Harold LeBel explained

Harold LeBel
Birth Date:22 June 1962
Birth Place:Squatec, Quebec, Canada
Party:Independent
Residence:Rimouski, Quebec
Honorific-Suffix:MNA
Office1:Member of the National Assembly of Quebec for Rimouski
Term Start1:April 7, 2014
Term End1:August 28, 2022
Predecessor1:Irvin Pelletier
Successor1:Maïté Blanchette Vézina

Harold LeBel (in French pronounced as /a.ʁɔld lə.bɛl/; born June 22, 1962) is a former Canadian politician and convicted sex offender in Quebec, who was elected to the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2014 election.[1] He represented the electoral district of Rimouski as a member of the Parti Québécois.

He was a candidate for the party three times previously, running in Rivière-du-Loup in the 1989 election and the 1994 election, and in Kamouraska-Témiscouata in the 2003 election.[2]

On December 15, 2020, he was arrested following allegations of sexual assault against Catherine Fournier, a former member of the National Assembly and current Mayor of Longueuil, dating back to 2017. He was released later that day, and subsequently expelled from the PQ caucus, pending further investigations.[3]

LeBel was found guilty on November 23, 2022 of sexually assaulting Fournier at his residence in 2017.[4]

On January 26, 2023, at the courthouse of Rimouski, he was sentenced to eight months of imprisonment.[5]

On March 21, 2023, after expressing remorse for his crime during therapies in prison, LeBel was granted parole.[6]

Notes and References

  1. http://www.lavantage.qc.ca/Actualites/2014-04-07/article-3680693/Le-pequiste-Harold-LeBel-elu-dans-Rimouski-avec-plus-de-40-%25-des-voix/1 "Le péquiste Harold LeBel élu dans Rimouski avec plus de 40 % des voix"
  2. http://tvanouvelles.ca/lcn/infos/regional/estduquebec/archives/2014/02/20140217-201158.html "Harold Lebel candidat à l'investiture du PQ"
  3. News: Harold LeBel removed from Parti Québécois caucus following arrest. Global News. Rimouski. 15 December 2020. 15 December 2020.
  4. https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/former-quebec-mna-harold-lebel-found-guilty-of-sexual-assault-1.6165839
  5. Web site: January 26, 2023 . Former PQ MNA Harold LeBel sentenced to eight months in jail for sex assault Globalnews.ca . 2023-01-26 . globalnews.ca . en-US.
  6. Web site: Marin . Stéphanie . 2023-03-21 . L’ex-député Harold LeBel peut sortir de prison, au quart de sa peine . 2023-04-19 . Le Devoir . fr.