The Crown and defence made closing arguments Thursday in the assault trial of a former principal of a private Saskatoon Christian school, focusing on the credibility and reliability of witnesses. Duff Friesen, 68, is charged with five counts of assault with a weapon between 1997 and 2007, when he worked at what was then called Christian Centre Academy. The school later rebranded as Legacy Christian Academy and more recently became Valour Academy. Earlier in the trial, five former students testified that Friesen hit them with a wooden paddle. Defence lawyer Daniel Mol argued that some Crown witnesses had gaps in their memories. Mol described Sean Kotelmach’s testimony that he wore nine pairs of underwear to school to soften the blow of the paddle as “absurd” and “exaggerated.” He also questioned the reliability of Coy Nolin’s testimony, saying Nolin had confused Friesen with a former staff member when describing some earlier incidents in a 2021 statement to police. Mol pointed to Andrew Watson’s testimony, calling it a “balanced equation.” He said Watson was paddled after getting into an altercation with another student during a soccer game and that Friesen spoke with his mother afterward. Mol argued the incident was not criminal and that Friesen was representing the community. The defence also pointed to a $25-million lawsuit against the school, its associated church and others, arguing it was a potential motive for the allegations. Crown prosecutor Sheryl Fillo argued that each student gave detailed testimony and described the pain and humiliation they experienced after being paddled. Fillo said Nolin was upfront about his recollections. She said that when he reviewed his transcript, he acknowledged Friesen was not the principal during some earlier incidents he described, but maintained that Friesen paddled him later. She said there was no dispute that paddles were used as a form of discipline at the school and pointed to an image entered into evidence showing a former administrator holding a paddle during a 1997 interview with Maclean’s magazine. Fillo argued that terms such as “paddling” and “spanking” downplay the seriousness of the conduct, saying it was assault with a weapon. She also pointed to testimony from students who said they had no financial motive to make the allegations, noting the lawsuit was launched about a year after they spoke to police. Justice Daryl Labach is expected to instruct the jury Friday morning before the 12 jurors begin deliberations.
