Hockey Canada sexual assault trial: Judge to rule on drunken night that shattered national trust

Justice Maria Carroccia is set to deliver the verdict on July 24 in the sexual assault trial (Image via The Canadian Press)

A month after the dramatic closing arguments were delivered in one of the most explosive trials in Canadian sports history, the fate of five former Team Canada players now rests in the hands of Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia.

The case stems from a 2018 incident involving multiple hockey players and a 20-year-old woman in a London, Ontario hotel room — an event that has since ignited national debate over consent, trauma, and institutional accountability.

The controversial trial involving five former junior hockey players nears its conclusion

The five accused — Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Dillon Dube, Alex Formenton, and Cal Foote — have all pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual assault. McLeod faces an additional charge for being a party to the offense.In a powerful closing statement last month, Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham rejected defense arguments that framed the woman as an instigator.

“It’s not only a myth,” Cunningham said, “but I submit it is not what happened here on the evidence.” The Crown emphasized that drinking, flirting, or dancing should not be interpreted as signs of sexual availability — a point at the heart of this case.

Cunningham added, “At no time did anyone on any of the evidence here attempt to engage in a sincere conversation with (the woman) about what she truly wanted to happen.” That, she argued, failed the legal test for consent, particularly considering the woman was intoxicated and in a room with multiple men she did not know.

Defense argues the woman was a willing participant, questions trauma timeline

In stark contrast, the defense teams maintained the woman was a consenting adult, pointing to her behavior and the video evidence.

“That is consistent with her not being surprised men were in the room and consistent with her wanting to have sex with them,” McLeod’s lawyer David Humphrey argued.Further challenging the prosecution’s case, Carter Hart’s lawyer Riaz Sayani questioned the credibility of delayed trauma, noting that the woman initially did not describe fear or trauma in 2018, only doing so in 2022.

Sayani claimed this undermined the Crown’s psychological narrative.
Now, with the verdict expected on July 24, the hockey world and public alike await the outcome of a case that may forever reshape the intersection of sports culture, consent, and legal responsibility in Canada.