One of the teenage girls who has pleaded guilty in the deadly swarming of Kenneth Lee was routinely strip searched while in custody, including being forced to be completely naked on six separate occasions, in violation of provincial policy, a court has heard.
Justice David Rose also heard as part of an agreed statement of facts read in his downtown courtroom Wednesday that for 18 years, it was the written policy of the first youth facility where the girl was held — Sundance in Kingston, run by the St. Lawrence Youth Association — to have the girls in their custody strip completely naked during searches.
A second youth facility — Woodview in London, run by Craigwood Children, Youth and Family Services — did not have a policy that dictated girls in custody be stripped naked, the statement said, but that two staff members “misunderstood” those rules, leading to searches where the girl was made to strip naked.
The girl — who was 13 years old at the time of her arrest and the first four strip searches, and is now 15 — took the stand to describe her experience.
“It was humiliating,” the soft-spoken girl told the court after she tearfully explained how she has constantly struggled with body image issues before and after her arrest. In the body of the court, her mother wiped away tears as she listened to her daughter’s testimony.
“It made me feel really bad about myself,” the girl said.
The Star cannot name the girl under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, which protects the identities of young people under the age of 18 who are criminally charged.
Four other girls are expected to plead guilty and three are headed for a jury trial at Superior Court.
Four other girls are expected to plead guilty and three are headed for a jury trial at Superior Court.
The hearing Wednesday comes after the girl earlier pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of 59-year-old Kenneth Lee, who police allege was swarmed and stabbed by a group of eight teenage girls in December 2022.
Of those arrested, four have pleaded guilty to offences related to the alleged swarming and four are headed to jury trials scheduled next year.
After the girl’s lawyer, Jordana Goldlist, planned to argue her client’s charter rights had been violated by the searches on Wednesday, the matter was said to be settled and the agreed statement of facts was entered into evidence. Goldlist said she plans to argue for a reduced sentence for the girl.
There are no mandatory minimum sentences for youth charged with manslaughter. The maximum sentence is three years.
The searches, the agreed statement of facts said, were all “routine” and not triggered by any concerns such as that she may have been concealing contraband. Ministry policy, previously provided to the Star, allows for routine searches but states “the young person must not be completely undressed for any period of time.”
The four searches at Sundance took place over a month’s time, between Dec. 19 2022 — following the girls’ arrests — and Jan. 20, 2023. The searches happened when the girl entered the facility, after a family member visited on Christmas Eve, and twice when she returned from mandatory court appearances.
The girl testified Wednesday that she was made to squat down and cough during the strip searches at Sundance.
At one point during her stay at Sundance, a judge ordered she not be routinely strip searched at the facility. In response, the girl was placed in isolation for 24 hours. Ministry policy allows for a young person to be “separated from other young persons until they submit to the search or until there is no longer a need to conduct the search.”
On Jan. 4 of this year, the court heard, Sundance changed its internal policies to reflect the ministry standard, barring girls from having to strip completely naked.
The girl was re-arrested earlier this year after she assaulted a man on the TTC, a charge she has since pleaded guilty to. Following that arrest, she was placed in custody at Woodview on Feb. 16, when she was again strip searched while completely naked for a period of time. She was searched again Feb. 23 after returning from a court appearance.
Answering questions from her lawyer, Goldlist, on Wednesday, the girl said she didn’t tell her about the searches because she didn’t know it was wrong. It never got easier, she testified, saying she has been receiving help during counselling sessions to deal with those experiences.
“Do you now understand it was wrong, what was done to you?” Goldlist asked the girl.
“Yes,” she said.
Her sentencing hearing continues Sept. 16.
Correction - Aug. 29, 2024
This article was edited from a previous version that incorrectly said the teenage girl earlier pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old Kenneth Lee. In fact, she pleaded guilty to manslaughter on May 30. As well, there are no mandatory minimum sentences for youth charged with manslaughter. The maximum sentence is three years. The previous version referred to length of time for the maximum sentence for second-degree murder.
