MIDLAND, Ont.鈥敽＝巧缜偻鳦oun. Michael Thompson has been found not guilty of sexually assaulting two women at a friend鈥檚 cottage on Canada Day weekend 2022.
Justice Phil Brissette delivered his ruling Tuesday afternoon after hearing evidence in a trial that was spread out over a year at multiple different Ontario courthouses.
鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 guilty of these charges,鈥 Thompson said outside the courthouse standing beside his lawyer, Leora Shemesh. 鈥淚鈥檓 just relieved this is over it was a three-year, almost, nightmare and I just want to get on with my life.鈥
At a trial that began last fall, Thompson, 65, pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexual assault against two women whose identities are protected under a publication ban.聽
He was accused of allegedly molesting one woman while applying sunscreen and later forcing himself on her friend in the middle of the night; a third woman who was there that weekend also testified at trial.
On Tuesday, Brissette聽summed up the evidence in the sunscreen allegation, saying that while he found the three women gave their evidence in an open and forthright manner, he had concerns about their sobriety and ability to accurately recall details of what happened, noting a number of inconsistencies in their testimony.
Turning to Thompson, who denied applying the sunscreen in a sexual manner, the judge said he found him to be a 鈥渇airly reliable witness鈥 whose memories were not clouded by booze.
鈥淲hile there was evidence he smoked weed, he was not impaired or intoxicated as the other parties there,鈥 Brissette said, reading from his 40-page decision.
On the second charge, Brissette said he had a difficult time accepting Thompson鈥檚 testimony that he had no sexual interest in any of the guests that weekend, given that he admitted he had a sexual encounter with the second complainant, he had too many concerns about the reliability of the complainant鈥檚 testimony to overcome reasonable doubt.
The trial took place over the course of a year at courthouses in Bracebridge, Barrie and Bradford.
During closing arguments this past spring, Crown attorney Mareike Newhouse said the witnesses were all credible, compelling and generally consistent with each other, while Thompson was 鈥渘ot honest with this court.鈥
Shemesh argued the Crown did not prove its case with respect to either woman. The prosecution鈥檚 three witnesses lied about what took place, for reasons that 鈥渃ontinue to be a mystery,鈥 she said.
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鈥淭his was a witch hunt for Mr. Thompson, and it was and is deeply obvious. It was an evolution of a fabricated narrative designed by women who had their own independent, twisted motivations,鈥 she said.
The 鈥渢itle of this script鈥 should be 鈥淢e Too,鈥 Shemesh said, referring to the #MeToo social movement and awareness campaign against sexual abuse.
Thompson gave a 鈥渞aw and real account鈥 about what happened at the cottage in an honest and forthright manner, she said. He had no difficulties with memory or inconsistencies, and his evidence was 鈥渃ompletely unchallenged in any material way.鈥
Newhouse asked the judge to reject the notion of a witch hunt, saying there鈥檚 no evidence of any motive to fabricate. One of the women 鈥 a university student 鈥 didn鈥檛 know the two complainants before the weekend and isn鈥檛 claiming she was sexually assaulted by Thompson.
鈥淒id you want any of this to be happening,鈥 the prosecutor asked the woman at Coun. Michael Thompson鈥檚 continuing sex assault trial. 鈥淣o,鈥 she said.
This idea that she 鈥渃ame to court to not accuse Mr. Thompson of any crime ... doesn鈥檛 make sense,鈥 Newhouse said.
Throughout the trial, the prosecution tried to establish that Thompson used his power as an elected official 鈥 he was one of Toronto鈥檚 deputy mayors at the time 鈥 to lure the university student to the cottage under the false pretences of a 鈥渘etworking opportunity.鈥
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Shemesh noted the woman is an adult who made her own decisions.
Shemesh said the judge鈥檚 decision shouldn鈥檛 come down to 鈥渨hich narrative鈥 he prefers, and in the end he might not know who to believe. If that鈥檚 the case, he must then acquit.
In October 2022, a month after he was charged, Thompson was re-elected in his Scarborough Centre (Ward 21) with 55 per cent of the vote.聽
Thompson has been a councillor since 2003.
Betsy Powell is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and
courts for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: .
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