Dillon Dube, Michael McLeod, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton, and Carter Hart, the athletes in question, will face their trial collectively, opting for a jury to determine their fate rather than a single judge.
In a statement highlighted by The Globe and Mail, the players' legal team expressed confidence in this decision:
"'Earlier this week, all five players selected a trial by jury and they are confident that jurors drawn from the community will decide this case fairly and impartially after hearing all the evidence and testimony,' lawyers representing the accused players said in a joint statement."
The allegations against these individuals arose from an incident at a celebration attended by the majority of the gold-medal-winning Canadian World Juniors team in June of the same year. A woman has accused the five of assault and humiliation over a five-hour span. These claims have yet to be proven in court.
At the time the charges were filed, four of the accused were affiliated with NHL teams, while Alex Formenton was playing in Switzerland. All five have since taken leaves of absence from their professional commitments, casting doubt on their return to the ice in the near future.
