London – A woman told, during the sexual assault trial of five hockey players, that she was drunk and that she was not fully aware of her environment while she was walking on the “chaotic” dance floor of the bar where she met some of the accused for the first time.
The woman, whose identity is protected by a non-publication prescription, claims to have consumed at least eight shots, a beer and a Soda vodka at the London jack’s bar, Ontario, the evening of June 18, 2018, as well as two ready-to-good at home before.
She met a man who presented herself as Mikey. They drank and danced together before a group of men’s friends surround him on the dance floor.
Testifying by television on a closed circuit, the woman says she felt claustrophobic and uncomfortable, but she remained on the track because she was drunk.
Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Form, Dillon Dube and Callan Fote all pleaded not guilty of sexual assault.
McLeod also pleaded not guilty to an additional accusation of participation in an offense of sexual assault.
Former teammates testify
Two former members of the Canadian World Junior Hockey Team remembered having seen a woman in bed under the covers when they stopped in the hotel room of a teammate after a celebration evening seven years ago, they said on Friday during the trial of the five hockey players accused of sexual assault.
Taylor Radady and Boris Katchouk, two professional hockey players who were part of the 2018 Junior World team, testified by videoconference.
Several members of the team were in London, Ontario, for several days in June 2018 for some events marking their victory in the championship of that year, the court learned.
Hockey Canada organized a ceremony for handing over the rings and a gala on June 18, after which some players went to a bar, the court learned.
Katchouk, who is currently playing in the American hockey league, told the court to have left the bar with Foote earlier than the others and eaten a hint of pizza when I got home.
A video of the hotel hall shows the two men arriving at 2:23 a.m.
They went to their respective floors, but before he could reach his room, Katchouk crossed McLeod in the corridor, he said. McLeod invited him to enter his room, he told court.
Inside, “I saw a woman lying on the bed, under the sheets, while I was talking to Mikey,” he said.
The two teammates continued to discuss and, at one point, McLeod asked him if he wanted a blowjob. Katchouk understood that she would be made by the woman on the bed, he said. He laughed at the offer, he added.
At another time, McLeod left the room and returned with Radady, Katchouk remembers. The three players discussed a moment before Radady suggests to Katchouk and him to leave, and they both left, he said.
Radady, who is now playing in the NHL for Washington’s capital, told court on Wednesday that he remembered very little of that night, but that he remembered having seen Katchouk and a woman in McLeod’s room in the early morning.
Friday, the court heard part of the transcription of a Radadyh declaration made in July 2018, in which he remembered having seen a woman in bed under the covers.
In his statement, Radady said that he had not stayed in the room for a long time and that he did not know if the woman was dressed, but that she “seemed to be fine”.
