A North Vancouver teacher and former director of the Argyle Concert Band has entered a guilty plea to sexual exploitation of a minor.
Chad Jeremy Smith, 40, a Langley resident, entered the guilty plea in North Vancouver provincial court April 28.
Smith was charged in August 2015 of the offence involving a female student between October 2012 and December 2014 in North Vancouver.
Sexual exploitation is a charge applied to an adult accused of having sexual contact with a minor over whom they are in a position of authority. A publication ban prevents the release of any information that might identify the victim.
The RCMP arrested Smith on Aug. 27, 2015. He has been on bail since then with conditions not to interact with anyone appearing to be under 18 unless their parent or guardian has consented, to have no contact with the victim or her family and to stay away from North Vancouver. Smith’s bail conditions also forbid him from having social media accounts except for a blog he runs called The Virtual Bandroom, where he teaches music online and generates income from advertising.
A statement from the North Vancouver school district at the time of Smith’s arrest confirmed that Smith had been a teacher at Argyle secondary since 2005.
“The allegations were brought directly to the RCMP by a former student and the school district has no record or knowledge of any prior incidents of misconduct by Mr. Smith towards other students,” read the statement.
Smith was suspended without pay by the school district at the time of his arrest. Now that Smith has entered a plea, the school district will be taking additional steps to conclude its own internal investigation, said
Deneka Michaud, spokeswoman for the school district. “The board would make a final decision about employment,” she said. “That could obviously involve termination.”
Smith has signed an agreement not to practice with B.C.’s teacher regulation branch, pending the conclusion of the case.
A pre-sentence and psychiatric report have been ordered by the judge prior to sentencing. Smith’s sentencing has been adjourned – likely until the fall.
