Defence lawyer in Hockey Canada sex-assault trial asserts that accusations began as a ‘white lie’

A defence lawyer in the sexual assault trial of five former world junior hockey players asserted in his closing submissions on Monday that the accusations against the players began as a “white lie” that eventually got out of control.

David Humphrey, who is representing Michael McLeod, told the London, Ont., courtroom that the complainant — a woman known as E.M. because her name is protected by a publication ban — changed her story after the 2018 incident in an effort to mask her regret over a night of partying.

The argument provides a glimpse into how the defence will attempt this week to counter the prosecution’s assertion that the woman did not consent to sex with multiple players and feared for her safety.

Mr. McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dubé and Cal Foote have been charged with sexually assaulting E.M. in a hotel room following a gala in London, Ont., honouring the 2018 Canadian world junior team. Mr. McLeod, who played for the NHL’s New Jersey Devils until being charged early last year, faces a second charge of being a party to sexual assault. The five men have pleaded not guilty.

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E.M. met Mr. McLeod and other players at a London bar in 2018 and the two went back to his hotel room and had consensual sex. E.M. alleges Mr. McLeod later invited several teammates to the room without her consent who then took turns sexually assaulting her.

Mr. Humphrey began his closing arguments suggesting E.M. told Mr. McLeod to invite his teammates for sex, then later changed her story when her mother found her upset the next morning, alleging she was assaulted.

“What started as an understandable white lie shared in private with her mother, snowballs beyond her control into an investigation,” Mr. Humphrey said.

“She had no intention of contacting police or Hockey Canada,” Mr. Humphrey said. He suggested E.M has created a “false narrative” in response to regret for her actions that night.

Closing submissions for all five players began Monday, starting with Mr. McLeod’s lawyer, and will be followed by the remaining four players. Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham is then expected to deliver the prosecution’s closing arguments, presenting the other side of the case.

Both prosecution and defence lawyers say the case turns on the matter of consent. During nine days of testimony, E.M. told the court she did not consent to additional sex acts following her initial encounter with Mr. McLeod. She told the court she felt threatened and unable to leave the hotel room if she didn’t acquiesce to the players’ demands.

Mr. Humphrey alleged in his submission that E.M. didn’t make enough effort to get out of the hotel room if she was scared, as she testified previously, before further sex acts are said to have occurred.

“If you’re terrified, you do the minimum. Yeah, maybe you acquiesce, maybe you submit, but you do the bare minimum,” Mr. Humphrey said.

Mr. Humphrey questioned E.M.’s claims of drunkenness, saying video evidence from the London bar shows she was able to dance and walk wearing high heels. At one point, the defence lawyer pantomimed to the judge what he called a “shimmy up and down” that E.M. did on the dance floor, according to surveillance videos shown in court.

Mr. Humphrey questioned discrepancies in E.M.’s statements to police and her later court testimony, saying E.M. “didn’t want her mother or anyone to know why she had chosen this night of drinking and partying.”

“It suited her purposes to present herself as a victim,” Mr. Humphrey said.

The alleged sexual assault came to light in 2022 when TSN reported court documents showing Hockey Canada had settled a lawsuit without the players’ knowledge for an undisclosed sum, which led to a backlash over that settlement being kept quiet. London Police closed the case without charges in 2019 but later reopened the case.

Mr. Humphrey said E.M. didn’t initially tell police she feared for her safety that night, but that allegation emerged with the lawsuit. In response to that claim, Justice Maria Carroccia interjected, noting that the lawsuit was settled in 2022 “extremely quickly,” which she said was unusual.

Outside the courtroom, protesters gathered Monday, as they had done throughout the trial. A group of eight women held signs in support of E.M. saying “You are not alone” and chanted “We believe E.M,” as players entered the building. Across, the street a man held up a large sign calling the accusations “False allegations.”

The criminal trial began in late April and experienced multiple false starts, including a mistrial and two dismissed juries. In May, Crown lawyers reluctantly agreed to proceed before a judge alone rather than starting the trial anew.