Graham James, the junior coach convicted of sexually abusing his players in a case that rocked the hockey world from house leagues to the NHL, has been pardoned by the National Parole Board, The Canadian Press has learned.
Though the pardon was granted three years ago, it comes to light only now as a result of a previously unknown accuser contacting Winnipeg police.
The Prime Minister's Office, notified of the pardon by The Canadian Press, called it a “deeply troubling and gravely disturbing” development that demands an explanation from the parole board.
Mr. James, now 58, pleaded guilty to sexual assault after two of his former teenaged players, including ex-NHL player Sheldon Kennedy, came forward with their stories of abuse at his hands from 1984 to 1995. In 1997, Mr. James was sentenced to three and a half years in prison.
His whereabouts is unknown.
Former NHL player Theo Fleury alleges he, too, was sexually abused by Graham James.— Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
The latest accuser, who says his encounter with Mr. James preceded Mr. Kennedy's by four years, is deciding whether to follow former NHL star Theoren Fleury in lodging a formal complaint with police.
Mr. Fleury's lawyer, Hersh Wolch, said Sunday that he had not heard about the pardon.
Winnipeg police have confirmed they're investigating Mr. Fleury's allegations, and Mr. Wolch said his client won't speak before that process is complete. “We're in the hands of the police right now and we should just wait for them.”
The latest accuser spoke to The Canadian Press on condition he not be identified. He was never coached by Mr. James but said he was targeted in 1979-80 as a player with prospects. Now a lawyer, the man said he learned of Mr. James's possible pardon through recent discussions with Winnipeg police.
The Canadian Press subsequently discovered that Mr. James was pardoned on Jan. 8, 2007. The pardon was signed off by Pierre Dion, a full-time member of the Appeal Division of the National Parole Board who also has a clinical-psychology practice in Ottawa. He has court experience in child-protection cases.
Mr. Dion was appointed by the Liberals and re-appointed by the Conservatives. He could not immediately be reached for comment.
A pardon does not erase a person's criminal record, but it means the information is kept in a separate file and doesn't show up on checks of the Canadian Police Information Centre, a key law-enforcement database used by the RCMP and other police forces.
In the case of someone convicted of serious sex offences, the criminal record is kept apart from others, but the name is flagged in the CPIC system. According to the parole board, that means details of the person's conviction would be discovered by a check that takes place if they apply to work with children, the disabled or other vulnerable people.
A file photo of Graham James while he was head coach of the Swift Current Broncos.
Mr. James's latest accuser is aware of that safeguard through his own volunteer work coaching his son's hockey teams, but he still finds the pardon inexplicable.
“To say that the parole-board process has been abused would be a grotesque understatement,” he said in an interview.
“Here you have an incredibly high-profile pedophile – and there's no other word to use to describe him – who clearly has not been able to take responsibility or show any accountability for his actions.”
The man said he considers the mere act of seeking a pardon as an illustration of Mr. James's absence of remorse. That it was granted, he said, is like a fresh wound.
“I can't explain in words the extent to which this just cuts right to the heart of the pain again, in terms of who he is and what he did.”
In the interview, Mr. James's latest accuser did not specify his allegations beyond indicating they were sexual in nature and made him contemplate suicide. Since he has not filed a formal police complaint, no new charges are connected to his allegations and nothing has been tried in a court.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, while noting the independence of the parole board, expressed shock that the government is learning of the pardon only three years after the fact.
