End of postal strike eases pressure on scheduling for Sask. jury trials

Saskatoon massage therapist Kenneth Braun is going to get his day in court. It just won't be when he expected it.

Braun was charged in June 2022 with allegedly sexually assaulting a female patient. He is facing seven counts, with the assaults and exploitation alleged to have happened between 1996 and 2021.

Braun was to stand trial before a jury at Court of King's Bench in January 2025. But the Canada Post strike meant a pool of potential jurors could not be assembled in time for Braun's trial.

Justice Krista Zerr postponed that trial until the fall, Braun's lawyer Jay Watson confirmed.

• Lingering vacancies at Sask. Court of King's Bench contributing to delays, potential case dismissals

According the province's Jury Act, the notices must be sent eight weeks before trial. Potential jurors are randomly drawn from a pool of health cards, considered the best way to capture a cross-section of the community. Historically, upwards of 20 per cent of the cards are registered to post office box numbers in rural communities.

Without the postal service, summons could not be sent to potential rural jurors.

"To just have city dwellers [in a pool] is not representative," Watson said.

Braun's three-week trial was rescheduled for September and October.

A spokesperson for Saskatchewan Justice said it's up to each presiding judge to decide whether a trial goes ahead. The ministry would not comment on any specific cases.