Content warning: This story includes allegations of sexual assault.
LONDON, Ont. — Lawyers representing the defense announced on Monday that they do not intend to call any further witnesses or introduce additional evidence in the trial of five former NHL players accused of a sexual assault in 2018.
The court proceedings are scheduled to resume on June 9, when all five defense attorneys will commence their closing submissions. Assistant Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham is then expected to deliver her closing arguments after the defense has concluded.
Earlier the same day, testimony in court indicated that the self-blame expressed by the complainant, identified as E.M. due to a standard publication ban, during her 2018 interview with police was consistent with the behavior patterns often observed in individuals reporting sexual assaults.
London Police Service Det. Lyndsey Ryan, who led the second investigation into the case beginning in July 2022, told Cunningham that she considered E.M.`s self-blaming remarks in her initial statement “quite normal, based on previous experience with victims of sexual assault.”
E.M.`s statement to a Hockey Canada investigator in 2022 was made four years after the alleged incident. Ryan noted in her 2022 report that, with the passage of time, E.M. “understands that she was not to blame and her acquiescence did not equal consent.”
Ryan also previously told Cunningham that London police chose not to question E.M. more than necessary after reopening the investigation because E.M. was “quite upset,” and they aimed to avoid “retraumatizing” her. For privacy reasons, Ryan added, police did not interview E.M.`s friends who were present at Jack’s bar in 2018, as the friends had not been informed of E.M.`s involvement.
“She told you it was a lot of information to take in, that she thought this chapter in her life was closed?” Cunningham asked Ryan, who was present in court.
“I got the sense that I was opening up some wounds that she was trying to close,” Ryan responded. “It was a bit overwhelming. She wasn’t expecting this.”
An initial investigation by the London Police Service launched in the summer of 2018 concluded in February 2019, with investigators stating insufficient evidence to lay charges. Following significant public scrutiny regarding Hockey Canada’s handling of the matter, London police reopened their investigation in July 2022, eventually laying charges in January 2024.
Following Ryan’s testimony, lawyers representing Dillon Dube and Cal Foote stated their clients would not testify in their own defense. Carter Hart was the only player among the accused to take the stand.
Michael McLeod faces two counts of sexual assault, including one related to aiding in the alleged offense. Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton, and Carter Hart have each been charged with one count of sexual assault. All five have entered pleas of not guilty to their respective charges.
The trial is currently in its seventh week. After jury selection on April 22, the trial commenced on April 23. A mistrial was declared on April 25, leading to the start of a new trial with a different jury on April 28. The trial transitioned to being judged solely by the judge after the second jury was dismissed on May 16.
Editor’s Note
If you or someone you know is in need of support, resources are available. In Canada, province-specific centers, crisis lines, and services can be found. For readers in the United States, a list of resources and references for survivors and their loved ones is available.
