Bassist David Desrosiers leaves Simple Plan after misconduct allegations

By: The Canadian Press Posted:

Advertisement

Advertise with us

The bassist for Montreal rock band Simple Plan is leaving the group following anonymous sexual misconduct allegations against him on social media.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/07/2020 (2285 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The bassist for Montreal rock band Simple Plan is leaving the group following anonymous sexual misconduct allegations against him on social media.

David Desrosiers posted an apology on Instagram Thursday for the “harm” he has caused women.

An anonymous accuser on social media posted on Wednesday that Desrosiers started making inappropriate “jokes” with her when she was a minor, and they had consensual sex after she came of age. She alleged he invited others for group sex without asking her, threatened and demeaned her.

Members of Simple Plan are seen in a Montreal studio Friday, Oct. 10, 2008. The bassist for Montreal rock band Simple Plan is leaving the group following anonymous sexual misconduct allegations against him on social media. David Desrosiers posted an apology on Instagram Thursday for the
Members of Simple Plan are seen in a Montreal studio Friday, Oct. 10, 2008. The bassist for Montreal rock band Simple Plan is leaving the group following anonymous sexual misconduct allegations against him on social media. David Desrosiers posted an apology on Instagram Thursday for the "harm" he has caused women. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

Desrosiers wrote on Instagram that allegations “have led me to acknowledge that some of the interactions I have had with women have caused them harm.”

He said he was sorry for the harm he caused, and said he would seek “professional help to educate myself and act appropriately in the future.”

In a statement on Instagram, Simple Plan also apologized to the women affected as well as to fans who are disappointed by the “regretful situation.”

A representative for the band said there will be no further comment at this time.

The group, which became known for its pop-punk sound in the 2000s, says it will be taking time to “pause” and reflect on how to prevent such situations going forward.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 10, 2020.

Advertisement Advertise With Us

Report Error Submit a Tip

Advertisement

Learn more about Winnipeg Free Press Advertising solutions

More Stories

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES New e-scooter legislation is set to come into effect next year in Manitoba.

Manitoba e-scooter legislation changes set to impose speed limit, age restrictions, sidewalk ban

Matthew Frank 5 minute read Preview

Manitoba e-scooter legislation changes set to impose speed limit, age restrictions, sidewalk ban

Matthew Frank 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:14 PM CDT

People riding e-scooters and other personal electric vehicles in Manitoba will have to strap on a helmet, stay off sidewalks and follow new age limits once new provincial rules for the devices take effect next year.

The vehicles, which also include electric skateboards, hoverboards and unicycles, will fall under The Highway Traffic Act starting in 2027, according to the province’s website. E-bikes are excluded from the new rules, according to the province’s frequently-asked-questions page.

All riders must be at least 16 years old and wear properly fitting helmets — that goes for passengers, too, the province said.

The proposed new legislation sets a speed limit of 25 km/h and would prohibit personal electric vehicles from sidewalks unless signs specifically allow sidewalk use. Riders would be using shared paths or roads with speed limits of 50 km/hr or less. They won’t be allowed to operate the vehicles under the influence of alcohol or drugs and they must use hand signals and obey traffic signs.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 5:14 PM CDT
Prime Minister Mark Carney, right, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, speak after signing agreements in Calgary, Alta., Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Carney: Trump’s ‘energy ceasefire’ could ‘de-escalate’ war in Ukraine

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Carney: Trump’s ‘energy ceasefire’ could ‘de-escalate’ war in Ukraine

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:18 PM CDT

OTTAWA - Mark Carney thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for “his leadership toward securing an energy ceasefire" between Ukraine and Russia, the Prime Minister's Office said on Sunday.

But on the same day, Carney also expressed to Ukraine's leader that Trump's new diesel supply agreement with Russia undermines Canada's efforts to end the war in Europe.

Trump posted on his Truth Social account on Sunday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to an "energy ceasefire," but did not immediately offer any details.

Carney expressed “strong support for this agreement," according to a readout from the PMO that followed a conversation between the two leaders. And on his own social media account, Carney offered that Trump’s newly announced “energy ceasefire” could help wind down Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 5:18 PM CDT
KELLY-ANNE RIESS / FREE PRESS Now you see it, now you don’t. Winnipeg escape artist Dean Gunnarson stands where a historic plaque commemorating the founding of the International Brotherhood of Magicians once hung before mysteriously disappearing earlier this week.

Piece of Winnipeg’s magic history disappears

Kelly-Anne Riess 5 minute read Preview

Piece of Winnipeg’s magic history disappears

Kelly-Anne Riess 5 minute read Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026

A piece of Winnipeg’s magic history has vanished, and internationally renowned escape artist Dean Gunnarson is offering a $500 reward to anyone who can make it reappear.

The plaque marked the birthplace of what has become the world’s largest organization of professional and amateur magicians, the International Brotherhood of Magicians, which was founded in Winnipeg more than a century ago.

Gunnarson said fellow magician and local magic historian Bruce Thompson discovered the disappearance Tuesday while on his way to work.

Thompson returned to inspect the site and found what appeared to be evidence it had been forcibly removed.

Read
Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026
French Ambassador to Canada Hélène Farnaud-Defromont speaks with The Canadian Press at the embassy in Ottawa on Friday, Oct. 9, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Keito Newman

France’s envoy says Carney admired for response to ‘extremely radical’ U.S.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

France’s envoy says Carney admired for response to ‘extremely radical’ U.S.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 9:16 AM CDT

OTTAWA - France's new ambassador to Canada says her country admires the Carney government's response to "extremely radical" American demands and is calling for swift action to boost Canada's strategic ties with Europe.

"My mission is very clear. It's to work toward making France one of Canada’s closest allies in Europe, in each field, in every sector," French Ambassador Hélène Farnaud-Defromont told The Canadian Press on Friday.

In her first interview since her posting started last month, Farnaud-Defromont said in French her country sees Prime Minister Mark Carney's approach to managing trade negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump's administration as "exemplary."

The prime minister called a halt to trade talks with Washington in August and accused the Trump administration of bringing fresh demands to the table at the last minute. Carney also has vowed to protect Canada's language sovereignty and ability to regulate big tech firms.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 9:16 AM CDT
This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA shows Hurrican Simon in the Pacific on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via AP)

Puerto Vallarta boards up as Hurricane Simon hits Category 4 strength

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Puerto Vallarta boards up as Hurricane Simon hits Category 4 strength

The Associated Press 3 minute read Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico (AP) — Simon has strengthened into a powerful Category 4 hurricane as it barrels toward Mexico’s coast.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Saturday that Simon’s maximum sustained winds increased to 150 mph (240 kph). A storm of that strength or greater is considered a major hurricane.

The center said it expected Simon “to be near or just inland” of Mexico's west-central coast on Sunday. The hurricane could bring as much as 10 to 20 inches (25-50 cm) of rain over parts of southwestern Mexico, with some areas in the states of Michoacan, Colima and Jalisco receiving up to 30 inches (76 centimeters).

“This rainfall will produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” the center warned in a bulletin that also urged residents to take immediate action to prepare as tropical-storm conditions were expected to arrive Saturday afternoon.

Read
Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026
Faith and works

A Life's Story: Writer built bridges with genuine curiosity, compassion for diversity of religious practices

Janine LeGal 6 minute read Preview

A Life's Story: Writer built bridges with genuine curiosity, compassion for diversity of religious practices

Janine LeGal 6 minute read Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026

Brenda Suderman knew how to make people feel comfortable. For a journalist, that character trait is a real strength, and it made people trust and appreciate her.

Whether covering musicals, worship spaces, the effects of pandemic shutdowns, death rituals and practices of different traditions, the discovery of the burial of 2,284 infants in unmarked graves, or any other of the countless topics she wrote about in her four- decade career, Suderman did it with genuine interest and care.

Born and raised in Winkler, Suderman grew up on a farm. Much of her childhood was spent in gardens and sugar beet fields.

Baptized at 16, she became a member of the Winkler Bergthaler Mennonite Church. The restrictions against women at the time contributed to planting the seeds of Suderman’s feminist perspective.

Read
Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026