Crown wraps questioning of NHLer Brett Howden at sexual assault trial of 5 ex-world junior hockey players

Proceedings ended earlier than is typical today, so we’re winding down our live updates. Thanks for following along.

If you’re just getting here, be sure to scroll down to get caught up on how another eventful day in court played out.

We’ll be back Monday morning with more live coverage of the trial.

As ever, we know testimony throughout the trial has included details that can be difficult to read. There are support services available. If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911. For support in your area, you can look for crisis lines and local services via the Ending Violence Association of Canada database.

Until next week.

Abandoning cross-examination of Howden’s inconsistencies

The Crown had been seeking to cross-examine Howden on inconsistencies between his testimony this week and previous statements to investigators.

But assistant Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham said on Friday that she would be seeking on Monday to abandon that application now that she had come to an agreement with defence lawyers to allow excerpts of some of Howden’s past interviews that were read into court on Friday.

WARNING: This post contains graphic details.

Cunningham asked Howden about a 2022 interview with Hockey Canada. He read out another excerpt in which he talked about the alleged slap by Dubé on the complainant’s buttocks.

In the excerpt, Howden said he felt uncomfortable about that slap.

Asked by Cunningham what he remembers about that interview, Howden said he didn’t remember all the details, “just feeling uncomfortable.”

Cunningham finished her questioning of Howden and court adjourned for the day.

The defence is expected to cross-examine Howden on Monday.

Cunningham is questioning Howden about a July 3, 2018, interview he did with Hockey Canada investigator Danielle Robitaille, two weeks after the alleged assault in the London, Ont., hotel room.

Cunningham is asking him to read out excerpts of the interview.

In one excerpt, Howden said: “She would start to get dressed … she was way too sober for this.”

Howden back in the witness box

Cunningham responds to defence

WARNING: This post contains graphic details.

Cunningham said the reason why we don’t have any other information about the alleged slap in 2018 is because Dubé asked Howden not to mention it when Howden was set to be interviewed by Hockey Canada investigators.

None of the defence lawyers addressed the other corroborating evidence of the slap, Cunningham said.

The defence can’t explain why Howden’s text messaging “dovetails so precisely” with E.M.’s account of the slap, Cunningham said.

“She says she was slapped hard on her buttocks and it hurt. That’s exactly what the [text] message says.”

With arguments from the Crown and defence complete, Carroccia said she will make her decision on this application on Monday.

The court is in recess, as Howden is expected to return to continue his testimony via video link.

Lisa Carnelos, lawyer for Dillon Dubé, said there’s also concern that Howden’s texts may be due to something that was told to him and not witnessed.

She noted the unreliability of the informality of the text messages and referred to Howden’s testimony that he never expected to be held to these messages.

Howden was also trying to distance himself from what occurred in the hotel room and either lied or exaggerated about the activity of other people, Carnelos said.

Riaz Sayani, a lawyer for Carter Hart, counters with a text message Howden sent to Raddysh about defendant Alex Formenton allegedly going into the bathroom with the complainant to have sex with him and how long that interaction lasted.

Sayani said there’s a contradiction with what Howden told Raddysh and what he told Hockey Canada investigators.

Howden was either lying, careless with the truth, speaking casually with a friend or nervous about being implicated himself in an ongoing investigation, Sayani said.