Warning: This article contains details some may find upsetting and/or triggering.
Editor's note: A publication ban prevents the publication of any information that could potentially identify the complainant in this case.
The lawyer for a Fergus businessman at the centre of sexual assault allegations raised his doubts about the alleged victim’s testimony, saying she doesn’t recall “many details” of the four incidents in question.
He also noted the lone complainant “has interest” from a financial point of view, alluding to a $5 million lawsuit filed in conjunction with this case.
Both sides in the Robert O’Brien trial wrapped their cases Tuesday at provincial offences court in Guelph.
O’Brien is accused of four counts of sexual assault for incidents that allegedly took place between October 2021 and January 2023.
He pleaded not guilty to all counts, and did not take the stand.
The day began with the cross-examination of the woman, nearly five months after she began her testimony in the proceedings.
Several delays behind closed doors held up the trial.
In October, the woman told the court she didn’t think much of the four incidents as they came up.
But as patterns developed, in her eyes, it became an issue. The fourth such incident, a social event the two of them attended with others in January 2023, O’Brien is accused of touching the woman inappropriately under her clothing.
Defence attorney Brennan Smart questioned a number of details the woman provided back in October, and showed her a series of photos.
One such photo she agrees took place at an Elora bar at the tail end of a social gathering where she alleges O’Brien touched her inappropriately.
The photo was taken after the alleged touching took place. In it, the complainant is seen with a smile, and head tilted in laughter.
“You were having a great time,” Smart said, adding the complainant's best friend – who she claimed was there to “shelter” her until her ride showed up to take her home – wasn't there at all.
“You know it's true,” Smart put to the woman.
The woman argued she wasn't having a great time, adding a photo “can be misleading.”
Smart pressed again, asking how the photo can be deceiving, to which she responded “because I was not happy, I was not having a good time.”
“These pictures don't prove to me otherwise,” she said.
The other Crown witness was a man who was also part of that social gathering.
He was the owner of the phone playing a game, in which he said both O’Brien and the woman were engaged in and paid attention to for some time.
The individual testified he saw O'Brien put his left arm over the woman's shoulder, which he found “weird” but added he was unaware of the rapport between the two.
“At the time, I didn’t see an issue,” he testified.
He remarked several times when asked that the atmosphere throughout was “pretty welcoming” and “upbeat.”
He added he didn’t recall the woman’s friend being at the Elora bar that night either.
The only defence witness called was a friend of O’Brien’s.
The witness testified the woman offered to use his vehicle to drive him and others home after a night of drinking at a Halloween-themed event in October 2021.
The woman was sober that night.
A couple of points of his testimony conflicted with that of the accuser.
For one, the witness said the woman dropped him off at home, left him with his keys and vehicle and got picked up. She said she dropped them off and the vehicle was parked elsewhere to be picked up the next day.
The other conflicting testimony is whether O’Brien, who was also involved in the night of drinking, was given a ride home in the vehicle.
The man said he wasn’t, while the woman said she “absolutely” drove him and his wife home.
As for whether O’Brien touched the woman’s buttocks, as she alleges, he didn’t recall anything happening.
On the lawsuit, Smart questioned the woman's motives altogether. She responded she felt “far too embarrassed” to go to the police about the incidents, so she went to a lawyer out of town to weigh her options.
Closing submissions are scheduled for Thursday.
