A former priest in Tecumseh has been ordered to spend time in jail and pay back money he stole from the parish.
53-year-old Robert Couture is sentenced to 10 months behind bars and must repay $75,000.
He was convicted of theft over $5,000 by a Windsor jury last December and faced sentencing today.
Assistant Crown Attorney Tom Meehan says the sentence imposed by the judge is appropriate in the circumstances.
Crédit photo: Assistant Crown Attorney Tom Meehan (AM800 file photo by Peter Langille)
He says Justice Scott Campbell discussed at length the idea of a conditional discharge, but rejected in this case because of the amount of money involved.
Meehan says the judge made reference to the trust the parish had in him: "that's the defining feature of the case, that as pastor you're in charge and hundreds if not thousands of people put their trust in you and when you breach it that's a more significant violation than for folks that don't have the trust of the community"
He says the judge made reference to the "fall from grace" Couture suffered as a well respected person in the community, which would be in addition to the jail time imposed.
There is no word on whether Couture plans to appeal either the sentence or the conviction.
Court was told Couture is no longer serving as a priest, but is a labourer in a local business.