Keeping Track of Criminal Cases & SafeSport Suspensions in Skating

[canbelto]

LOLOL!! A lot of casual skating fans who will be in attendance in Calgary will be going? Yeah? So?? Sorenson might be an arsehole but he's got nothing on ignorant, beer guzzling hockey players.

It is a puzzle as to why this was put out there now. To me, it sounds like someone with an axe to grind, whether it's the other party involved or someone who's just taken the opportunity.
(I have no idea as to whether Sorenson is innocent or guilty, and I doubt we ever will).

Um there's a huge difference between being an "arsehole" and a rapist.

 

[pat c]

Um there's a huge difference between being an "arsehole" and a rapist.

Oh I know. 2015 junior world medalists in hockey still have a case pending to do with a rape. Sexual predators are everywhere in sports.

 

[Dragonlady]

Um there's a huge difference between being an "arsehole" and a rapist.

I'm going to assume you're not a Canadian. If you are, have you not been following the exploits of Hockey Canada and their fund to pay off muiltiple sexual abuse victims who filed suit against hockey players on the national teams???

 

[Willin]

What I don't get is how this makes IAM look bad? Like I'm just as sick of IAM as many people are, but I don't see what is apparently embarrassing about this?

The incident took place in Connecticut with American skaters - who knows if that local gossip loop knew about the incident, and if they did who knows if it even got back to Canada. We can speculate that others knew at the time, but it's entirely possible no one knew until now. Despite the tightknit community that is skating and the incident taking place at a similar party with other skaters, Ashley Wagner managed to hide her trauma even from her best friend for many years.

Now, if it came out that IAM knew and still took him on, that would be a different story. But we have no reason to assume that's the case. I guess you could criticize IAM for keeping him for now - but we don't even know if that's true - of course everyone close to the situation is being tight lipped.

 

[canbelto]

I'm going to assume you're not a Canadian. If you are, have you not been following the exploits of Hockey Canada and their fund to pay off muiltiple sexual abuse victims who filed suit against hockey players on the national teams???

Don't really follow hockey. The leagues I follow are: NBA, NFL and MLB.

 

[skategal]

About a Danish (at the time) skater who is accused in Connecticut. I can see why Skate Canada’s lawyers are throwing their hands up.

I suspect it’s not getting traction at the Office of Sports and Ethics (or whatever the name of that place is) for similar jurisdictional reasons.

Hence the article coming out now.

 

[Dragonlady]

Don't really follow hockey. The leagues I follow are: NBA, NFL and MLB.

Me either but the public embarassment of our national Hockey Federation having a documented fund - meaning taxpayer dollars, to buy the silence of rape and sexual abuse victims, in respect to attacks and abuse that took place at multiple government funded team events, was really hard to miss here.

 

[peibeck]

Dropping this news before Canadian Nationals rather than before Worlds creates maximum impact on the team for their final 3 events of the season, not just one. And if there is no resolution/decision by OSIC by early March, I'm sure Brennan will pen some new article(s) on their lack of action.

 

[Andrea82]

I couldn't help but chuckle when TSL was shocked, SHOCKED, that F-B/S went from 13th to 5th in the world over a period of years. Like, that's how ice dance works, folks. Even leaving all the acknowledged politicking aside, people improve, other people retire, and teams move up. How stupid do they think we are?

Especially given that the year when they were 13th, Guignard/Fabbri were 11th.

 

[Trillian]

What I don't get is how this makes IAM look bad? Like I'm just as sick of IAM as many people are, but I don't see what is apparently embarrassing about this?

I don’t think IAM looks bad yet. But they are facing an absolute minefield right now in terms of how to respond, so DL probably should’ve cooled his jets for a second and waited for them to do something first so he could find a way to spin it as inadequate.

 

[overedge]

Dropping this news before Canadian Nationals rather than before Worlds creates maximum impact on the team for their final 3 events of the season, not just one. And if there is no resolution/decision by OSIC by early March, I'm sure Brennan will pen some new article(s) on their lack of action.

Especially if FB/S win medals at any of those events.

 

[peibeck]

Just because IAM hasn't made a public response to Dave Lease doesn't mean they haven't taken action internally. I don't blame IAM for not giving him a statement. The situation is legally fraught and emotionally combustible, even without Lease's propensity for drama and attention whoring.

 

[sap5]

I couldn't help but chuckle when TSL was shocked, SHOCKED, that F-B/S went from 13th to 5th in the world over a period of years. Like, that's how ice dance works, folks. Even leaving all the acknowledged politicking aside, people improve, other people retire, and teams move up. How stupid do they think we are?

This assumes that Dave thinks.

 

[kwanfan1818]

This has been around in one guise or another for a long time, but, clearly, the message needs to be repeated:

(Caution: this is on Xitter)

HOW TO AVOID SEXUAL ASSAULT: a thread

 

[MacMadame]

I suspect it’s not getting traction at the Office of Sports and Ethics (or whatever the name of that place is) for similar jurisdictional reasons.

Hence the article coming out now.

I suspect they are also hoping that other victims will come forward as happened with Coughlin.

 

[Judy]

Me either but the public embarassment of our national Hockey Federation having a documented fund - meaning taxpayer dollars, to buy the silence of rape and sexual abuse victims, in respect to attacks and abuse that took place at multiple government funded team events, was really hard to miss here.

Hockey boys have been sexually molested too. Google Mike Danton and David Frost. The story is very, very, very sick with Frost. Dalton just pled guilty, denied it was he was after and has never spoken publicly. Still has no contact with his parents or his younger brother. It‘s a really sick and complicated story .

 

[made_in_canada]

Hockey boys have been sexually molested too. Google Mike Danton and David Frost. The story is very, very, very sick with Frost. Dalton just pled guilty, denied it was he was after and has never spoken publicly. Still has no contact with his parents or his younger brother. It‘s a really sick and complicated story .

Hockey in Canada is a total shitshow. The culture is toxic. A little while ago I was in line at the bank beside a lady that was talking about her teenage son’s hockey coach. She was describing behaviour that was pretty clearly abusive and she was happy about it. Said he gets results, the boys don’t need to be coddled, and if he’s a bit rough the ends justify the means. I was shocked and not at the same time. I did mumble something about how that’s why I don’t want my son in hockey

 

[Hedwig]

Hockey in Canada is a total shitshow. The culture is toxic. A little while ago I was in line at the bank beside a lady that was talking about her teenage son’s hockey coach. She was describing behaviour that was pretty clearly abusive and she was happy about it. Said he gets results, the boys don’t need to be coddled, and if he’s a bit rough the ends justify the means. I was shocked and not at the same time. I did mumble something about how that’s why I don’t want my son in hockey

My son plays field hockey in a very nice club. At one tournament when the under 8(!!!) children were playing, the coach of another team screamed at the children: you are not here to have fun. You are here to win!!

I was very shocked. If that had been our coach, I would have taken Baby Hedwig out of Hockey immediately.

 

[fsfann]

Just food for thought here....

Is there a difference between a one off drunken event and consistent targeting and sexual abuse? (I guess I'm just asking for people's thoughts on this). For example, I suspect MANY men and women have done things they regret after a drunken evening of partying in their early 20s. Is that sort of behaviour "equivalent" to someone who is targeting people and sexually assualting numerous people over a period of time?

Yes - some will think I'm trying to excuse this "one off behaviour" which I'm not.... but I do feel there is a difference.

IF this situation happened (and I have no reason to believe it didn't), does the perpetrator deserve to have their entire career destroyed? If you say yes to this, then would you say the same to any other professional/adult who has made a mistake in their past? (ie: If a victim comes forward 10-15 years after an alleged rape, should the accused automatically be fired and lose their job?). If that is the case, I think you could see hundreds of thousands of people around the world lose their jobs because of one accusation.

I'm just not understanding the logic with some of the posts above who claim that Nik's career should be ended right this very second.

 

[skatingguy]

Hockey in Canada is a total shitshow. The culture is toxic. A little while ago I was in line at the bank beside a lady that was talking about her teenage son’s hockey coach. She was describing behaviour that was pretty clearly abusive and she was happy about it. Said he gets results, the boys don’t need to be coddled, and if he’s a bit rough the ends justify the means. I was shocked and not at the same time. I did mumble something about how that’s why I don’t want my son in hockey

At the same time it's like all things - there's a mix. If you do decide you want to start little mic in hockey maybe look for a non competitive league, or team that he can start with to get into the sport in a way that focuses on fun, and learning skills rather than competitive sport.

 

[fsfann]

My son plays field hockey in a very nice club. At one tournament when the under 8(!!!) children were playing, the coach of another team screamed at the children: you are not here to have fun. You are here to win!!

I was very shocked. If that had been our coach, I would have taken Baby Hedwig out of Hockey immediately.

That seems like foolish behaviour from a coach at that young age for sure... At that age, the sport should be about building skills and passion for the sport. However with that said, there are many of us who are also tired of "participation awards" for everyone...trophies for all.. "everyone passes", no score keeping because you don't want kids to have their feelings hurt if they lose etc. There IS something to be learned by winning and losing. Kids need to learn at an early age that effort matters and sometimes even with strong effort, there are others who are better than you. All kids have a talent and excel at something, but just because we want to be good at everything, doesn't mean that we will be...

What we are seeing now in schools is crazy. Kids can't handle failure. They can't handle things not going their way, because they have always been told that they are great at everything...they can "be whatever they want to be" and they can "do whatever they want to do". This simply is not true.

Society needs to shift back to a more realistic approach and build resilience in our kids.

 

[LeafOnTheWind]

Is there a difference between a one off drunken event and consistent targeting and sexual abuse? (I guess I'm just asking for people's thoughts on this). For example, I suspect MANY men and women have done things they regret after a drunken evening of partying in their early 20s. Is that sort of behaviour "equivalent" to someone who is targeting people and sexually assualting numerous people over a period of time?

Yes - some will think I'm trying to excuse this "one off behaviour" which I'm not.... but I do feel there is a difference.

IF this situation happened (and I have no reason to believe it didn't), does the perpetrator deserve to have their entire career destroyed?

Ask that to people still serving prison sentences for driving drunk and killing people while under the influence. Their lives come to sudden ends because of one incident. The same should be happening to rapists.

 

[Former Lurve Goddess]

I'm just not understanding the logic with some of the posts above who claim that Nik's career should be ended right this very second.

Any elite athlete who sexually assaults another athlete should not be allowed the privilege of continuing in elite sports. No one is saying Sorensen should be banished to a desert island but that doesn't mean he should be in the public eye and getting Canadian sports funding.

 

[Wyliefan]

IF this situation happened (and I have no reason to believe it didn't), does the perpetrator deserve to have their entire career destroyed?

It helps to answer that if you remember that there is another person involved, and ask yourself: Did the victim deserve to have her life wrecked? She has had to pay a huge price in pain and suffering, and the "mistake" wasn't even hers. Why shouldn't the person who made the "mistake" have to pay a price?

 

[fsfann]

Ask that to people still serving prison sentences for driving drunk and killing people while under the influence. Their lives come to sudden ends because of one incident. The same should be happening to rapists.

Sure.. Murder is murder. I agree that's different (and it is).

But even with that, there are grey areas... There was a horrible bus accident in Saskatchewan a few years ago and a bus load of hockey players were killed when a transport truck accidentally drove through a stop sign on a highway. This man is being deported from the country for a tragic accident...

 

[Wyliefan]

Sure.. Murder is murder. I agree that's different (and it is).

But even with that, there are grey areas... There was a horrible bus accident in Saskatchewan a few years ago and a bus load of hockey players were killed when a transport truck accidentally drove through a stop sign on a highway. This man is being deported from the country for a tragic accident...

And what does that have to do with someone who deliberately committed a crime?

 

[fsfann]

It helps to answer that if you remember that there is another person involved, and ask yourself: Did the victim deserve to have her life wrecked? She has had to pay a huge price in pain and suffering, and the "mistake" wasn't even hers. Why shouldn't the person who made the "mistake" have to pay a price?

There should be a price for sure.. I'm not saying there shouldn't, and never did. It's the degree of punishment that I'm questioning.

I also have a family friend's son who is dealing with this right now. A girl accused him of assault at university. He claims none of it is true, along with his roommate who was in the room with him when the said assault was supposed to have happened. Because of this accusation, he was forced to drop out of school and return home for the balance of the year. Then he had to move across the country to a new school to try to continue with his education. This is all based on an accusation by an 18 year old. Anyway, I think these are much more complicated than "Oh, someone has been accused of something. Let's destroy their life" sort of reaction.

 

[fsfann]

And what does that have to do with someone who deliberately committed a crime?

My point is that not everything is black and white.

I would say however, that I think murder is on a different level than assault (any form of assault).

 

[LeafOnTheWind]

There should be a price for sure.. I'm not saying there shouldn't, and never did. It's the degree of punishment that I'm questioning.

Rapists should be in jail. You are arguing for virtually no punishment at all for committing a crime. Sorenson has stated that he wants to coach kids and continue on in the sport. This sport has a problem it's not dealing with. It can't afford to keep looking the other way.

He has already escaped jail because of the statue of limitations. He can find another job and keep living his happy little get out of jail free life.

 

[Former Lurve Goddess]

FYI: I had a look at the OSIC mandate and vision page when it comes to the standard of proof for investigations: ''The Standard of Proof – Findings are based on the available evidence, and an assessment is made using the 'balance of probabilities' standard."