Closing arguments in the sexual assault trial of former Woodstock mayor Trevor Birtch wrapped up Thursday.
Birtch, 49, was charged in February 2022 with two counts of sexual assault and one count of assault. He’s pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The court heard from the woman who was in a relationship with Birtch in 2020 and 2021. Her name is protected under a publication ban.
She testified that on Valentine’s Day 2021 when she refused to perform a sexual act, he allegedly pushed and kicked her out of the bed they were sharing at a spa. Another time in December 2021, she consented, but when she decided she no longer wanted to continue, she alleged that Birtch forced her to.
The assault, she contends, happened in July 2021 while the two were driving through Oxford County. She alleges Birtch pushed her out of his car on after she refused to perform a sexual act.
Birtch denied all the allegations, saying the woman was obsessive, irrational, and prone to emotional outbursts. He alleges she often drank heavily and threatened him with violence on multiple occasions.
Justice Michael Carnegie will now review the evidence presented during the four-day trial and will deliver his verdict later in the summer. Carnegie suggested multiple times during closing arguments that he would have liked to see more evidence to help make his decision.
No police reports or medical records were presented, and the only other witness to take the stand was Birtch’s 18-year-old son. Carnegie was instead asked by both the Crown and Defence to focus on the inconsistencies in the testimony.
The Defence told the judge that the Crown’s case was heavily speculative and that the evidence presented was not enough to convict Birtch beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Crown meanwhile said that the three events happened exactly as the woman described and that the only inconsistencies in the evidence are what the Defence presented.
A verdict on the trial is expected on Aug. 8.