Panel
Wes Vickers, OCT Member, Discipline Panel