The judge in the trial of five former Canadian world junior hockey players, including Cochrane’s own Dillon Dube, accused of a June 2018 sexual assault, has declared a mistrial.
The move comes just three days after the 14-member jury was chosen to hear the high profile case in a London, Ontario courtroom. Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia declared the mistrial early Friday morning and discharged the jury.
The reasons for the mistrial cannot be reported because of a ban that prohibits the publication of any trial proceedings that take place without the jury present.
According to reports, a mistrial is declared at the discretion of the judge to avoid a miscarriage of justice, which can happen when a trial is unfair or when there is an appearance of unfairness.
A new jury will now be chosen, a process that started Friday after the original jury was dismissed.
Dillon Dube, the captain of the 2018 gold medal winning team, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Michael McLeod, and Cal Foote were charged with sexual assault early last year in connection to an alleged group sexual assault that took place after a Hockey Canada gala event in 2018. McLeod also faces an additional account of being party to an offence.
--With files from Canadian Press.
