Montreal teacher, convicted of sex with student, appeals verdict

Tania Pontbriand, a former high-school gym teacher convicted of having sex more than 200 times with a teenage boy, is appealing her guilty verdict.

QMI Agency has learned that Pontbriand, 43, wants the Quebec Court of Appeal to order a new trial.

A judge north of Montreal convicted her in January of sexual assault and sexual touching.

The student testified that he and Pontbriand had a sexual relationship from 2002 to 2004. Pontbriand was 30, the boy was 15.

Judge Valmont Beaulieu ruled that Pontbriand “used” the boy as “an object to selfishly satisfy her sexual appetite.”

But Pontbriand insists the boy is lying and that the judge made legal errors.

“The complainant’s testimony is unreliable and can’t serve as a basis for a conviction according to the standard beyond a reasonable doubt,” reads her appeal.

Pontbriand’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 8.

Source: sunnewsnetwork