A primer on the Hockey Canada 2018 sexual assault case as the trial begins
Tuesday in London, Ont., five members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior Championship team will go on trial for sexual assault charges. Jury selection is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, per TSN’s Rick Westhead, and the trial is expected to last up to eight weeks.
Accused of sexually assaulting the complainant, known to the public as ‘E.M.,’ in 2018 are:
– Michael McLeod, charged with two counts of sexual assault, including one for aiding others in committing a sexual assault. He last played in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils in 2023-24 and played on two KHL teams this season.
– Dillon Dube, charged with one count of sexual assault. He last played in the NHL with the Calgary Flames in 2023-24 and spent this season in the KHL.
– Cal Foote, charged with one count of sexual assault. He last played in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils in 2023-24 and spent this season in the Slovakian League.
– Alex Formenton, charged with one count of sexual assault. He last played in the NHL with the Ottawa Senators in 2021-22, played two seasons in the top National League in Switzerland and hasn’t played professionally this season.
– Carter Hart, charged with one count of sexual assault. He last played in the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2023-24 and hasn’t played professionally since.
Per Westhead, lawyers for all five defendants have indicated their clients will plead not guilty.
What are the pertinent details with the trial set to begin this week? Here’s a rundown of what we know so far and what’s to come.
– In June 2018, the accused were London, Ont., to celebrate their 2018 World Junior gold medal win with their teammates. After the Hockey Canada event, members of the team kept the celebration going, and some attended Jack’s, a bar in downtown London, where they met the alleged victim. In the early morning hours of June 19, she went to the Delta London Armouries Hotel with one of the accused, where the alleged assault took place.
– London Police initially investigated the alleged sexual assault from June 2018 to February 2019 and closed the case without charges, “as it was determined by investigators at that time that there were insufficient grounds to lay a charge,” said London Police Chief Thai Truong during a February 2024 press conference.
– A comprehensive review was initiated in July 2022 after the alleged victim filed a civil suit in court, which TSN reported in May 2022 was settled by Hockey Canada for $3.55 million. The review involved “re-examining additional investigative steps, gathering additional evidence and obtaining new information,” Truong said. As a result, London Police found sufficient evidence to charge the five men with sexual assault and confirmed the charges in the February 2024 presser.
– As a result of the 2022 reporting, many high-profile corporate sponsors temporarily halted or, in some cases, permanently ended their relationships with Hockey Canada. The fallout also led to major turnover among Hockey Canada’s top decision makers, with CEO Scott Smith stepping down in October 2022.
– During the NHL’s All-Star Game presser in winter 2024, commissioner Gary Bettman affirmed that the league’s investigation into the 2018 incident proceeded independently of Hockey Canada’s and the London Police’s and took approximately 12 months. The league’s investigators interviewed every member of the 2018 “as well as other relevant individuals who were willing to participate in the investigation.” The alleged victim did not participate in that process. The league had concluded the investigatory process and was working with NHL Players’ Association beginning in fall 2023 to determine the next steps, and that’s when the news broke of the police ordering five players to surrender on Jan. 24, 2024.
– E.M., the accuser, is expected give testimony during the trial, Westhead reports.
– As reported by Westhead this week, “At least four former members of Canada’s 2018 World Junior team who are not facing criminal charges are expected to be called to testify in coming weeks.” Some of those players are currently competing in the Stanley Cup playoffs, but none is required to be physically present and each can provide testimony via Zoom.
– As for when the evidence given in pre-trial hearings will be shared with the public: Per Westhead, “Media can report on most of the details of hearings that have taken place over the past six months once the jury begins deliberations.”
– The NHL previously maintained there would be no discipline meted out to the five accused players until the criminal case is resolved, and none of the five is under affiliation with an NHL team at this point.