Testimony wraps up in Bathurst trial of man accused of sexually assaulting teenage girl

WARNING: This story contains details some readers may find disturbing.

Final witnesses have been called in the Bathurst trial of Steven Laurette, accused of sex crimes against a teenage girl.

Laurette, 44, of South Tetagouche, is charged with sexual interference and sexual assault against a person under the age of 16.

The charges stem from events that allegedly occurred between Dec. 1, 2018, and March 12, 2019, in the Petit-Rocher area of northeastern New Brunswick.

The Court of King's Bench started hearing testimony on April 20, and Justice Ivan Robichaud is expected to give instructions to the jury Friday.

The alleged victim testified via video from another room in the courthouse that she met Laurette, who was then 40, through a friend. 

The girl, who was 14 at the time of the alleged offences, cannot be identified under a publication ban.

She told the court that on several occasions she drank alcohol and smoked cannabis Laurette provided.

Often becoming emotional while testifying, she said Laurette took advantage of her state to touch her genitals while she was at a mutual friend's home. She said she had sex with Laurette five times in total, without the knowledge of her family or friends.

As part of her testimony, she was asked to read aloud message exchanges, sent using the Messenger app, between her and Laurette in February and March 2019. 

In one exchange, she asked Laurette why his Facebook profile said he was in a relationship with someone else. In his reply, read aloud in court, he swore he wasn't. 

The alleged victim said it's embarrassing, but she thought she was in a relationship with Laurette. She said he instructed her to delete text messages with him and to send him screenshots proving they were deleted.

She said she was still under his influence when her mother found out about the messages and contacted police. The teen said she loved Laurette at the time.

Alex Pate, the defence lawyer for Laurette, asked the teenager about contradictions between her testimony in court and what she had provided in preliminary proceedings, which ended in February 2022. 

She answered that she was tired and wanted the case to be over. She also said the events took place four years ago and she might have forgotten certain details.

The teen's mother, who also can't be identified, testified briefly, describing her reaction to finding out her daughter and Laurette were exchanging messages. 

Some of the messages on her daughter's phone were so "disturbing," the mother said, that she went to the police station that day.

Among the other Crown witnesses was a friend of the alleged victim, whose name is also the subject of a publication ban. 

She testified they were both given alcohol and cannabis by Laurette, among others. Robichaud instructed the jury to ignore some of her other testimony as hearsay.

Laurette denies girl's account

The defence called Laurette himself to the witness box on Wednesday. 

Pate asked him whether he had kissed the alleged victim, touched her genitals or had a sexual relationship with her. Laurette replied no to each of those questions saying, "It didn't happen."

Laurette did admit to providing the teenage girl and her friend with alcohol and cannabis. He said he thought it would be better for them to consume them under his and another adult's supervision rather than somewhere else.

He told the court he realizes it was a mistake.

On cross-examination, Duguay read extracts from Laurette's interview with police in June 2019, shortly after his arrest. During that interview, which was not under oath, he said he had never given alcohol or cannabis to the alleged victim or her friend.

Laurette admitted to the court he lied during the interview. 

Inconsistency blamed on nerves

Duguay asked him about a Facebook profile under a fictional woman's name that Laurette used at the beginning of 2019 to contact the alleged victim. According to the extracts read in court, Laurette told police in 2019 that he didn't create the profile and had never used it.

Laurette replied in court that he didn't know what happened during the interview with police, that he was being accused of sexual interference and he was nervous.

He also said the alleged victim had never set foot in his apartment, though she said she was sexually assaulted there.

Pate presented his client with a map of his apartment, drawn by the alleged victim, and Laurette made several corrections, such as the location of a room, and his washer and dryer. 

Laurette also said that he had sent a filmed visit of his apartment after moving there to several friends, including the alleged victim.