A dramatic twist in the Harold Lebel trial

The defense has confirmed that the accused will testify before a jury as the crown case in the sexual assault trial of former MP Harold Lebel is now complete. But everything will happen next Monday.

• Also Read: Harold Lebel sexual assault trial: Fears of stalking ‘super-loving’ man

• Also Read: Harold Lebel told the complainant that he had a ‘memory loss’ due to alcohol

The initial game plan was laid out for final evidence for the crown Thursday morning, allegedly by a friend of the victim who accompanied him to Harold Lebel’s condo the evening of the events.

According to the complainant’s testimony, this third person slept in the bedroom at the time of the allegations against Mr. Lebel. The two women were in Rimouski for work, and since Harold Lebel was a mutual friend, he offered to sleep at his house for the two nights of their stay.

However, Manon Gaudreault, the prosecutor on the file, announced at Thursday morning’s opening that her testimony was finally closed and that she had no other witnesses to call.

The testimony was initially scheduled to take place for part of Thursday, with the parties already agreeing to take up the defense only next week to avoid disrupting the weekend.

This means that Harold Lebel will be in power next Monday morning to present his evidence. Meanwhile, the jury was discharged over the weekend and the trial was adjourned by Judge Serge Francoeur.

According to a preliminary schedule set for next week, the presentation of evidence should end Monday or Tuesday morning, allowing attorneys to present their arguments to the jury in the middle of the week. The members of the jury, 10 women and 4 men, will be forced to make their decision on Harold Lebel’s guilt or not.

Remember that the defense tried to raise the odds in the alleged victim’s testimony on Wednesday, especially since this co-worker and friend was so close during the alleged incidents, to initially testify.

Why didn’t she wake him up? And instead of sleeping alone in the bed in her room, why didn’t Lebel join her in the bed rather than her accused? Defense lawyer Maxim Roy asked him many times.

“What was implied when she left to sleep in Harold’s bed, there was never any question of us sleeping in Harold’s bed together. It was implied that Harold was going to enter her room and she was going to join me in the bed we slept in the day before, the living room bed,” the complainant replied.

She said Wednesday about the panicked text message she sent to this friend while she sought refuge in the bathroom of Harold Lebel’s condo, after he allegedly kissed her.

And since the second witness ultimately did not testify, this text message cannot be entered into evidence.

“When I went to review the conversation, I didn’t have it. […] There are a lot of text messages between me and myself [elle]From what I understand, when there are so many people, you cannot go that far,” she said in her cross-examination.