Graham James to be sentenced in Winnipeg for molesting two of his players

WINNIPEG – A disgraced former hockey coach — and the players he abused as teenagers — will learn his punishment today.

Graham James is scheduled to be sentenced in Winnipeg for repeatedly molesting two of his young players — former NHL star Theo Fleury and his cousin, Todd Holt.

James pleaded guilty in December to sexually abusing them when they played for him in the Western Hockey League in the 1980s and ’90s.

The Crown is asking James serve six years in jail while defence lawyers want no jail time but a conditional sentence of up to 18 months.

Crown attorney Coleen McDuff argued James violated the trust of his players and is at a high risk to reoffend again.

Defence lawyer Evan Roitenberg said James has become the most “hated man in hockey” and has been punished enough.

Sheldon Kennedy — the man who blazed a trail for James’s other victims to step forward — says he will be in court to see his abuser sentenced once again.

Fleury has said he won’t be there because he has moved past the abuse and has no expectations of the justice system anymore.

Holt will attend a news conference in Cochrane, Alta., today where he will release a joint statement on behalf of himself and his cousin.

“I want the world to hear not only what the courts have to say, but what those of us who endured the nightmare of Graham James have to say,” Fleury said in a statement on his website.

“I want this country to demand the laws become stronger to protect the victims, stand in front of the innocent and harshly punish the guilty. The time of political correctness is gone, and when it comes to sexual abuse and assault the only correct thing is to remove these predators from society.”

(The Canadian Press)

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