“Not credible or reliable:”: judge on key Crown evidence in Hockey Canada Trial
The Hockey Canada sexual assault trial headed into its last period on Thursday morning — with the judge saying, “I do not find the evidence of EM (the complainant) to be either credible or reliable.”
The Hockey Canada sexual assault trial headed into its last period on Thursday morning — with the judge saying, “I do not find the evidence of EM (the complainant) to be either credible or reliable.”
Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia made the comments on Thursday morning while reading the “introduction” portion of her verdict reasoning. As of noon Eastern Time, the final verdict still remains undetermined.
According to a reporter in the gallery, Carroccia’s comments were met with a gasp from the complainant’s family and friends present in the courtroom gallery.
The two lead prosecutors, meanwhile, sat almost motionless while Justice Carroccia gave an extended reasoning for a verdict expected later this afternoon.
The judge went through a comprehensive timeline of the events that led to sexual assault allegations and charges against five players from Canada’s 2018 World Junior Hockey Championship team.
The evidence she reviewed in her decision included the players’ group chat from June 26, 2018.
The Crown had earlier argued the texts showed them trying to craft a false narrative of what happened in the room. However, Carroccia noted that the players had urged each other to “not lie” about what happened, nor about who was in the room.
Before heading out for a morning recess, still awaiting the final verdict, several players quietly embraced their lawyers in the courtroom before stepping out, while two of the players’ parents hugged.
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