WARNING: This article refers to sexual aggression and can affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by him.
Jeffery Turnbull’s lawyer, a Hamilton police officer accused of sexually assaulting a colleague in 2022, portrayed the woman as an unreliable witness whose testimony dishearsals the facts known as her trial continued with the final arguments.
On Wednesday, Joanne Mulcahy detailed on numerous occasions that the plaintiff’s testimony described the information about labor tasks that do not coincide with police records, problems of remembering dates and numerous times that the woman asked to look at her own previous statements before answering the questions.
The identity of the woman is protected under a standard publication prohibition. Turnbull declared himself innocent in the case before the judge of Ontario Jennifer Marie Campitelli.
Mulcahy argued that the woman invented new details in the years elapsed since the alleged incidents, and questioned why she provided only selected text messages between the two officers to the researchers instead of sharing most of her communications, which both parties of agreement were close to every day in the first months of 2022.
“We have a plaintiff who deliberately chose to deceive the investigation and deceive him,” said the defense lawyer.
Mulcahy said that Snapchat’s messages between the two that Turnbull recovered show a different side of their relationship, one in which they were friends and the woman expressed her enthusiasm to meet him by sex.
“There are many things that could recover that she didn’t want anyone to know,” Mulcahy said.
The trial began at the beginning of 2025, but the judicial dates have splashed throughout the year. He previously heard in Hamilton, but moved to Burlington as of Wednesday to access the court of the court before what would have been available at the nearby Hamilton. The closing arguments will continue in July.
The woman says she could not escape due to a back injury
Turnbull, 40, and his 28 -year -old colleague were in other relations in March 2022, when the woman was supposedly sexually assaulted at home. He was accused in June 2023 by the Special Research Unit (SIU) of Ontario.
On different trial dates, the two officers painted drastically different stories from the nature of their relationship and the timeline of the events.
The woman testified that Turnbull sent her a text message and pressed her for months, and she played to deter it from sending her more, even though he bothered her.
“I would do what I had to do to make sure that my life was not miserable at work,” he said.
Mulcahy alleges that the officer was having an adventure with Turnbull, which the plaintiff denies. The two agree that they had sex in Turnbull’s basement while their two children slept the stairs and his wife was out in a yoga retreat, but they differ itself in itself and when it happened.
Mulcahy argued on Wednesday that parts of the woman’s version, that her new puppy was up and without supervision with Turnbull’s adult dog, are unlikely.
The woman previously said she went to Turnbull’s house the night of the alleged assault because she panicked when she sent her a message to commit suicide. However, the defense has noticed that he did not mention the suicide in the interviews he gave to the Hamilton Police or the investigators of Siu in 2022. The first time he mentioned suicide, Mulcahy said in a previous appointment of the Court, it was in a December 2024 interview with the crown.
The woman has said that she could not escape the advances of Turnbull because she had a back injury.
“I kept telling him that I didn’t want this,” he said. “I wanted to go home.”
On Wednesday, Mulcahy said that the woman participated in a highly physical and demanding police training shortly after the alleged sexual assault.
“I couldn’t move, I couldn’t get up quickly enough, and days later he’s training for force,” Mulcahy said.
The defense emphasizes the proof beyond reasonable doubt
The plaintiff attended the Court on Wednesday with a large group of supporters, including his fiance, that the Court previously heard that he has been with her before the alleged assault. He left the gallery and sat down in the hall for some parts of Mulcahy’s presentations.
From the Defense Bank, Turnbull constantly wrote on a laptop during the procedures of the day.
Mulcahy said the test beyond a reasonable doubt is the sentence bar.
“There are significant concerns regarding [the woman’s] credibility, “Mulcahy said.” Even if you don’t believe in Mr. Turnbull’s testimony, but you have a reasonable doubt, you must acquit. “
Mulcahy will continue his presentations on July 14, followed by the final presentations of the Crown lawyer Jason Nicol.
If you are in immediate or fears for your safety or that of others around you, call 911. To obtain support in your area, you can search for local crisis and services through the Finish the database of the Canada Violence Association.
