Players plead not guilty, jury selected in former world junior hockey players’ sex assault trial

The sexual assault trial for five members of Canada's 2018 World Juniors team has begun. CTV London's Nick Paparella reports.

A jury of 11 women and three men will hear evidence over the next two months in the case of five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team who are charged with sexual assault.

The jury was decided as the first day of the case came to a close on Tuesday in London, Ont., a day that saw all five defendants in court together for the first time.

Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, and Carter Hart all pleaded not guilty to allegedly sexually assaulting a woman referred to as E.M. in court documents.

The players, who all wore dark suits, arrived separately before court. Jury selection began at about 11 a.m. ET in a courtroom that was packed with the players’ families and friends and members of the media.

The players are charged with sexually assaulting E.M. in June 2018 at a London hotel following a Hockey Canada golf and gala event. McLeod faces a second sexual assault charge as a party to the offence.

If they are convicted, the players face up to 10 years in prison. The trial is scheduled to last for eight weeks.

After Tuesday’s hearing began, lawyers compiled a list of prospective witnesses in the case.

That list includes friends of E.M., lawyers from Henein Hutchison Robitaille – the Toronto law firm hired in June 2018 by Hockey Canada to investigate the alleged sexual assault – and a number of other members of the 2018 team, including Taylor Raddysh, Drake Batherson, Robert Thomas, Sam Steel, Maxime Comtois, Boris Katchouk, Brett Howden, Jonah Gadjovich, Dante Fabbro, Tyler Steenbergen, Conor Timmins, Jake Bean, and Cale Makar.

Justice Maria Carroccia, a judge who typically hears cases in Windsor, Ont., told the court she wants to ensure that jurors don’t have any connections with any witnesses.

Justice Carroccia said she would call 14 jurors – 12 of whom will deliberate and decide the fate of the five co-defendants – and two alternate jurors. The judge said jurors in the case will be paid $150 a day for the duration of the trial, and she said being a juror is one of the most important services Canadian citizens can be called on to perform.

• Courtroom primer: 10 questions to consider as trial looms for former World Junior players

“You’re being asked to drop what you are doing in your everyday lives and serve as a juror,” Justice Carroccia said. “It almost always involves some personal hardship and inconvenience… at the same time, those 14 people will have a challenging and rewarding experience, one you will never forget."

The five co-defendants then formally stood, heard the charges against them, and pleaded not guilty.

Justice Carroccia asked jurors to advise her if they have followed news reports on this case and have formed an opinion that cannot be changed. She also asked jurors to tell her if they or someone they know have been a victim of sexual assault and if they have a preconceived belief about the behaviour of hockey players.

Justice Carroccia urged jurors not to search out news reports on the case.

“If you do seek out your own information, the results may be most unfortunate,” she said. “I may need to declare a mistrial...”

On Wednesday, prosecutors will present their case to the jury and then begin to call witnesses.