An outside investigator hired by Hockey Canada to investigate an alleged gang sexual assault said players who do not participate in his investigation will be banned from Hockey Canada for life, and that many players he has not interviewed are concerned that Hockey Canada and some politicians have prejudged them guilty.
Danielle Robitaille, a partner at the law firm Henein Hutchison LLP, told the House of Commons standing committee on Canadian heritage that Hockey Canada has informed her that players who do not participate in its reopened investigation will be banned from Hockey Canada and will be named. publicly
In May 2022, Hockey Canada settled a $3.55 million lawsuit filed in April by a woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by eight former Canadian Hockey League (CHL) players after a Hockey Canada Foundation event in London, Ont. in June 2018.
The allegations have not been proven in court. The identities of the players allegedly involved and the alleged victim are not publicly known.
In his testimony, Robitaille said Hockey Canada contacted his company shortly after the alleged assault and gave him a mandate to find out the truth of what happened and make policy recommendations to Hockey Canada.
LOOK | Lawyer Danielle Robitaille says Hockey Canada will ban players who do not participate in the investigation
Lawyer Danielle Robitaille says Hockey Canada will ban players who do not participate in the investigation
Robitaille appeared before a House of Commons standing committee examining allegations of sexual abuse in the sport. Robitaille said the lawyer for eight of the nine players he has not spoken to told him they were concerned about being pre-trial by Hockey Canada.
But the third-party investigation was unable to interview every player on the 2018 World Junior Hockey Team who attended the event in the months that followed, so it submitted a preliminary report and recommendations to Hockey Canada on September 2018. The investigation was eventually closed with an agreement between Henein Hutchison and Hockey Canada that it could be reopened at any time.
Meanwhile, the case has brought unprecedented scrutiny to the culture of hockey and Hockey Canada as an organization. Sports Minister Pascale St-Onge and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have criticized Hockey Canada since the case became public in May.
In his testimony, Robitaille acknowledged the public anger the case has ignited.
“I appreciate that it’s very frustrating for Canadians that we still don’t have a result,” Robitaille told the committee.
“My investigation is taking time, but justice and fairness sometimes take time.”
Robitaille provided several new details about the investigation to parliamentarians on the committee. While executives from Hockey Canada he previously told the commission that most players at the London event did not participate in the initial investigation, Robitaille said 10 of 19 gave interviews.
He said the nine who chose not to take part advised him through their lawyer that they would not take part until the London Police Service concluded its criminal investigation into the incident, which began in July 2018. Police of London closed its investigation without charges in February 2019. .
Nine hockey players said they would not participate in a third-party investigation by Hockey Canada into an alleged sexual assault until police in London, Ont., have concluded a criminal investigation into the matter. (Paula Duhatschek/CBC)
Robitaille said he still could not interview the players after that time because the alleged victim said through his lawyer that he would not give a statement recalling his version of what happened in June 2018 to the investigation.
Robitaille said that without that statement, she was “not ready” to arrange interviews with the players and the investigation was put on hold.
“I was not prepared to interview those players absent from the whistleblower’s version of events,” Robitaille told the committee.
“As a matter of process, I could not interview the players without giving them fair notice of what was alleged against them.”
Robitaille said that earlier this month, she received a tip that the complainant would be making a statement. Investigators now have the statement and the investigation is back on.
Hockey Canada executives they told the commission that while players were encouraged to participate in the initial phase of third-party research, they were not required to do so.
But Robitaille said the organization has now told him that players who do not participate will be banned from Hockey Canada and that the ban will be made public.
Robitaille emphasized that the investigation is ongoing.
The players worried the politicians, Hockey Canada “judged” them.
Robitaille added that the lawyer for eight of the nine players he has not spoken with told him the players are concerned that some politicians and Hockey Canada officials have already decided they are guilty.
“They have expressed concerns about my investigation, particularly regarding comments made by politicians and members of Hockey Canada. They are concerned that the matter has been pre-judged,” he said.
“I’m trying to address those concerns and put those concerns to rest, and I hope you’ll be willing to comply with my investigation.”
london police announced last week that they will reopen their investigation into the alleged assault.
Hockey Canada said last week it would stop using a fund maintained by membership fees to resolve sexual assault claims.
The organization announced on Monday which will commit to a number of other changes, including improved training focusing on masculinity, consent and toxic behaviour, and a universal code of conduct to prevent and address abuse in sport.
Members of Canada’s 2003 World Junior Team also face a gang sexual assault allegation dating back to 2003.
Sport Canada learned of the allegation in 2018
Sport Canada senior director Michel Ruest told the committee that the federal organization was informed of the alleged sexual assault in 2018, but did not follow up with Hockey Canada at the time.
Appearing before the Canadian Heritage committee on Tuesday, Ruest also told MPs that Sport Canada, an arm of Canadian Heritage, did not make Sports Minister Kent Hehr’s office aware of the allegations.
St-Onge said he did not know about the allegations until this year.
Several MPs asked Ruest why Hockey Canada’s federal funding was not cut before June of this year and why there was no follow-up to the case.
“So this allegation was made, it was reported on June 26 (2018) and for four years not once did you or your organization follow up with Hockey Canada about these allegations?” Conservative MP John Nater asked Ruest.
Ruest responded that Sport Canada was awaiting the outcome of Hockey Canada’s third-party investigation and the London Police Service’s criminal investigation.
Canadian Heritage Deputy Minister Isabelle Mondou, who also appeared before the committee Tuesday, said she did not see the delay as unusual.
“What we knew at Sport Canada was that there was a police investigation going on, and as you know, sometimes police investigations can take years,” Mondou told the committee.
“We weren’t necessarily surprised that the investigation was still ongoing. What surprised us was that we hadn’t had enough updates.”
NDP MP Peter Julian asked why Sport Canada does not have measures in place to verify whether sports organizations are following anti-harassment measures.
“I think Canadians have lost confidence,” Julian said.
“They’ve lost confidence in Hockey Canada, they’re losing confidence in Sport Canada, because we’re not seeing the kind of close monitoring that actually means these policies being put in place are more than just buzzwords.”