1 month ago
Swift News
An elementary school teacher has filed a response to a civil claim made against her by a former PAC president who said she was intentionally trying to ruin his reputation. In her response, Yennadon Elementary School teacher Janine LeBlanc denied making any defamatory posts against former Yennadon Elementary PAC president Craig Towers and called Tower’s actions as “unnecessary, frivolous, vexatious and an abuse of the process of the court,” saying the claim should be dismissed with costs. Earlier this year Towers accused Yennadon Elementary School teacher Janine LeBlanc of defamation and of trying to destroy his reputation not only as a PAC president, but as an RCMP officer in Burnaby.
He then sparked controversy after the Yennadon PAC voted to give him $10,000 of PAC money for his personal legal fees. LeBlanc had accused Towers of bullying and harassment, and breaching school district policies. Her allegations included: the cancellation of the hot lunch program at the school after LeBlanc raised concerns about its frequency; the cancellation of World Teacher Day and that Towers refused to approve PAC fundraising for any programs suggested by LeBlanc; that Towers attacked LeBlanc in a letter to the principal of Yennadon Elementary and the school district superintendent at the time, Harry Dhillon, after she made suggestions on how to avoid allergen exposure in her class from hot chocolate; that Towers approached LeBlanc in her classroom on Sept. 27, last year, to discuss her concern about snacks for the Terry Fox Run because of a severe allergy in her class; and that Towers parked in a no stopping zone to take pictures of LeBlanc and her students who were outside the school building and yelled at LeBlanc he could “park anywhere” when she informed him of where he stopped his car. In her response LeBlanc confirmed that she has been employed for more than 20 years as an elementary school teacher at Yennadon Elementary, primarily Grade 1 students, and that she and Towers were friends up until this matter.