Sentencing submissions end in trial of Stacey Duke

WATCH: Sentencing submissions ended in the trial for former educational assistant Stacey Duke. Sierra D’Souza Butts reports.

Sentencing submissions for a Saskatchewan woman convicted of multiple sexual exploitation charges have wrapped up – with the Crown proposing a maximum term of six years.

Stacey Duke, 40, was found guilty on two counts of exploiting teenagers for a sexual purpose, two counts of making explicit material available, and two counts of luring a child while working as an educational assistant at Vibank Regional School in 2022.

During the trial, the jury heard from five witnesses – two being the victims, who were 17 years old at the time of the offences.

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While they were a student at the school, one complainant testified Duke added them on the social media platform Snapchat and sent messages about having “sexual fantasies” along with naked photos and videos of herself.

The second complainant was also a former Vibank student, but did not know Duke directly through her work.

The complainant testified that they received an explicit video of Duke performing a sexual act through Facebook Messenger.

On the last day of trial, Duke took the stand and admitted to the second complainant’s allegation – but denied the other.

While expressing remorse for her actions, Duke told the court she was suffering from alcoholism and severe depression at the time and has been sober since.

After the jury found Duke guilty on all counts, the Crown requested she be sentenced to six years – four years for the first complainant and two years for the second complainant.

Additionally, the Crown requested certain probation conditions for Duke. They include not attending public parks, and contact where persons under the age of 16 are present and to not seek employment that involves being in a position of trust or authority.

The defence asked the judge for a 26-month sentence, which includes 14 months for the first complainant and 12 months for the second complainant – stating Duke should solely be charged on exploiting teenagers for a sexual purpose and the other four other counts be dismissed.

In addition, the defence asked for the probation order to be denied stating Duke is at “low-risk of reoffending,” due to having a strong support system at home.

After taking into considering both counsels sentencing submissions, a decision is set to be delivered at Court of King’s Bench on June 10th.