Judge rejects final attempt to have text message admitted as evidence in hockey players' trial

CTV News

26-05-2025

A composite image of five photographs show former members of Canada's 2018 World Juniors hockey team, left to right, Alex Formenton, Callan Foote, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube and Carter Hart as they individually arrived to court in London, Ont., Wednesday, April 30, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne
Content advisory: This article includes graphic language and details of alleged sexual assault
Justice Maria Carroccia has rejected the Crown's final attempt to have Brett Howden's June 26, 2018, text message to his former teammate Taylor Raddysh admitted as evidence under the principled approach to hearsay at the sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada's 2018 world junior hockey team.
Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham had argued with defence counsel for several days over the admissibility of a text message sent by Howden to Raddysh roughly a week after an alleged sexual assault at the Delta Armouries Hotel in downtown London, Ont.
'Dude, I'm so happy I left when all the s--t went down,' Howden's June 26, 2018, text message said. 'Haha. Man, when I was leaving, Duber was smacking this girl's ass so hard. Like, it looked like it hurt so bad.'
In her decision on Monday, Carroccia reiterated that Howden said he has 'no present recollection of the incident [in Michael McLeod's hotel room].'
'The witness did not vouch for the accuracy of the statement and admits it could be inaccurate,' Carroccia said. 'It's unclear whether it's from his own observation or if it is something someone else told him.'
Carroccia said in her ruling that it was possible Howden was lying to Raddysh or was being careless with the truth. Cunningham had told Carroccia that Howden's text was 'critical' to the government's case.
Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, and Callan Foote are accused of sexually assaulting a then-20-year-old woman in McLeod's hotel room. McLeod is facing a second charge as being a party to the act.
The Crown has alleged that Formenton had sex with E.M. in the bathroom, that McLeod, Hart and Dube received oral sex from the complainant, that Dube slapped E.M.'s naked buttocks, that Foote did the splits over E.M.'s head and 'grazed' his genitals over her head, and that McLeod had sex with E.M. for a second time in the hotel room bathroom.
Howden, who is now 27 and who has been testifying remotely from Las Vegas where he plays for the Golden Knights, said last week that he didn't remember sending Raddysh that message.
Both Howden and Raddysh were in McLeod's hotel room when E.M. was there with as many as 10 men. Neither Howden nor Raddysh have been accused of criminal wrongdoing.
After Carroccia announced her ruling, McLeod's lawyer, David Humphrey, began cross-examining Howden.