The first witness has been called on day two in the sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior hockey.
All five players, Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, and Cal Foote, are seated at separate tables with their respective legal teams.
The day started at 10:06 a.m., Justice Maria Carroccia entered the court room and after some legal discussion between the Crown and the defendants’ lawyers, the jury, made up of 11 women and three men, was brought into the room at 10:33
Once the jury was seated, the charges were presented to them, as well as the players’ pleas, and Carroccia proceeded with her instructions.
“…Do not let anyone talk you about this case, tell them that you are not at liberty to talk to them.,” said Carroccian. “The only information that can be considered during deliberation is the information received in the courtroom – do not seek out other information about the case.”
Carroccia went on to say, “Sexual assault can take place in many different circumstance between all kinds of people who react in all kinds of ways… do not jump to conclusions… there is no single way or rule how people involved in any sexual encounter, behave during and afterwards.”
After a recess, the jury was brought back into the court room at 12:16 p.m. and Crown attorney Heather Donkers began with her opening remarks – outlining the case and what evidence is expected to be presented over the course of the trial.
“This is a case about consent, and equally as important, this is a case about what is not consent,” opened Donkers. “This case is not about whether E.M. [the complainant] said no, or removed herself from an unwelcome situation when she had the opportunity.”
Donkers went on to say, “This case is about whether E.M. voluntarily agreed to engage in each and every instance of sexual touching that took place, at the time that they happened. At the end of this trial, we will ask you to find each of the five defendants guilty of sexual assault because they touched E.M. sexually without her voluntary agreement to each act when it took place.”
It was explained to the jury that, “It is anticipated that you are going to hear from E.M., and others in the room, that in this context, each of the five accused in this case had sexual contact with [the complainant] without her voluntary agreement to the specific acts that took place.”
Following Donkers remarks, she gave an agreed statement of facts between the Crown and defendants. The facts included that room 209 at the Delta Hotel in London, Ont. where alleged actions took place, was registered to McLeod and Formenton, and that over the course of an initial investigation in 2022, police were given videos from McLeod’s phone that were taken inside a downtown London bar.
London police Det. Tiffany Waque, who has been with the service since since 2012, was the first person to be called to the stand to help give a clearer picture of the timeline of events.
Court broke for a lunch break around 1 p.m.
On Tuesday, all five defendants pleaded not guilty to sexual assault, with McLeod also pleading not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault.
The players were charged last year in relation to an incident that allegedly took place in the city in June 2018.
The complainant cannot be identified under a standard publication ban.
A jury of 14, plus two alternates, was selected yesterday, comprising a majority of women, and the trial is expected to begin on Wednesday, lasting approximately eight weeks.