Decision postponed in Noel Strapp case

Newfoundland teacher is accused of sexual assault, exploitation

A decision in the court case of high school teacher Noel Strapp, which was slated to go ahead in provincial court in St. John’s on Monday, Jan. 24, has been postponed.

Strapp, 39, has been charged with sexually assaulting and exploiting a former student. The decision in the case was supposed to come down on Dec. 17, but Judge Phyllis Harris had postponed it until Jan. 11, citing the need for more time.

Delays related to the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed it back again, until Feb. 8.

A former student, now 22 years old, testified that Strapp, who coached a sports team she was a part of, had groomed her since she was in Grade 7, and they began a sexual relationship when she was 16. She told the court they had sex in numerous places, including his children’s bedrooms, and the relationship didn’t end until her first year of university.

Strapp had given out his number to several students he coached, she said, which began as fun group chats. The young woman said this turned into a private Snapchat conversation with her where they shared sexually explicit messages, photos and videos. She testified Strapp had wanted her to use Snapchat because the messages are not permanent.

Strapp, who pleaded not guilty to the charges, told the court the young woman was like a sister to him, and text messages they had sent that seemed to be of a sexual nature were due to the young woman’s “weird, different, bizarre sense of humour.”

Strapp has been suspended without pay from his job with the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District since he became the subject of a police investigation in November 2019, when the woman made a complaint to police.