Timeline from 2018 World Juniors case hints at verdict expected tomorrow

Justice Maria Carroccia, the judge in the sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team, will announce her verdicts in the case at 10 a.m. ET on July 24.

The five players were charged in the 2018 World Junior alleged sexual assault, including Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Cal Foote and Michael McLeod. They were all charged with one count of sexual assault in the 2018 World Junior alleged incident that allegedly occurred following a Hockey Canada gala in Ontario in June 2018. Court documents from 2022 revealed London police believed they had reasonable grounds to accuse five players of sexually assaulting a young woman in a hotel room.

All five players pleaded not guilty at the commencement of the trial on April 22. They will find out their fate tomorrow once Justice Carroccia delivers the verdict.

A panel of 14 jurors, 11 women and three men, was initially chosen to hear the case against five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team, all charged with sexual assault. But the proceedings were quickly derailed: just days later, on April 25, Justice Maria Carroccia declared a mistrial due to a procedural issue, forcing a full restart with a new jury.

A Restart and First Testimonies

By April 28, a new jury, now nine women and five men, was in place, and assistant Crown attorney Heather Donkers opened the government’s case by stating that the trial “is about consent — and equally important, what is not consent.” Over the following days, the jury watched hours of surveillance footage showing the complainant, E.M., interacting with players at a London bar on the night of June 18, 2018.

Witnesses began taking the stand, including players not charged in the case such as Taylor Raddysh and Boris Katchouk. The jury also saw group chats and photos collected during the investigation.

E.M.’s Testimony

On May 2, E.M. began testifying. Over several days, she described having consensual sex with Michael McLeod, followed by what she described as a non-consensual group assault involving several players in a hotel room. Her cross-examination was intense. Lawyers for each of the accused attempted to challenge her credibility, raising questions about inconsistencies, motivations, and language she used to describe the men involved.

Shifting to a Judge-Alone Trial

Midway through May, another dramatic shift occurred. On May 16, Justice Carroccia discharged the jury, announcing that the trial would proceed by judge alone. This opened the door for the court, and everyone watching, to hear evidence and arguments that had previously been kept from jurors. Among these were claims that several players, including Foote and Dube, had asked a teammate not to reveal what he had seen that night. There were also statements made during a 2018 Hockey Canada investigation that had not been admissible earlier.

Defence Testimonies and Closing Arguments

The following weeks saw former teammates Brett Howden and Tyler Steenbergen testify, sometimes emotionally, about conversations and events from that night and the months that followed. Some defence witnesses were described as evasive or forgetful; others became emotional under questioning.

Eventually, some of the accused, including Hart, testified in their own defence, while others, like McLeod, declined.

Throughout closing arguments, Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham pushed back forcefully, accusing the defence of invoking outdated “rape myths” and manipulating the idea of consent.

One of the final points of contention was a so-called “consent video” filmed the night of the alleged assault, which Cunningham argued was less about evidence and more about coercion.

What Comes Next

Justice Carroccia is set to deliver her verdict on Thursday, July 24, at 10 a.m. ET. The decision will mark the end of a polarizing and painful chapter in Canadian hockey.