MONTREAL — Former national ski coach Bertrand Charest will be released from prison as he appeals his sexual-assault convictions.
Quebec Court of Appeal Justice Martin Vauclair authorized his release today.
Charest was found guilty in June 2017 of 37 of the 57 sex-related charges he faced involving nine of the 12 women who had accused him of crimes that occurred more than 20 years ago.
Charest is appealing the guilty verdicts as well as the 12-year sentence he received in December 2017.
In arguing for his release, Charest said there had been a significant change in his situation after the Crown conceded that, for a variety of reasons, 20 of the 37 guilty verdicts cannot stand.
Charest has been behind bars since his arrest in 2015. Vauclair concluded Charest presents no risk, but he imposed a number of conditions on his release.