Two girls charged in a fatal swarming attack on a homeless man downtown are back in custody, the Star has learned.
Because there was no police information about what caused their return to custody, nor was the information about their subsequent court appearances publicized — as is typical with most youth matters in Ontario — members of the media were not present to learn specific details on why the two girls were separately taken back into custody last month.
Late last year, eight girls were charged in the death of pc28¹ÙÍøhomeless man Kenneth Lee in what police described as a “swarming†attack outside Union Station. All but one of the teens were later released on bail following a series of lengthy court hearings.
The Star has been covering the unprecedented case closely over the last six months and on Tuesday raised an issue of access to basic information in a case of public interest. On Thursday, Ontario Court Justice Maria Sirivar allowed limited details about the girls’ return to custody to be released to a reporter.
According to the information provided, one of the girls was charged on May 4 with two counts of failing to comply with conditions of her April 26 release on bail. No details were provided about what conditions the girl allegedly breached, other than that neither count relates to violence.
The second girl was brought back into custody on May 17 — three weeks after she was granted bail, also on April 26 — not because she is alleged to have committed any new offence but because one of the people who agreed to be responsible for her revoked that status. No other details were provided.
Both girls had been ordered under strict house arrest that required them to be under constant supervision of the people who bailed them out — labelled a “responsible person†— and to not to leave home unless with one of those adults. They were also barred from having a cell phone or using social media as well as possessing any weapons.
A responsible person is akin to a surety for young people under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, but comes with more serious consequences if the young person fails to follow their conditions, including the possibility of jail time for the adult. The law allows for someone who previously promised to be a responsible person to ask the court to remove the young person from their care at any time if they are no longer willing or able to carry out that role.
The identities of both young people are protected by the same act, which was created, in part, to acknowledge a need to rehabilitate young people involved in the justice system.
Both girls were initially denied bail but were released by Justice Sirivar in April after their lawyers raised concerns about “unacceptable†conditions, including being flown via a charter flight to a facility in Kenora, Ont.
As of Thursday, they remained in custody at a youth facility along with a third girl — the only teen among the eight who has been in custody since Lee’s death. That girl is currently in the process of having an earlier decision to deny her bail reviewed.
According to police accounts, the eight girls — at the time, aged 13, 13, 13, 14, 14, 14, 16 and 16 — allegedly swarmed and attacked Lee, 59, near a temporary homeless shelter near York Street and University Avenue. All eight are charged with second-degree murder.
The allegations have not been tested in court. The evidence heard at their bail hearings is subject to a publication ban.
The other five girls were previously released on bail and are under house arrest.
A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled to begin in April 2024.
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