Sask. judge says White City teen enacted 'pornographic' fantasy in sexual assault

Regina Provincial Court is pictured. (Brendan Ellis / CTV News Regina)

Warning: Some readers may find details of this story disturbing.

A White City, Sask. teen recently convicted of sexual assault and assault by choking was enacting a pornographic fantasy, according to the judge presiding over the case.

The assault took place in June of 2021 at a home in White City. The accused was 17 and a half years old at the time — while the victim was 14-years-old.

According to the Feb. 2 decision from Justice D.J. Kovatch, the accused and the victim first met several months before the incident and had several conversations via Snapchat.

On the day of the incident, the victim was picked up and taken to the accused’s home to go swimming.

After an initial “awkward” conversation, the pair agreed to go swimming, the decision read. Testimony from both sides agreed that nothing happened while the pair were in the pool.

However, once the swimming had finished, testimony from either side diverged drastically.

The victim testified that after changing in the accused’s bedroom, he returned to his room where both of them sat on his bed.

“She stated that at that moment, she did not feel uncomfortable or that she should leave,” the decision read. “She was quite surprised when the accused stood up in front of her and pushed her back onto the bed.”

The victim stated the accused choked her and that the she told the accused at least twice that she didn’t want to have sex. The victim described being “frozen in place” during the assault.

After the ordeal concluded, the victim said she unfroze, got dressed, and immediately texted a friend to give her an excuse to leave. She left the home shortly after, walking until her friend picked her up.

The accused alleged that after leaving the pool, going inside and getting dressed, the pair ended up in his bedroom cuddling on the bed. He testified that when he moved in to kiss the victim, she “grabbed him and started to kiss him.”

He alleged what happened next was a consensual sexual encounter during which he placed his hand on the victim’s neck and applied pressure at times.

The accused later testified that he spoke to the victim for several minutes before she decided to leave. He claimed he offered to give her a ride, to which she said no.

The sexual assault complaint was later reported to Saskatchewan RCMP in July 2021 by the victim.

In his decision, Justice Kovatch labelled the accused’s version of events as “plagiarism of a pornographic movie.”

“In my view, the accused’s description of the incident is entirely fantastic, implausible and unbelievable,” he said in his decision.

The judge also highlighted the defence’s attempts to cast doubt on the victim’s recollections. Even arguing that the complainant saying she was “frozen” during the assault was “in vogue now.”

“Defence counsel suggested to her that she later decided that she had been raped. She adamantly denied that, and stated: that she 'didn’t decide,'" the decision read.

In his conclusion, Justice Kovatch accepted the complainant’s evidence as fact and ruled that the Crown proved both charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

Sentencing for the accused is scheduled to take place on May 3, at provincial court in Regina.