‘It was all just a joke to them’: complainant testifies at hockey players’ sexual assault trial

Trial continues for the world junior hockey players accused of sexual assault in London with the complainant on the stand, CTV's Nick Paparella reports.

Warning: This story contains graphic details and allegations of sexual assault

Michael McLeod’s lawyer was first to cross-examine the woman alleged to have been sexually assaulted by five former members of Canada’s world junior hockey team.

McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube and Callan Foote have all pleaded not guilty to sexual assault.

McLeod has also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault.

Early on in his questioning, defence lawyer David Humphrey established that the woman who can only be identified as E.M., had a boyfriend at the time of the alleged incident.

Court heard E.M. and her boyfriend had been together for about three months with E.M. calling the relationship “new” and “in the early stages.”

She told the court part of the reason for being so upset about the alleged incidents in room 209 at the Delta hotel, was because she cheated on her boyfriend, saying, “I had someone I cared about, and that’s not what I went out intending to do.”

E.M. said she told her boyfriend that she got really drunk and left the bar with someone and had sex with him.

E.M. also told the jury her mom is the one who called police and who encouraged her to make a statement, while her mom’s boyfriend is the one who, without E.M.’s knowledge, called Hockey Canada.

Later on in his questioning, Humphrey established that E.M. was familiar with Jack’s bar, as well as other downtown establishments, suggesting it was typical for her to have anywhere from two to four “pre-drinks” while getting ready to go out, and then shots while she was at the bar.

E.M. told the court last week that she’d had two coolers at home before heading to meet co-workers at Jack’s bar on June 18, 2018, then had at least eight shots, a beer and a vodka soda, as well as another shot of either tequila or vodka, at the bar over the course of the night.

It was mentioned in Monday’s proceedings that E.M. was seeking $3.5 million in a civil lawsuit against Hockey Canada, a case that was settled for an undisclosed amount of money.

When news of the settlement broke in May 2022, Hockey Canada reopened its investigation, as well as London police.

The jury was dismissed around 4:30 p.m. with cross examination expected to continue Tuesday morning.

Prosecution Questioning

The prosecution has wrapped up its questioning of a woman alleged to have been sexually assaulted by five former members of Canada’s world junior hockey team.

The woman known as E.M., recalled calling her friend the moment she got out of the Delta hotel in downtown London, Ont., in the early morning hours of June 19, 2018.

“I was crying uncontrollably and didn’t know what else to do, I didn’t want to be alone, I was really upset, I think I just called her to get some type of support,” she said.

After ordering an Uber at 4:49 a.m. and arriving back to her family’s home at 5:08 a.m., E.M. said she went upstairs to her shower and just sat there, saying she didn’t want to wake anybody up but she thinks her dad heard her crying and told her mom to check on her.

It was later that day that a series of text messages started between E.M. and Michael McLeod.

The jury was shown screenshot images of messages E.M. said were from Instagram, where McLeod had reached out, asking her: “Hi can we talk” — she responded with “Hey ya sure, what’s up?”

The thread then switched to text messaging rather than through social media, where McLeod requested E.M. to call him. She told the court she was unsure about calling him and continued texting, eventually McLeod asked her, “Did you go to the police after Sunday?”

• Here’s a recap of week one of the trial

E.M. said she talked to her mom about it [the experience at the hotel] and told McLeod she thinks her mom called the police while she was sleeping, but that she told her to stop, saying: “I’m sorry, didn’t mean for that to happen.”

“You said you were having fun?” McLeod questioned in a message.

“I was really drunk, didn’t feel good about it at all after. But I’m not trying to get anyone in trouble I know I was in the wrong too,” read a follow up message from E.M.

She continued to tell the court she believed she was telling McLeod what he wanted to hear so he would leave her alone, ultimately going to the police and said she was given options on how she wanted to proceed.

E.M. said at first she thought she just wanted the men to be spoken to, “I just wanted to feel like they would be held accountable in some way, just wanted them to know it wasn’t OK what they did and I didn’t want want to see that happen to anybody else.”

With that, the Crown said it had no further questions for the witness.

At the Delta hotel

E.M. described arriving at the Delta hotel in the early morning hours of June 19, 2018 with McLeod and going to his room. She told the jury she went up to his room, got undressed and then McLeod laid on the bed and they had sex.

After having consensual sex, E.M. said she went into the bathroom, and when she came out, got back into the bed, naked, while she said McLeod was dressed and on his phone.

She went on to say she assumed she’d be staying the night in the hotel and wasn’t sure why McLeod was already dressed and on his phone.

A short time later, E.M. said McLeod left the room and two other men came in while she was naked on the bed - she recognized the men from being at the bar earlier in the night.

E.M. said she went into the bathroom again and when she came out, more men had come into the room, at which point she said she felt uncomfortable and went back into the bathroom.

“I remember they had wanted me to lay down on the floor and they had put a bed sheet on the floor...they wanted me to lay down and touch myself and they also had golf clubs in the room that were on the floor as well and I remembered them making comments about putting golf balls in me, in my vagina, and asking if I could take the whole club - put the whole club in me”

EM. went on to say, “They wanted me to touch myself and moan for them and then with some of them standing around they wanted me to perform oral [sex] on them… they just started putting penises in my face"

According to E.M., some of the men in the room shouted commands as she performed oral sex, and she said she felt someone spit on her back. Then, she felt slaps on her buttocks.

Afterward, she said she lay back on the sheet, and a fourth man did the splits over her face.

“It felt degrading,” she said. “It was all just a joke to them,” said E.M.

When asked by Crown Attorney Meaghan Cunningham how she was feeling in these moments, E.M. said “I felt, it’s a weird feeling of just my mind kind of separating itself from my body. I just remember the way I pictured that night, and it felt as if my mind kind of floated to the top corner of the ceiling and I just started watching everything happen... I just didn’t feel like I had any control, I didn’t feel like I had a choice.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with sexual assault or trauma, the following resources are available to support people in crisis:

If you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety, you should call 911.

A full list of sexual assault centres in Canada that offer information, advocacy and counselling can be found ​on the website for Ending Sexual Violence Association of Canada.

Helplines, legal services and locations that offer sexual assault kits in Alberta, B.C., Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, Ontario and Nova Scotia can be found here.

National Residential School Crisis Line: [phone]

24-hour crisis line: 416 597 8808

Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline: [phone]

Trans Lifeline: [phone]

Sexual misconduct support for current or former members of the Armed Forces: [phone]

Read about your rights as a victim here.