A convict who became Canada’s youngest designated dangerous offender after sexually assaulting a three-month-old baby is seeking escorted leave from prison to attend Indigenous cultural ceremonies in Vancouver.

Tara Desousa, now 43, has asked the Federal Court to overturn a decision by BC’s Fraser Valley Institution to deny her “supervised temporary absences” from the federal women’s prison.

Desousa, named Adam Laboucan, was 15 years old in 1997 when he sexually assaulted a baby he was caring for in Quesnel, BC. The child required surgery to repair the injuries.

Desousa, who underwent sex-affirmation surgery while serving an indeterminate sentence, also admitted to drowning a three-year-old boy when he was 11, who the judge in the sexual assault case said was underage of criminal liability.

BC Supreme Court Justice Victor Curtis imposed an indeterminate sentence and a dangerous offense designation in 1999 because there was no “foreseeable time frame in which Adam Laboucan could be cured.”

“In doing so, I do not intend for Mr. Laboucan to be held in prison for many years without any hope of release,” the judge wrote of the then-17-year-old.

“What is intended and what needs to happen is that Mr. Laboucan be held only as long as necessary because of the risk he poses.”

The BC Court of Appeals upheld the dangerous offender designation in 2002.

Desousa’s application filed in Vancouver Federal Court in October says she first applied for escorted leave to attend ceremonies at the Anderson Lodge “women’s healing center” in August 2023.

The lodge is run by the Circle of Eagles Lodge Society, an Indigenous-led organization led by CEO Merv Thomas.

Thomas said in an interview that he could not comment on individual offenders, but many people “who come into our facilities are dealing with a lot of historical trauma.”

He said the society takes a “holistic” approach to helping people heal through lodge ceremonies, and “those who are involved in culture and ceremony are more likely to reintegrate positively into the community.”

“We leave the final judgments to the creator,” he said. “We don’t judge anyone who comes to us.”

He said there were “strict” conditions and protocols for offenders coming to the society’s facilities and “community safety” was paramount.

In his decades with the organization, Thomas said even he has trouble reading the files of “brothers and sisters” seeking help from society, reading about some of the “horrible things” they’ve done.

“But I started to read and I started to understand where they came from and some of the atrocities and the damage that was done to them,” he said.

“I understand and see both sides and it’s very difficult a lot of times to put our judgments aside. But at the same time, we work with them and believe that everyone has an opportunity for change.”

Desousa’s Vancouver-based lawyer, Caroline North, declined to comment on the Federal Court application.

Desousa has had several parole attempts denied, most recently in June 2024.

The Parole Board of Canada’s decision said the victim of the assault and their family “suffered pain, anxiety and anguish and long-term emotional effects as a result of your crime.”

“Each time you come up for parole, they are haunted by your crimes and the harm you caused to their defenseless son/grandson,” the decision said.

The board’s decision said Desousa was the victim of “extreme” childhood abuse, bullied at school, diagnosed with “multiple disorders” and exhibited “violent and sexual behavior” around other children.

Desousa’s case management team is said to believe escorted temporary absences are “the next logical step in reintegration and gradual release”.

However, the board ruled that Desousa posed “an undue risk to society” if she was paroled.

A profile in Desousa’s name is listed on Canadian Inmates Connect, which connects inmates with potential pen pals.

“I have been incarcerated since I was 15 years old. I was abused a lot as a child and did not know that this was not normal behavior,” says the profile, which includes photos. “I know now and I’m sorry. I was never given the chance to have proper interaction with the growing world.”

Thomas said inmates approved for accompanied absences to attend the lodge must go through a “rigorous” process, but those who attend the ceremonies and have access to other supports from elders and counselors see the greatest chance for reform and rehabilitation.

“When people embrace their culture, that’s where I’ve seen the most change in people,” he said. “They have to do the work themselves because if they don’t, then we can’t change them.”