Former Montreal youth baseball coach who sexually assaulted teen gets 28 months in prison

A former youth baseball coach in Montreal’s West Island who sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy was sentenced to 28 months in prison on Wednesday. 

The coach, Robert Litvack, was found guilty of sexual assault and sexual interference in connection with massage sessions during one-on-one coaching appointments with the teen in 2020 and 2021, which he had argued were intended to relieve muscle soreness. 

Quebec court Judge Josee Bélanger rejected that explanation, saying he was not a trained massage therapist and did not inform the victim’s parents of the massages. 

In her decision, Bélanger said a 28-month sentence is appropriate because it emphasizes deterrence without impeding Litvack’s rehabilitation. 

“The accused interfered with [the victim’s] bodily, sexual and psychological integrity,” she wrote. “In addition, the acts involved both an abuse of authority and of trust.” 

Litvack worked as a coach and an administrator for the Lac-Saint-Louis baseball league from 2008 to 2024, where he coached players who were between the ages of 13 and 21.

He also spent about a decade working as a coach and bench staff member for the minor hockey association in Dollard-des-Ormeaux until 2017.  

Before and after coaching sessions with the victim, Litvack gave him massages which, according to the coach’s testimony, were meant to relieve the boy’s muscle pain. 

During the trial, Litvack testified that he gave the teen about 15 massages in total: 10 with the boy’s pants on, and five with them off.

The victim testified that the former coach asked him to lower his boxers to give him a massage and he started to feel uncomfortable over time.

He also mentioned that Litvack used to tickle him during those encounters, which added to his discomfort. 

Litvack said he never brought up the massages with the boy’s parents, saying they weren’t significant in the overall picture of his training.

Ultimately, the judge did not believe Litvack’s version of events and concluded that the massages were sexual in nature.