NHLer Brett Howden’s text message can’t be used as evidence at trial of ex-world junior players, judge rules
Ruling expected on text exchange
WARNING: This post contains graphic details.
Hello, my name is Mark Gollom, and I am a senior reporter covering the courtroom proceedings today.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia is set to deliver a ruling this morning regarding the admissibility of a text message exchange between former world junior hockey teammates Brett Howden and Taylor Raddysh, following the alleged sexual assaults in 2018.
Both Howden, a player for the Vegas Golden Knights, and Raddysh, who plays for the Washington Capitols, have been called as Crown witnesses in this trial, although neither of them has been charged with any offense.
The court has heard that Howden and Raddysh were present in the hotel room in London, Ontario, where the sexual assaults on the complainant, identified as E.M., allegedly took place in June 2018.
During Thursday’s proceedings, much of the time was consumed by legal arguments from the Crown and defense regarding the admissibility of the text messages exchanged between Howden and Raddysh.
The Crown is pushing for the inclusion of these text messages as evidence and aims to question Howden about their content. One particular message that the Crown is focusing on is Howden’s remarks to Raddysh about the alleged incident involving Dillon Dubé slapping the complainant’s buttocks.
In one of the messages, Howden expressed relief for leaving when the incident occurred, stating, “Dude, I’m so happy I left when all the shit went down.” He also described witnessing Dubé’s actions towards the complainant, saying, “Man, when I was leaving, Duber [Dubé] was smacking this girl’s ass so hard. Like it looked like it hurt so bad.”
Assistant Crown attorney Meaghan Cunningham has argued that these messages reflect Howden’s truthful account of the events. While Howden acknowledged sending the messages, he claimed not to recall their contents with certainty.
On the other hand, defense attorneys have contended that the text exchange may not accurately represent Howden’s recollection of the night in question.
As the ruling on the admissibility of these text messages looms, all parties involved eagerly await Justice Carroccia’s decision. Stay tuned for further updates on this developing story.
