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A recent ruling by an Ontario judge stated that a text exchange initiated by a member of Canada’s 2018 world junior hockey team will not be allowed as evidence in the sexual assault trial involving his former teammates.
Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia declared that Crown prosecutors did not meet the necessary requirements for the text conversation between Brett Howden and Taylor Raddysh from June 2018 to be admissible under a hearsay application.
A hearsay application allows hearsay evidence to be presented if it is considered essential and reliable. The Crown submitted the application after their past recollection recorded application was denied.
The discussions in a London courthouse have focused on Howden’s text exchange with Raddysh on June 26, 2018, following an alleged incident central to the sexual assault trial involving five ex-teammates. Howden and Raddysh are not facing any charges.
During a voir dire on Thursday, Howden faced inquiries about the conversation, where he described aspects of the encounter on June 19, 2018, mentioning an incident involving one of the accused, Dillon Dube, and the female complainant.
In the June 26, 2018 message, Howden reported, “Dude, I’m so happy I left when all the s–t went down haha,” recounting an incident where Dube allegedly slapped the woman’s buttocks.
The Crown sought to present this text as evidence due to Howden’s uncertain recollection of certain details and previous statements. Howden became emotional as he recounted feeling scared and anxious upon learning of the investigation by Hockey Canada into the incident.
In her ruling, Carroccia emphasized the challenge of verifying the truthfulness of a statement made outside the courtroom. She reiterated that Howden’s text was not given under oath and therefore could not be confirmed as accurate.
Following the ruling, the defense began questioning Howden. The accused individuals have pleaded not guilty to the sexual assault charges related to an alleged incident involving a 20-year-old woman in a hotel room in London, Ont., in June 2018.
The trial, conducted by judge alone, is anticipated to continue for eight weeks.
