Ex-World Junior Hockey Players Facing Sexual Assault Charges Opt for Jury Trial
Five former members of Canada’s world junior hockey team who are charged with sexual assault in a 2018 incident in London, Ont., have opted for a jury trial.
Dillon Dube, Carter Hart, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, and Alex Formenton were charged with sexual assault last month. Mr. McLeod is also facing an additional charge of sexual assault for “being a party to the offence.”
In a joint statement, their lawyers announced that the five players have chosen a jury trial earlier this week and are “confident that jurors drawn from the community will decide this case fairly and impartially after hearing all the evidence and testimony.”
The charges in the case stem from an alleged incident at a hotel in London in June 2018, following the world junior team’s victory celebration.
The investigation was initially closed without charges in 2019 but was reopened in 2022. London’s police chief apologized to the complainant earlier this month for the delay in laying charges in the case.
Jury trials are an option for those accused of the most serious crimes, known as indictable offences, like murder, as well as for those accused of hybrid offences, such as sexual assault.
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The case is scheduled to return to court on April 30.
