The jury presiding over the sexual assault trial of five former members of Canada’s 2018 world junior team was discharged.
The presiding judge, Justice Maria Carroccia, told the jury the news in a London, Ont., courtroom Friday morning.
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“I have determined in this case that it is appropriate to discharge the jury,” Carroccia said to the jury. “I know that you have invested four weeks in this trial. You have the thanks of myself, court staff and counsel. You are free to go.”
The trial will move ahead without a jury and continue by judge alone, meaning that Carrocia, not a jury, will deliver the verdict.
Following the ruling by Carroccia, the defense lawyers for Alex Formenton, Daniel Brown and Hilary Dudding, provided a joint statement to the media.
“This was a regrettable development for Mr. Formenton. He had very much wanted to be tried by a jury of his peers and has now lost that opportunity,” the statement said.
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“We, his counsel, found ourselves involved in the unusual chain of events that led to this outcome. In short, a juror came to somehow believe that our courtroom demeanor was disrespectful of her.
“This was an unfortunate misinterpretation. No defense counsel would risk alienating a juror, and nothing could be further from the truth in this instance. While it is true that co-counsel will speak with one another from time to time during a trial, this is commonplace. The very idea of counsel making light of a juror is illogical and runs directly counter to our purpose and function.”
The statement also said “perceptions and appearances play a central role in this trial” and that “if a single juror were prone to leap to unwarranted conclusions – and potentially impress these erroneous conclusions on their fellow jurors – the ends of justice and the right to a fair trial would be jeopardized.”
Brown and Dudding said they have full confidence that Carroccia will ensure a full and fair proceeding.
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This trial sees former NHL players Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Formenton, Dillon Dube and Cal Foote each facing charges of sexual assault in connection to a June 2018 incident in which a woman, referred to in court documents as E.M., alleges she was sexually assaulted in a London hotel room following a Hockey Canada gala.
All five of the men have pleaded not guilty, with McLeod pleading not guilty to an additional charge of sexual assault as a party to the offense.
This is the second time a jury was discharged in relation to this case. The first was when Carrioccia declared a mistrial on April 25, which required a new jury and trial.
The trial is expected to continue for the remainder of Friday with the continuation of former 2018 world junior team member Tyler Steenbergen’s Crown testimony.
