Hockey Canada trial: Judge does not find accuser's evidence ‘either credible or reliable'
Superior Court justice Maria Carroccia delivered her decision Thursday in a packed Ontario courtroom, telling those present: 'Having found that I cannot rely upon the evidence of [the complainant] and then considering the evidence in this trial as a whole, I conclude that the Crown cannot meet its onus as on any of the counts before me.'
Carroccia has yet to hand down an official verdict.
The ruling will mark the end of a high-profile case that has drawn national attention and rocked Canadian hockey. The players – Michael McLeod, Dillon Dubé, Carter Hart, Cal Foote and Alex Formenton – were charged in early 2024 in connection with an alleged group assault of a 20-year-old woman in a London, Ontario, hotel room in 2018. McLeod faced an additional charge of being a party to the offense.
None of the five are currently signed to NHL contracts.
The woman, testifying via video from another room in the courthouse, alleged she was intoxicated, naked and frightened when multiple men entered the hotel room and engaged in sexual activity with her without ensuring she was consenting. Prosecutors argued the players did 'what they wanted' and failed to seek clear, voluntary consent.
Defense lawyers cross-examined the complainant for several days, suggesting she was a willing participant and had wanted a 'wild night'. She testified she had no memory of making such statements and insisted the men should have seen she was not in her right mind.
Justice Carroccia's decision came after she dismissed the jury midway through the trial in June, following a complaint that defense attorneys were allegedly laughing at jurors. Though the accused lawyers denied the claim and Carroccia said she did not witness concerning behavior herself, she ruled the jury's perception of bias rendered them unable to remain impartial.
The alleged incident occurred during a 2018 Hockey Canada gala celebrating that year's world junior championship team. A police investigation was initially closed in 2019 with no charges filed. Hockey Canada launched its own probe but halted it in 2020 after the woman declined to participate. In 2022, a settlement between Hockey Canada and the woman sparked public backlash, prompting renewed interest in the case.
Police reopened the investigation and laid charges in 2024 after what they described as new evidence came to light.
Protesters gathered outside the packed courthouse on Thursday morning, holding signs that signaled support for the complainant.
This is a developing story. More to follow.
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The Independent
22 minutes ago
- The Independent
Inside Arsenal's move for Viktor Gyokeres - and why he will change the title race
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So, Arteta has already brought in more bodies, which is why Cristhian Mosquera and Noni Madueke have signed. They alleviate pressure in terms of wear. Next is the pressure he wants to exert on opposition. It isn't exactly a new point to say Arsenal haven't been the overwhelming all-angle attacking force they were over 2022-23 and in the 2023-24 run-in, which opposition coaches genuinely used to marvel at. The aberration is really because Arteta generally used the same core players throughout those periods, which was never going to be sustainable. That's also why there may be some other value in signing a £65m-level forward, if they can't get an absolute £150m guarantee like Alexander Isak, with the Newcastle star now pushing for a move after the Gunners settled on Gyokeres. The manager obviously doesn't want to discard Kai Havertz. Arteta loves him. If that surprises some of the German's detractors, it is because Havertz's understanding of the manager's pressing system is up there with anyone else in the squad. He gets it. That is why Arteta has balked at buying other forwards in the past. It's not just about goals. It's about how integrated the pressing triggers are. If one goes wrong, it all breaks down. Arteta feels it's pointless if that system is disrupted, which is really the source of so many goals. Arsenal did get 91 in 38 league games across 2023-24 with Havertz fit. This signing is designed to complement Havertz. Arteta won't have to overly lean on him. There'll be another option, offering more tactical solutions for different challenges. That is one of the driving ideas behind Arteta's entire approach after all: tactical variety, to the point that Arsenal are very difficult to prepare for. 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The club had been working on Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko for 18 months before Berta arrived. The Slovenian's agent had been at the club several times. Arsenal had spoken to his camp about how he'd fit with the team, even how he'd settle in London. Sesko initially resisted moving last summer because of how impressed he was by the 5-0 win over Chelsea in April 2024, particularly by Havertz. Sesko felt he needed more time to develop to properly make an impact. Arsenal were content with this, and thought they had an agreement with Leipzig that he would move this summer. The club still looked at other options, naturally, and Gyokeres was an obvious choice given his goals for Sporting CP. Arsenal's analytics staff had Gyokeres and Sesko at the same level right now - albeit with one caveat. While this was probably Gyokeres' ceiling, at 27, Sesko had the potential to go much higher. They could be talking about a future Isak. The staff were close to unanimous in going for Sesko, although Berta had some reservations. He wondered whether a £65m basic price was too much, and kept suggesting Gyokeres, as well as Ollie Watkins and Goncalo Ramos as alternatives. A more classic school of the sporting director, Berta is said to still value relationships and eyewitness assessment more than analytics. So, once Leipzig started dragging negotiations, Berta pushed to switch. The decision is all the more striking since it would have been much more in keeping with the modern Arsenal way to go for the future, rather than the now. Things have changed. That isn't to say Sesko is a guarantee, and even the current staff think he is rough around the edges. What's more, they are all convinced by Gyokeres' quality. They think he brings a lot that Arsenal didn't previously have, as well as a great attitude. There are still some red flags. No English club, not even promoted sides, took the gamble when he was leaving Coventry City in 2023. This summer, Arsenal didn't have that much competition. Some of the latter is because clubs had some technical reservations and feel he takes too long to get a shot off. Some is because most of his goals have come in the Portuguese league, and that at one of the big three. Such records don't generally have much translation to the Premier League, as has been witnessed with Darwin Nunez. Whereas only one player has enjoyed 20-goal seasons in both the Portuguese league and Premier League, Jimmy Hasselbaink, four have managed it from the Bundesliga. That isn't to say it should be the rule. Bruno Fernandes has proven that. While some have concerns that a club as supreme in recruitment as Brighton let Gyokeres go, that was more down to his level of development in 2021 and the fact that there wasn't yet a clear pathway for him. 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The Guardian
23 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Arsenal complete £64m deal to sign striker Viktor Gyökeres from Sporting
Arsenal have finally solved their striker conundrum by completing the signing of Viktor Gyökeres from Sporting Lisbon for an initial £55m. The 27-year-old Sweden international, who fired Sporting to the title last season with 39 goals and struck a Champions League hat-trick against Manchester City, is understood to have signed a five-year deal at the Emirates. Gyökeres' transfer, which could end up costing as much as £64m with performance-related add-ons, takes Arsenal's close-season spending to the region of £200m. He becomes Mikel Arteta's sixth summer signing and follows defender Cristhian Mosquera (£13m), midfielder Martin Zubimendi (£60m), goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga (£5m), midfielder Christian Norgaard (£10m) and forward Noni Madueke (£48.5m) in moving to the Emirates. Arsenal confirmed the news with a brief post on X which read: 'This is where you need to be. Viktor Gyökeres is a Gunner.' Gyökeres will be expected to meet up with his new colleagues in Arsenal's ongoing pre-season tour of Singapore and Hong Kong. The Gunners face Newcastle in the Singapore National Stadium on Sunday before the concluding game of their tour, against Tottenham in Hong Kong on 31 July. Gyökeres moved to Brighton from Swedish side Brommapojkarna in January 2018, but spent time on loan at St Pauli and then Swansea and Coventry, before making a permanent move to the Sky Blues in July 2021. After Coventry were beaten on penalties by Luton in the 2023 Championship playoff final at Wembley, Gyökeres completed a £20.5m switch to Sporting. He scored a remarkable 97 goals in 102 matches for the Portuguese side. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Arsenal spent the concluding months of last season without a recognised striker following long-term injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz. Even before then, Arsenal were in desperate need of a reliable scorer, and Arteta will hope his new signing can fire him to his first silverware since he won the FA Cup in 2020, and end the club's two-decade wait for a Premier League title. Arsenal's new sporting director, Andrea Berta, has wasted little time in strengthening a squad which has finished runners-up in the league for the past three seasons. Gabriel and Myles Lewis-Skelly have also put pen to paper on new contracts in the off-season, with a long-term extension for teenager Ethan Nwaneri believed to be all-but completed.
The Sun
23 minutes ago
- The Sun
Arsenal CONFIRM £63.5million Viktor Gyokeres transfer as striker takes iconic No14 made famous by Thierry Henry
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