4 Lethbridge teens accused of sexual assault in locker-room won’t go to trial

Four high school football players who were accused of sexual assaulting a teammate in Lethbridge, Alta., won’t be going to trial — three were given peace bonds while charges against the fourth were withdrawn, Crown prosecutors told CBC News Friday.

The teens are 16- and 17-years-old and were charged last October with sexual assault with a weapon, forcible confinement and assault with a weapon. 

They cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Defence lawyer Miranda Hlady represents one of the teens and told CBC News her client’s charges were withdrawn in June. Her client proceeded through a diversion program involving extrajudicial sanctions.

Defence lawyer Brad Kraus, who represents one of the teens who received a peace bond, told CBC News it’s been an incredibly tough year for everybody involved in the case.

“No surprise that the subject matter of this case generated such a far-reaching controversy. However, our legal system functions at its best [when people] are able to take a step back from the controversy and assess the facts objectively, as was the case here,” Kraus said.

A spokesperson for the Crown prosecutors’ office told CBC News there were challenges with the case that resulted in the prosecutor determining peace bonds would be the appropriate resolution for the remaining three teens.

A person who receives a peace bond is subject to court-ordered conditions for a set period of time.