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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- Economic Times
Hockey Canada sexual assault case: Accused Carter Hart claims woman had sex willingly, did not protest
Defense challenges witness credibility Live Events Trial disruptions Background of the case (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The sexual assault trial involving five former members of Canada's world junior hockey team continued Thursday at Ontario Superior Court in London. Carter Hart , one of the accused, took the witness stand for the first time. He revealed some of the fuzzy events surrounding the alleged group sexual assault of a young woman, identified as E.M., at a hotel in June testified that the woman involved, referred to as E.M., willingly participated in the sexual activities that occurred in a hotel room in June 2018. He stated that E.M. did not express any objections during the encounter. Hart is the first of the accused players to testify in the earlier updates, it was confirmed that one of the accused, Michael McLeod , who had consensual sex with one of the women, will not be testifying. There is still uncertainty regarding whether other accused, Cal Foote, Dillon Dubé, or Alex Formenton, will choose to testify in their own cross-examination, Hart's lawyer questioned NHL player Brett Howden, who was present during the incident. The defense pointed out inconsistencies in Howden 's recollection, suggesting his memory might be unreliable due to a past head injury. Howden's testimony is central to the prosecution's Howden testified remotely from Las Vegas, where he plays for the Golden Knights, and was questioned by Megan Savard, the lawyer for trial has faced multiple disruptions. Earlier this month, the jury was dismissed after jurors reported feeling mocked by defense attorneys. This followed a previous mistrial caused by alleged inappropriate contact between a juror and a defense lawyer. As a result, the trial is now proceeding without a charges stem from an incident during a Hockey Canada gala in June 2018. The complainant alleges she was sexually assaulted by multiple players in a hotel five accused, Carter Hart, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, Dillon Dubé, and Alex Formenton, have pleaded not guilty. McLeod faces an additional charge of being a party to the trial continues under the supervision of Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia. A publication ban remains in effect, limiting the release of certain five players are currently on leave from professional hockey and are not under contract with any NHL team.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Hockey Canada sexual assault case: Accused Carter Hart claims woman had sex willingly, did not protest
Defense challenges witness credibility Live Events Trial disruptions Background of the case (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The sexual assault trial involving five former members of Canada's world junior hockey team continued Thursday at Ontario Superior Court in London. Carter Hart , one of the accused, took the witness stand for the first time. He revealed some of the fuzzy events surrounding the alleged group sexual assault of a young woman, identified as E.M., at a hotel in June testified that the woman involved, referred to as E.M., willingly participated in the sexual activities that occurred in a hotel room in June 2018. He stated that E.M. did not express any objections during the encounter. Hart is the first of the accused players to testify in the earlier updates, it was confirmed that one of the accused, Michael McLeod , who had consensual sex with one of the women, will not be testifying. There is still uncertainty regarding whether other accused, Cal Foote, Dillon Dubé, or Alex Formenton, will choose to testify in their own cross-examination, Hart's lawyer questioned NHL player Brett Howden, who was present during the incident. The defense pointed out inconsistencies in Howden 's recollection, suggesting his memory might be unreliable due to a past head injury. Howden's testimony is central to the prosecution's Howden testified remotely from Las Vegas, where he plays for the Golden Knights, and was questioned by Megan Savard, the lawyer for trial has faced multiple disruptions. Earlier this month, the jury was dismissed after jurors reported feeling mocked by defense attorneys. This followed a previous mistrial caused by alleged inappropriate contact between a juror and a defense lawyer. As a result, the trial is now proceeding without a charges stem from an incident during a Hockey Canada gala in June 2018. The complainant alleges she was sexually assaulted by multiple players in a hotel five accused, Carter Hart, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, Dillon Dubé, and Alex Formenton, have pleaded not guilty. McLeod faces an additional charge of being a party to the trial continues under the supervision of Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia. A publication ban remains in effect, limiting the release of certain five players are currently on leave from professional hockey and are not under contract with any NHL team.
CBC
3 days ago
- Sport
- CBC
Accused player testifies at hockey sexual assault trial
Carter Hart, one of the five former world junior hockey players accused of sexual assault, took the stand in his own defence on Thursday saying he only had consensual sexual contact with the complainant, E.M.
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- Politics
- Globe and Mail
London police detective who closed Hockey Canada case without charges pressed on apparent gaps in probe
On his second day in the witness box at the sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada's 2018 world junior hockey team, the now-retired police sergeant who was in charge of the initial criminal investigation was grilled by Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham about apparent gaps in his probe. Under questioning from Ms. Cunningham, Mr. Newtown conceded that he heard that one of the accused players, Michael McLeod, invited a teammate to the room to engage in a 'three-way,' but never obtained the text messages they exchanged. He admitted that he obtained surveillance footage from the bar in London, Ont., where the complainant and the players met prior to the alleged assault, but never watched the footage. He acknowledged that he collected the clothing that was worn by the complainant on the night of the alleged assault, but he never sent it away for forensic testing. And he conceded that he never filed any search warrants or production orders to try and obtain records from Hockey Canada, the sport's national governing body that had launched its own investigation into the alleged sexual assault. London police detective told accused in Hockey Canada trial he had no plans to charge him in 2018 Mr. Newton closed the case without charges in February, 2019. The London Police Service reopened the investigation in 2022, after TSN broke the story that the complainant in the case – a woman known publicly as E.M. – had filed a lawsuit against Hockey Canada and unnamed members of the 2018 world junior team. The sports body settled that claim for an undisclosed sum and without the knowledge of the players. In early 2024, London police charged Mr. McLeod, Dillon Dubé, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton and Cal Foote for allegedly sexually assaulting E.M. in a hotel room on June 19, 2018. Mr. McLeod faces a second charge of being a party to sexual assault. Each has pleaded not guilty. Court has heard that E.M. met the players at a bar called Jack's in London after a Hockey Canada gala, where their world championship win earlier that year was celebrated. E.M. testified that she and Mr. McLeod left the bar after a night of drinking and dancing and had consensual sex in his hotel room. In her version of events, Mr. McLeod invited his teammates to the room without her knowledge to engage in sex acts. The defence has asserted that E.M. is the one who told Mr. McLeod to invite his teammates to the room for a 'wild night' of sexual activity. On Tuesday, court heard for the first time Mr. McLeod's account of this moment. The Crown – after calling Mr. Newton as a witness – played the retired officer's interview with Mr. McLeod for the court. In Mr. McLeod's telling, after they finished having sex, he ordered food on his phone through UberEats – mozzarella sticks and chicken wings. Mr. Newton asked: 'How did the guys know to come back to the room?' 'I told them I ordered some food,' Mr. McLeod said. 'And ah, I told them, like, I had a girl in the room.' He told the officer he wasn't 'expecting' his teammates to come in. Mr. Newton asked Mr. McLeod if it's possible the players were coming to the room because they thought a woman was providing sexual favours. 'I mean, like, I don't know how guys kept showing up because I don't remember,' he said. On Wednesday, Ms. Cunningham also played for the courtroom video of Mr. Newton's interview with Mr. Formenton, as well as an audio recording of Mr. Newton's interview with Mr. Dubé. In his interview, Mr. Formenton told the officer that he went to room 209 at the Delta Armouries hotel because he was contacted by Mr. McLeod. 'I got a text from Mikey – Mike McLeod – saying that there's a – a girl in the hotel room that like wants to have a threesome,' Mr. Formenton said. The officer asked if Mr. McLeod sent this message to other people – Mr. Formenton said he thought it was just him – and whether Mr. Formenton still had the text message. The player said he didn't have the text anymore because he had a new phone. (Earlier in the trial, court saw a message sent from Mr. McLeod's phone to the hockey team's 19-member group chat, which read: 'Who wants to be in a 3-way quick?' Another message, which court heard Mr. McLeod allegedly sent directly to a teammate, urged him to 'come to my room' if he wanted oral sex.) Mr. Newton asked Mr. Formenton what his overall sense was about the events in the hotel room: 'Do you feel that that this girl was taken advantage of?' The player replied that E.M. was the one 'instigating pretty much everything' and that she was acting under her own free will. 'Our sex was consensual,' he said. The officer asked if E.M. would have been able to leave at any time – 'was anybody impeding her or stopping her from leaving?' Said Mr. Formenton: 'No.' Mr. Dubé told Mr. Newton that he went to the room because he was told there was food there. He told the officer that when he came in the room, E.M. was naked, which he found shocking. Mr. Dubé said he was in the room only briefly and that throughout, E.M. was the instigator. 'She was chirping us for not doing anything with her, which I thought was weird. I hadn't seen that before,' he said. He told the officer that he received oral sex for a short time, but he withdrew because he thought it was a bad idea. In each of Mr. Newton's interviews with the accused players, the men were accompanied by their lawyers. Mr. McLeod and Mr. Formenton were in lawyers' offices at the time. Ms. Cunningham asked Mr. Newton if it was typical to not interview accused individuals at the police station – and if it was typical to have their lawyers present. Mr. Newton conceded it was unusual, but he felt it was important to get the players' version of events on the record and this was a format that would allow the men to feel comfortable.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
Retired police officer's video interview of Hockey Canada ex-junior player accused of sexual assault played in court
Retired police officer Steven Newton, who had questioned accused Michael McLeod , testified as a new Crown witness on May 27 in the sexual assault trial of five former Hockey Canada junior players. Newton served with the London Police Service for 32 years and was the lead investigator in the 2018 case when he had interviewed McLeod in connection with the allegations against the hockey player. The Crown presented a recorded police interview from November 18, 2018, before the court during the testimony. In the one-hour-and-fifteen-minute video, Newton is seen questioning McLeod. Newton told McLeod the goal of the interview was to gather facts and determine whether a sexual assault had occurred as alleged by the victim. He said that if, during the interview, he believed he had grounds for a charge, he would stop and inform McLeod. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Has Honda Done It Again? The New Honda CR-V is Finally Here. TheFactualist Undo In the video, McLeod claimed that E.M. had offered oral sex. He said the group was drinking but not too intoxicated, adding, 'We had our heads on straight for the most part.' After having consensual sex with E.M., McLeod said he went to get food from the lobby. When he returned, he saw E.M. with another player, Carter Hart. McLeod said he recorded a video of E.M. giving consent because he was 'worried something like this might happen.' Live Events During the hearing earlier in the day, the defence finished cross-examining another witness, NHL player Brett Howden. A defence lawyer suggested that Howden may have downplayed his contact with E.M. during earlier interviews. Howden denied this, saying he couldn't recall the security footage. The case concerns allegations that a woman, known as E.M., was sexually assaulted in room 209 of the Delta Hotel in the early morning hours of June 19, 2018. Many members of the 2018 World Junior Championship team were in town at the time to celebrate their victory. The five defendants- McLeod, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, Carter Hart, and Alex Formenton - have all pleaded not guilty to sexual assault; McLeod also faces a count of being party to the offence. They are not currently affiliated with any NHL teams.
