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Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Lawsuit against Graham James tossed after judge finds evidence 'too unreliable'
This article may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it. A Manitoba judge has dismissed a $6-million lawsuit against disgraced hockey coach Graham James and the St. James-Assiniboia School Division after she found the evidence presented by the plaintiff had inconsistencies, contradictions and was "too unreliable" to prove the convicted sexual offender abused a 10-year-old student in 1983. "I am satisfied on the evidence adduced by the defendant that there is no genuine issue requiring a trial as to whether James sexually assaulted [the boy]," Court of King's Bench Judge Sarah Inness wrote in her decision. The lawsuit, filed in November 2023, claimed James placed his hand on the boy's tights, making contact with his genitals, while James was his substitute teacher at the Winnipeg school division. The statement of claim also alleged James assaulted the student at a relative's home the same year, forcing sexual acts on him and encouraging the boy's sister, who was a girl at the time, to sexually touch him. Inness said at issue in the lawsuit is whether James was the perpetrator of the alleged sexual assaults. "[The man's] beliefs that James is the person responsible, even if sincere, are not evidence upon which a finding of liability can reliably rest," the judge's decision said. The judge said care was taken to assess the claims of the plaintiff, given James is "a notorious child sex offender." He spent several years in prison for sexually assaulting multiple young players he coached in the 1980s and 1990s. But the evidence presented by the plaintiff at the lawsuit raised concerns over contradictions and inconsistencies, including the timeline of the events, the judge's decision said. The man initially claimed in the lawsuit and criminal complaint that the assault happened in May and the summer of 1983. But following a Winnipeg Police Service investigation that found the man was not a student at the school until later that year, he filed an amended lawsuit claiming the sexual abuse had instead started in September and the fall of 1983. "I recognize that a mistake as to the time frame of historical sexual abuse allegations alone may be explained by [the man's] age at the time and the number of years that have passed since then," the judge wrote in her decision. But there were other concerns. The judge pointed to the physical description the man gave police of the substitute teacher, which matched two photographs of James that were in news articles about the coach's sexual offending. The plaintiff admitted he came across those while doing research for his lawsuit. "I find the reason he conducted research prior to making a criminal complaint was to assist himself in identifying his abuser. Either he did not know or he was unsure it was James," the decision said. 'Unaware of the identity,' says judge Through interviews with the man's relatives, police found he never stayed overnight at the house where he said James assaulted him, and he had only been there for a visit over Christmas, where he left shortly after arriving, the decision said. In the statement of claim, the man also said he saw James talking with another person the morning after the sexual abuse. At cross-examination, the man identified the person as his uncle. When asked why he hadn't before, the plaintiff said he didn't want to unnecessarily involve his family. The judge said this was problematic. "His failure to adduce such evidence, knowing that the defendants were challenging the veracity of those claims, adds doubts to the accuracy of his account," the decision said. "The fact that he was researching substitute teachers who were convicted, and his reluctance to involve his family as witnesses, suggests he was unaware of the identity of the person." Records provided by the school division during the litigation show James had no days logged with them between September 1983 and June 1984. The judge said that while that evidence doesn't prove the former coach didn't work for the division after May 1983, it is reasonable to infer it. James denied sexually assaulting the boy and said he was hired full-time as an assistant coach for the Winnipeg Warriors in or around May 1983. The judge said that if he had worked at the division after, there would have been some record or documentation.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Boy younger than 10 dead after being hit by vehicle while riding bike in Ogema, Sask.
Coronach RCMP are investigating a fatal collision that left a child dead. Police say a boy under the age of 10 was riding his bike when he was hit by a vehicle at the gravel intersection of Bradley Street and Saskatchewan Avenue in Ogema, which is about 100 kilometres southwest of Regina. It happened Thursday afternoon at about 5:30 p.m. CST. The boy was declared dead at the scene. His family has been notified. RCMP say the driver stayed at the scene. An RCMP collision reconstructionist is working to determine exactly what happened.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Uber Canada says it's changed emergency policies after driver left with child in backseat
Uber Canada says it has updated its safety protocols for emergency situations after an incident in March where company representatives refused to contact a driver after he drove off with a child. Julia Viscomi said Uber customer support refused to help her or Toronto police contact the driver after he left with her 5-year-old daughter asleep in the backseat in North York, CBC Toronto reported in April. Police ended up finding the child without receiving help from Uber, about an hour and a half after the driver left with her, Viscomi said. "While our standard protocol for serious safety incidents directs that only trained law enforcement should initiate contact with a driver, we recognize that exceptional circumstances, such as the incident on March 10, 2025, may require frontline customer support agents to step in and facilitate communication," Uber Canada said in a statement on Friday. "As a result, we have updated our internal procedures to reflect this important clarification." This update is effective immediately, the company confirmed to CBC Toronto. Viscomi said she was "absolutely elated" by the change. "There had been nothing [but] silence from both the City of Toronto and Uber for the last little while so I knew that things were being worked on, but I didn't know to what extent," she said. "This was a very happy surprise." 'Our response could and should have been better' Michael van Hemmen, general manager of Uber Canada Rides, wrote a letter to Viscomi dated Thursday, apologizing for the incident. "Our response could and should have been better, as our policies weren't built with this type of circumstance in mind," he wrote in the letter, provided to CBC Toronto. He said the internal updates "recognize that in exceptional circumstances, such as the one involving your child, time is of the essence." After the Uber representatives would not contact the driver, Viscomi said she called 911. An officer called Uber to get contact information for the driver but she said a representative for the ride-sharing company refused to provide it — stating the police needed to fill out a form. Uber's guidelines for law enforcement say emergency disclosure requests must be submitted through the company's public safety response portal or by email using its emergency disclosure form. WATCH | Police tracked down child without help from Uber: Spokesperson Keerthana Rang said the Uber Canada support team followed standard protocols during the incident and advised the rider to contact law enforcement. A Toronto police officer submitted a request through the public safety response portal on the night of the incident, she said in an email to Radio-Canada on Friday. Uber Canada responded with identifying information on the driver, but it took just over an hour for Toronto police to get this information, she said — leading the company to initiate an internal review to review its existing processes and identity opportunities for improvement. Toronto police confirmed in April that they found the child without help from Uber Canada. In Friday's statement, Uber Canada said it has provided Toronto police with a "comprehensive overview of how Uber handles emergency requests." The company said it distributed internal reference materials and spoke at a monthly meeting of senior officers. In-person training with officers about Uber's public safety team and portal have been scheduled for the fall. Uber Canada said it also met with senior leadership from the City of Toronto's municipal licensing and standards division to discuss the incident. Shane Gerard, a spokesperson for the city, confirmed to CBC Toronto on Friday afternoon that "staff are currently meeting with vehicle for hire industry stakeholders like Uber to assess the best way to address the City Council direction in April." That direction asked staff to advise council on possible city actions to require vehicle-for-hire licensees "to take greater accountability to directly assist customers and law enforcement in emergency situations." Gerard noted that a staff member has "emailed and spoken" with Viscomi since council's April decision. Uber Canada said it has implemented other updates as well to safety protocols and operational procedures, but cannot disclose them "to protect and operational integrity and security of our safety systems."
