Gary A. Leaman leaving the Penticton Courthouse after his sentencing.

(MEAGHAN ARCHER / iNFOnews.ca)

PENTICTON - Former city councillor Gary A. Leaman will spend the next few years in jail—his punishment for sexually assaulting two young victims.

Leaman, 59, pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault and was sentenced to a total of 21 months in provincial prison by Judge Gale Sinclair today at the Penticton Courthouse.

Sinclair recommended Leaman complete the sexual offender program in prison, and continue his treatment after his sentence while on probation. His probation term will last for another two years after he’s released from jail.

“I don’t know how the hell you got into this, but what a mess,” Sinclair said. 

The offences against two victims took place between the beginning of 2009 and the end of 2011, however the complainants did not come forward until May 2013.

According to one victim’s police statement, Leaman touched the victim's genitals with his hand on several occasions. Leaman, who served on city council from 2002 to 2005, does not have a criminal history. 

The court heard that Leaman told doctors during psychological assessments that he was sexually assaulted when he was six years old and, as an adult, had sexual urges he couldn’t control.

Clinical psychologist Nalini Joneja wrote the court-ordered psychological assessment report on Leaman. She diagnosed Leaman with narcissistic personality disorder—a finding based on Leaman’s controlling and manipulative behaviours.

Leaman sought out the opinion of another expert, Dr. Lindsey Thomas, who conducted a second evaluation that was not court ordered. Leaman wanted to address the areas in which he thought he’d been misunderstood by Joneja, said Crown prosecutor Catherine Crockett.

In the report, Thomas said she wouldn't diagnosis Leaman with narcissistic personality disorder, but he does have traits consistent with obsessive compulsive disorder and perfectionism.

In addition to seeking help from Thomas, Leaman has been voluntarily attending biweekly counselling sessions with another psychologist for the last year. He is developing tools to manage his mind and has “overwhelming regret” for the “catastrophic damage” he caused, said the offender.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Meaghan Archer at marcher@infotelnews.ca or call 250-488-3065. To contact the editor, email mjones@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-2724.

News from © iNFOnews, 2014