Christopher Duke guilty of sexually assaulting 12-year-old girl: Judge

A judge has found Christopher Duke guilty of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in Regina.

Duke, who knew the child, assaulted her on the evening of July 31, 2019.

The girl cannot be identified due to a publication ban.

Justice Graeme Mitchell read out his verdict in front of dozens of people at Regina’s Court of Queen’s Bench, the majority were friends and family of the victim.

Duke showed no emotion as he stared at the judge listening to the decision.

“I do not believe Mr. Duke’s evidence and it does not leave me with a reasonable doubt,” Mitchell said before convicting Duke.

Crown prosecutor Leona Andrews said she was confident in the evidence, adding the judge’s verdict was “very thorough and well-thought out.”

“I think obviously the family is very relieved in the decision,” Andrews said.

The decision comes two months after the judge heard closing arguments, and nearly three years to the day after the sexual assault took place.

During the trial, the Crown put forward 14 witnesses including the child’s brother who walked in on Duke sexually assaulting the girl. According to the boy’s testimony, Duke quickly pulled up his shorts and started tickling the girl. He then grabbed the brother, threw him on the bed and tickled him as well.

Police found a man’s board shorts at the scene that matched the victim’s DNA when tested in a lab.

Mitchell said Duke was an “evasive witness” who deliberately downplayed his relationship with the child. He added he “found it telling” when Duke refused to confirm or deny that the board shorts presented as evidence were his.

During the trial, both the victim and the Crown alleged Duke had sexually assaulted the girl a number of times, dating back as early as 2012 when the child would have been six years old.

Duke denied those allegations. The judge ruled that the details from the trial “lacked enough certainty” that he could not find Duke guilty of those other incidents.

Duke will remain out on bail until he is sentenced, a decision contested by the Crown.

“That’s obviously a decision up to the judge,” Andrews said.

“The presumption of innocence is no longer at stake here so there is an application that the Crown can make to have him taken into custody, but obviously the judge disagreed with that as he is entitled to do.”

Andrews said it is not uncommon for people to remain out of custody after a conviction, adding the court had no indications that Duke has violated any of his current bail conditions.

The Crown did ask for additional conditions to be applied to Duke’s bail. Under the new terms, he cannot leave the province and was ordered to surrender his passport to the Regina Police Service. He later told the judge he did not have a passport.

Duke’s conviction of sexual assault of a minor comes with a minimum one-year jail sentence and a maximum 14-year prison term, according to the judge.

The fact that Duke remains out of custody is not an indication of the length of sentence he could receive, Andrews said.

Sentencing submissions are scheduled for Oct. 17.