Prominent Quebec Cardinal Marc Ouellet denies second allegation of sexual misconduct

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Ouellet denies having committed any reprehensible behavior towards the woman and says that no complaint has been filed against him in civil or criminal courts.

The allegations about the cardinal first surfaced last summer in a class action lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Quebec, and last week one of the plaintiffs came forward and accused the Church. Catholic for trying to silence her with threats and intimidation.

Pamla Groleau, one of the 140 plaintiffs behind the lawsuit, said she initially kept her identity a secret to protect her family, her job and her sanity.

In the lawsuit, Groleau accused Ouellet of several incidents of sexual assault between 2008 when she was 23 and 2010, including slipping a hand on her back and touching her buttocks at an event in Quebec City.

The allegations have not been tested in court, and Ouellet last month countersued Groleau in Quebec Superior Court for defamation, denying the allegations and seeking $100,000 in damages.

The second allegation was reported this week by French Catholic weekly Golias Hebdo, which also published a letter with the woman’s name redacted dated June 23, 2021. In the letter, the current Archbishop of Quebec, Grad Cyprien Lacroix , informed her that her complaint would not be pursued.

This report from The Canadian Press was first published on January 21, 2023.

The Canadian Press

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