The last of the teenage girls to face trial in the swarming death of Kenneth Lee has pleaded guilty to manslaughter, ending any future prosecution in the case.
The final of eight girls entered her plea in Superior Court on MondayÌýmorning with her trial previously set to begin the same day.
The plea marks the end of the Crown’s prosecution against all eight girls, who were first arrested in December 2022 and each charged with second-degree murder in an extremely rare case of teenage girls accused of a group homicide.
Lee was visiting the parkette with a friend, who was staying at a nearby temporary hotel shelter when their paths crossed with the girls — who had been drinking and smoking weed at Yorkdale mall with a larger group of teens before some decided to travel downtown on the subway, accosting other passengers as they went. Some of the girls saw Lee’s friend had a bottle of liquor and one took the bottle. When Lee — who was also homeless at the time — intervened moments later, the girls swarmed him and at least one of them stabbed him.Ìý
That stabbing has been pinned on one of the girls whose trial spanned several weeks earlier this year. A decision in her case is scheduled for May 30.
Girls plead guilty to lesser charges
Since their arrest, the girls, one by one,Ìýentered guilty pleas to lesser chargesÌý— both in the lower Ontario Court of Justice where the case began and in Superior Court where a trial was split in two, some opting to face a jury and others a judge alone.
None of the girls can be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, which, as a core principle, promotes rehabilitation for youth charged with criminal offences.
The Star has been covering the girl swarm case since º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøpolice announced chargesÌýand has been present at dozens of court appearances as the girls each received bail, watchedÌýas some were re-arrested on new offences,Ìýsat through a preliminary hearing and witnessed each pleading.
This is how the court resolved or is resolving each of their cases, in the order they were dealt with:
- Girl 1: Was 13 in December 2022. Pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the Ontario Court of Justice on May 30, 2024 ahead of trial. SentencedÌýto 21 months probation on Oct. 1, 2024.
- Girl 2: Was 13. Pleaded guilty toÌýassault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harmÌýin the Ontario Court of Justice on June 4, 2024 ahead of trial. Sentenced to 12 months probation on Sept. 24, 2024.
- Girl 3: Was 13. Pleaded guilty to manslaughterÌýin the Ontario Court of Justice on June 17, 2024 ahead of trial. Sentenced to 15 months probation on Sept. 16, 2024.
- Girl 4: Was 14. Pleaded guilty to manslaughterÌýin the Ontario Court of Justice on June 24, 2024 ahead of trial. Sentenced to 24 months probation on Sept. 24, 2024.
- Girl 5:ÌýWas 16. Trial for second-degree murder began Feb. 3. Pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Feb. 18, after evidence phase of trial was concluded. Set to be sentenced May 16.
- Girl 6: Was 16. Pleaded guilty to assaultÌýon April 4, ahead of trial. Scheduled to be sentenced on May 6.
- Girl 7: Was 14. Pleaded guilty to manslaughter on May 5, the day trial was set to begin. Has yet to be sentenced.
- Girl 8: Was 14. Trial for second-degree murder began Feb. 3. Pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the outset of the trial, but plea was rejected by Crown. Scheduled for judgment on May 30.
Girls routinely strip searchedÌý
Hanging over the cases against each girl was the discovery during the bail phase of their prosecution that all of them had been routinely strip searched in the provincial detention centres where they were held.
The province contracts the operations of many of its youth detention and custody facilities to third-party agencies.
While provincial policies permit the routine searches — without there needing to be any specific suspicion a youth is concealing contraband — the girls’ case revealed they were also made to strip completely naked, against ministry policy.
Ontario CourtÌýJustice David Rose heard from lawyers for the first four girls to plead guilty that their rights in custody had been violated.
In the case of two of those girls, the lawyers argued the murder charge against them should be thrown out. Though he rejection that option, Rose found their Charter rights had been infringed, calling their treatment “troubling.”
The charge of manslaughter is the lowest form of homicide, where someone’s actions, while not intentional, caused a person’s death. Second-degree murder requires the killing to be intentional but not premeditated.
Two other girls were found guilty of different forms of assault and were not sentenced for Lee’s death.
The final girl went to trial for second-degree murder in front of Justice Philip Campbell in Superior Court. She pleaded guilty to manslaughter, but the Crown did not accept that plea and the trial went ahead. A decision in that case is scheduled for May 30.
The lawyers of the girls previously facing trial in Superior Court also argued their charges should be thrown out over the strip searching. The arguments took place ahead of trial for two of the girls and the details were under a publication ban while a jury trial was still scheduled for the other two girls.
Several current and former youth workers testified as part of the Charter challenge, employees whose organizations are contracted by the province to provide youth detention services.
Campbell, with court time at a premium, ruled to dismiss the stay but has yet to provide reasons for his decision.
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