Man
jailed
for
assaulting
young
girl
PARRY SOUND - After listening to the judge reprimand the man who'd just pleaded guilty to molesting her young daughter, the girl's mother stood up and ensured her daughter's voice wasn't silent in the justice system.
"She's going to have to live with this forever," she tearfully said.
A victim impact statement from the victim and her mother hadn't been prepared for the judge before the sentencing, due to Mark Clouthier's sudden guilty plea last week. Mr. Clouthier was arrested on charges of sexual touching on Dec, 21, 2007. Victim impact statements tell the judge how the event has affected their lives and are usually prepared ahead of sentencings.
Mr. Clouthier, 44, of McDougall Township, pleaded guilty at the Parry Sound Courthouse Thursday evening to sexually touching a person under the age of 14 between July 1, 2006, and December 18, 2007. He was sentenced to one year in jail, plus three months pre-sentence custody.
After hearing from the mother, Justice Lawrence Klein returned his attention to Mr. Clouthier, who stood, handcuffed in the prisoner's box, in front of him.
"I was correct in my assessment that you stole her innocence, I was correct she would need counselling...for who knows how long... I only hope you haven't destroyed her life," the judge said.
The court heard that on Dec. 17, 2007, the mother walked into a room and thought she saw Mr. Clouthier removing his hands from her 10-year-old daughter's pants. The daughter confirmed the incident the next day, and said that he'd been doing sexual things with her for a year.
Mr. Clouthier was also sentenced to three years probation, ordered to provide a sample of his DNA and put on the sex offenders registry.
He is also prohibited from going to parks, swimming areas where children under 14 could be or are present, and from going to day-care centres, schools and community centres.
