The plaintiff is a woman in her fifties now residing in California, United States. She is represented by Ontario lawyer Robert Talach, who counts several victims of abusive Acadian priests among his clients.
In her notice of suit, filed in the Court of Queen’s Bench on May 24 and of which Radio-Canada Acadie obtained a copy, the plaintiff states that she met Father Yvon Cormier in 1976. She and her family were then members of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste parish in Bouctouche, where Father Cormier was working at the time.
She alleges that Father Yvon Cormier used his position of authority and his role as a priest to develop a close personal relationship
with her. In the document, we can read that this would have allowed the man of the Church to be alone with the complainant and exercise complete control over her, to prey on her and sexually abuse her
.
The complainant alleges that the priest first sexually assaulted her around 1977, when she was eight years old. She alleges that he repeatedly sexually assaulted her, at church and at the parsonage, over the next eight years.
Moving to California
Her attorney, Robert Talach, says the alleged assaults ceased when the complainant and her family moved to California.
This move ended the abuse for her. Recently she was in her car in California and she saw a billboard that said “have you been assaulted by a priest?” And that got him thinking “I really should take care of this”
says Me Robert Talach.
Father Yvon Cormier interviewed in June 2014 in Moncton
Photo: Radio-Canada
In the notice of suit, the plaintiff asserts that the Catholic Archdiocese of Moncton is responsible for the alleged actions of Yvon Cormier. She asks for financial compensation. The amount of money she wishes to obtain is not specified.
The allegations made in this notice of lawsuit have not been proven in court. The archdiocese has not yet responded to this notice of lawsuit.
The Archdiocese speaks of a dedicated priest
Radio-Canada Acadie approached the Archdiocese of Moncton to react to the filing of this notice of prosecution. The Archbishop, Valéry Vienneau, replied by email that he could not comment on this process before the courts.
I can simply say that Father Cormier was known as a devoted priest to his parishioners and that the allegations made against him do not correspond to what we know about him.
said Bishop Vienneau.
He added that since Father Yvon Cormier is deceased and he cannot respond to the notice of suit, the Church will carefully consider it in accordance with its policies and procedures.
As the facts become known, we will give the lawsuit all the necessary attention with seriousness and compassion for the plaintiff.
he said.
Father Yvon Cormier hosted two Guatemalan nationals in the basement of the Sainte-Thérèse church for 16 months in the 1990s. He is seen here in a report broadcast in November 1997.
Photo: Radio-Canada
Who was Father Yvon Cormier?
This is the first time that Father Yvon Cormier, who died on October 24, 2020 at the age of 88, has been publicly targeted by allegations of sexual assault.
During his long career, this churchman from Dieppe worked in several communities in southeastern New Brunswick.
He worked in Bouctouche, Moncton, Dieppe, Shediac, Scoudouc, Grande-Digue, Saint-Philippe, Collette and Rosaireville. He also served as a missionary in Latin America in the 1960s.
In 1996 and 1997, Father Yvon Cormier played a leading role in a case that caused a stir in the region.
He had then welcomed two Guatemalan nationals in the basement of the Sainte-Thérèse church in Dieppe – of which he was the parish priest at the time – for 16 months.
The latter were the subject of a deportation notice and feared for their lives if they were sent back to Guatemala. Many people in the community, including politicians, rallied to their cause.
Reference-ici.radio-canada.ca