Jaclyn McLaren: Ontario Teacher Sentenced To Two Years In Prison For Sex Offenses Involving Minors

Jaclyn McLaren, an Ontario teacher, was found guilty of seven sex offenses and was sentenced to two years in prison. She pleaded guilty to the sex-related charges that involved students and minor teenagers.

The charges against Jaclyn McLaren, who is also known as Jaclyn Jones, included two counts of luring, two counts of sexual exploitation, possession of child pornography and making and distributing explicit material to minors. McLaren pleaded guilty to them all.

CTV reported that besides the two years in prison, Justice Stephen Hunter also sentenced her to two years of probation. The judged ruled that she is not to have any contact with the victims or their families. McLaren is not allowed to use social media of any kind or have contact with anyone that is under the age of 18 years while online. Jaclyn cannot be near any public places where she might have contact with children for 10 years after she is released from prison. Jaclyn McLaren must register as a sex offender and undergo treatment.

Jaclyn McLaren was teaching Grades 6 to 8 students in Tweed, Ontario at the time that she was arrested on 42 charges involving eight teenagers. Six of the teenagers were her students. According to her lawyer, Pieter Kort, the charges were condensed because a person cannot be convicted of the same action more than once, and several of the charges were for the same kind of behavior.

McLaren was arrested in March of 2017 and was released on bail. She was not involved in teaching after that time.

The director of education for the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board, Mandy Savery-Whiteway, released a statement that said they were aware of her sentencing. The statement also recognized that the situation has been challenging and difficult for everyone involved. They declined to discuss further details of the case because employee matters are confidential.

Former teacher Jaclyn McLaren to serve two years in prison for sex crimes https://t.co/VbAa6xtR1c pic.twitter.com/kNUWrVs5yM

— Kingston Region News (@KingstonRegion) May 19, 2017

CBC reported that the court heard that “McLaren was blackmailed into sending nude photos of herself after a male student who was using her phone for school purposes in class searched through her personal photos and fond one of her exposed breasts.” Jaclyn McLaren’s student then showed it to other students. When Jaclyn asked the students not to tell anyone, they said she would have to give them more photos if she wanted them to stay quiet, the court was told.

One teen involved in the case testified that she sent nude photos through Snapchat, the app that allows you to send pictures that will disappear after being viewed. He said that McLaren started sending them to him when he was in Grade 8. The student then shared them with two of the other teenagers that were complainants in the case. Jaclyn McLaren admitted to one instance of sending a nude breast image to the student when he was her student. He was 13-years-old at the time.

Former Ontario teacher Jaclyn McLaren sentenced to 2 years in federal
institution for sexual exploitation. BG: https://t.co/iNZPQgeymM

— CBC News Alerts (@CBCAlerts) May 19, 2017

Another teenager said that he received nude images from her through the Snapchat app, as well. The times were different in this instance though. The student told the court that he received them in 2014, whereas Jaclyn McLaren said the were the following year when the boy was 15-years-old.

Other students came forward that dated back to 2013. A third student said that McLaren sent nude photos to him when he was 15-years-old and just after he turned 18-years-old, he had sex with McLaren at her home. A fourth boy also had screen shots of pictures that Jaclyn McLaren had sent. These pictures showed not only her breasts but her face, too.

In two other cases where boys came forward to testify that she had sent them nude pictures, McLaren said that she did not know that they were minors. She admitted that she did not make much of an effort to find out how old the boys were. Two of the minors that received nude images from Jaclyn McLaren were not her students.

Jaclyn McLaren met with some of the students that she sent nude photos. Two of the boys said that she met them on a hiking trail where they drank alcohol. They then went back to her car where kissing and mutual fondling took place. Both the boys say that she performed oral sex on both of them on that occasion and on separate occasions later on.

[Featured Image by Nkarol/iStock]