Woman sexually assaulted by small town Quebec mayor says she is moving away

Six years after she was first sexually assaulted by the mayor of her coastal village, a Quebec woman says she is leaving town.

In May, Caroline Lamarre publicly called on the province to removeMayor DenisLejeunefrom office.

The mayor was found guilty in July 2015 of sexually assaultingLamarreon two occasions in 2011 and 2012, butLejeuneis still in office.

But instead ofLejeunebeing forced out, Lamarrehas decided to leave town. She says it's no longer safe for her children, who she says are beingharassedregularly.Lamarre,a mother of five, stopped working for the municipalityin 2013.

"I think for our entire family, it's time. It's time that we be able to breathe," she said in an interview with Radio-Canada.

• Small town Quebec mayor sexually assaulted secretary, court reveals

Last month,Lamarresigned a confidential agreement with the town. In exchange for financial compensation, she agreed toabandonher efforts to return to work.

A Quebec law on municipal elections and referendums allows for an elected official convicted of such a crime to stay on if the sentence is less than 30 days in prison.

Lejeune was sentenced to 120 hours of community work, two years probation and ordered to pay$4,000 to victim support services. His request to appeal the decisionwas denied.

Lejeunehas until August to appeal the latest ruling on his case. If he does not appeal, a citizen can alertQuebec's municipal commission, which could then start the removal process under new law.

New law means mayor may lose job

Quebec passed a law last year tightening the ethics rules for municipal officials, which states that mayors convicted of an offence in the Criminal Code of Canada can be removed from their duties.

In May, Lamarre successfully fought against apublication ban on her identity. Her lawyer SteveBargonesaidLamarrewanted tobreak the usual silence protecting victims of sexual assaultbecause she wanted her job back.

Lamarresaid she has had little, or no support from people in the tiny village of 467 people,about 500 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.

ButLamarresaid shefelt like the rest of the province was behind her, which gave her the confidence to push forward.

She said it wasimportant to reach out to police about sexual assault, no matter how small the community.