Aug. 27, 2005. 08:46 AM
Had Gord MacArthur not been a cop, he would never have been charged since the girl said the sex was consensual.
But because he "seriously" abused his position of trust and authority, he'll lose his job, income and reputation as a good officer, provincial court Judge John Rorke said yesterday.
MacArthur, 38, pleaded guilty to touching for a sexual purpose by a person in a position of trust. He was sentenced to a year of house arrest to be followed by a year of probation.
His name will also be added to the national sex offender registry with the likes of Paul Bernardo, Karla Homolka and child serial killer Clifford Olson.
The girl, who can't be named, was 17 and in high school when the two began seeing each other in 2003 while MacArthur was assigned to an RCMP detachment in Holyrood, Nfld.
The relationship continued for 4 1/2 months until the girl's mother "got wind of it" and went to police, Crown lawyer Wendy Zdebiak said.
MacArthur joined the RCMP in 1998 and transferred to Nova Scotia in 2003. He now faces an RCMP disciplinary hearing.
CANADIAN PRESS