A Sherbrooke man was recently found guilty of raping a woman in her sleep on a drunken evening after failing to end a trial that dragged on for nearly 48 months.
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“[Je] notes that the course of the trial as a whole shows that the defense was in no hurry to proceed, especially before the arrival of Mr [Laurence] Juillet St-Jean as lawyer for the defendant,” wrote Judge Alexandre St-Onge in his ruling.
David Mitchell Colin Valle wanted to drop the sexual assault allegation against him with a Jordan-style motion, believing he had been convicted with undue delay.
This is because almost 48 months passed between his indictment and the end of his trial, while the upper limit in this case was 18 months.
However, after analysis, Judge St-Onge denied the request and found the Sherbrooke resident guilty of the offense he committed following a heavily intoxicated Super Bowl party in Montreal in February 2018.
That evening, the defendant and the victim, whose identity is being withheld for the court, said little, although the 35-year-old attempted to “reconcile” over a past incident.
In the act
The victim was returned to his apartment in a “severe state of intoxication” while his roommate and Colin Valle went to a neighborhood bar.
The two people returned to the accommodation early in the morning. At around 4:30 a.m., the victim’s roommate was woken up by a noise.
When he entered the victim’s room, he surprised the defendant in the act. “Hey! What are you doing here?” he yelled at her in Spanish.
The victim “has his eyes closed and is half asleep. “Her legs are spread apart while the defendant lies on top of her shirtless, she is only wearing a T-shirt, her clothes are lying next to her on her bed,” -on describes in Judge St-Onge’s ruling.
The complainant “did not have the capacity to consent to this penetration as the evidence shows she was asleep when the defendant penetrated her,” Judge St-Onge concluded.
Numerous reports
After David Mitchell Colin Valle was charged in February 2019, the case was repeatedly adjourned.
Of the 1,457 days of delay, 620 were deducted and attributed to the defense, which presented the file seven times, including the arrival of a new lawyer, Me Laurence Juillet St-Jean.
Additionally, Colin Valle claimed that a Spanish-speaking interpreter made errors in her testimony, resulting in a 228-day delay. An independent assessment should be carried out.
“The defendant has not demonstrated any recurring or systemic problems with the quality of the interpretation,” however, noted Judge St-Onge.
David Mitchell Colin Valle must return to court to hear his sentence.