Graham James, convicted in junior hockey sex assaults, granted full parole

GrahamJames, the former junior hockey coach who is now aconvicted sex offender,has been grantedfull parole.

James, who was serving a seven-year sentence forsexually assaulting young players he coached in the 1990s, has been on day parole and living in a halfway house in the Montreal area since January.

Asked by the board if he knew his actions were wrong, James told his hearing in Laval, Que., on Thursday morning: "I had a serious time confronting the depths of what I had done."

He told the board he came to understand, as he underwent therapy during his first prison sentence in the late1990s, that "what I did was horrific, that I abused my position."

James said he believes he has earned the right to be granted full parole.

"I've not re-offended and lived as productive a life as I can," he said.

Must abide by several conditions

In its decision, the parole board told James he has "made observable and measurable progress during your period of day parole."

The board set out severalconditions James must abide by,including:

• No contact with anyone under 18.
• No communication with victims or their families.
• No employment or volunteer work involving minors.

Risk assessment

Dr. Patrick Baillie, a forensic psychologist in Calgary, says the parole board wouldhave examined several factors in determining James's risk to the community, including his participation in programs while he was in custody, his compliance with discipline-related issuesand the type ofsupports he will have when he is released.

"If you look at his history here, this is not an offence that happened after his prior conviction, so it wasn't as though he re-offended after his first release," he said.

"And so there isn't that sort of recidivism aspect to it."

At his lastparole board hearing, Grahamtold the board he is still attracted to young men, but said he will never put himself in a position tore-offend.

"I don't think I can change attraction, but what I can change is my behaviour," he said.

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He hadasked for full parole at that time, but the federal paroleboard ruled it waspremature, adding thatJames needed to show more "heartfelt" empathy.

He was granted day parole with conditions, includingno contact with minors under 18, orhis victims or their families. He was alsorequiredto report regularly to his parole officer.

After the decision in January, NHL star Theo Fleury, one of the playersJames repeatedly assaulted,had strong words about Canada'sjustice system.

He condemned Canada for taking a soft-handed approach towardthe sexual assault of minors.

He 'didn't see their unhappiness'

During January'sparole hearing,James talked at length about how his "distorted view" at the time led him to believe that his actions were not abusive.

He saidhe saw his victims as friends and thought he was in love with them.

James told the board that going through the sexual offender treatment program during his first jail term helped him to see that his actions were abusive.

"I clearly didn't see their unhappiness," he said, calling it a great failing on his part.

"I think my life and the lives of many others would have been betterhad I not been a hockey coach."

James had nearly completed a five-year sentence in 2015 for sex-related charges connected to five players during his time as a coach in the Western Hockey Leaguewhen he pleaded guilty to a sexual assault involving another player, who has not been identified.

He was sentenced to two years for thatassault, which took place between 1990 and 1991, when James was with the Swift Current Broncos in Saskatchewan.That time was tacked onto the sentence he was already serving.

James used his positionand statureas a coach to abuse the player, according to the prosecutor in the case.

In 1997, James was sentenced to 3years after he pleaded guiltyto 300 counts of abuse against Sheldon Kennedy, who had played for James and went on to an NHL career,and 50 counts against another player.

Pardon sparks reform

After his release from prison, Jameswas pardoned bythe National Parole Board in 2007 a fact that didn't come to light until another victim came forward to The Canadian Press in 2010.

The federal government later tightened up the rules surrounding federal pardons, now known as record suspensions,to make anyone in a position of authority over avictim ineligible.

James was living inMexico whenFleury released his 2009autobiography,Playing with Fire, in which he said James had molested him.

InJanuary 2010, Fleuryfiled a criminal complaint.James was convicted in 2012 for repeatedly assaultingFleury and his cousin,Todd Holt, when they played for him in the WHL.

In 2013, the Manitoba Court of Appeal made anunusual move,extending James's sentence to five years from two.