The parents of two students are suing Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf for $440,000 after the teens were expelled for taking part in a discussion on social media about a bomb attack at the school.
Teenagers who were studying in secondary school at this private college in Montreal last year participated in a private conversation on the social network Instagram, of which management ultimately obtained a copy.
In particular, we could read: “Guys we have to carry out attacks through brébeuf/café bomb attack (sic)”.
One of the students suing the school, whose identity cannot be revealed, replied: “Not at the oasis where do you think I’m going to buy my pancakes? (sic)” by adding a water gun emoji.
The other teenager had added “likes” to certain comments. He had also transferred the home address of a teacher a few days before the exchange deemed problematic.
According to the lawsuit, the two students “participated in an extremely limited way” in the conversation and “did not make any comments that could be considered remotely as a threat.”
Both were suspended following the discovery of the exchanges by the management of the private school in May 2023. They were then arrested by the police, but no charges were ultimately brought against them.
“The College notified the police when nothing justified such drastic action,” the lawsuit states.
Outside of school
The two young people were not able to re-enter the establishment until the end of the school year and were told that they already had the skills to pass their third secondary education, thus not having to take additional courses. evaluations.
The leaders of the school establishment allegedly based their decision on the fact that “the actions taken by [les deux élèves]although not criminal, constituted misconduct contrary to the policies and values of the College,” we mention in the legal document recently filed at the Montreal courthouse.
This decision was “unfair and arbitrary” since some students received sanctions and others did not for objectively similar actions, allege the two families.
Claims
The parents of the two teenagers are therefore suing Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf for more than $440,000.
In particular, they are demanding $60,000 for each child, since they were “uprooted from their school environment and forced to put an end to their relationships with their friends and their teachers, which is particularly difficult at this age.”
One of them went to finish high school in a private English-speaking school, having been refused entry into other French-speaking colleges. His family is therefore demanding $45,000, the difference between the tuition fees of Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf and those of the new school for two years.
