CALGARY — A former running back with the Calgary Stampeders who filmed a sexual encounter with a woman without her permission offered a tearful apology at his sentencing hearing Thursday.
But Jerome Messam, 37, also expressed some anger in his 10-minute address about how he has been portrayed and what the court case has done to his life.
“I just want to be able to move on. I see my friends on the TSN channel talking about football … and I say, ‘Man, that could have been me,’” he told the court.
“I see that all this happened in a time when there was so much nuance and all these MeToo (movements) and all the things. They just threw me to the wolves. No due justice, no due process.”
Messam pleaded guilty earlier this year to a charge of voyeurism.
Court heard Messam and the woman followed each other on social media while he was a running back for the Canadian Football League team.
On Nov. 11, 2016, they had dinner together and then had consensual sex at Messam’s apartment.
Three months later, Messam sent the woman four 10-second video clips of their sexual encounter on the social media platform Snapchat, which deletes videos after they are played.
The woman made a formal complaint to the police and the CFL in April 2018. Messam had his contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders terminated after he was charged in July 2019.
In a tearful victim impact statement last month, the woman said she had considered ending her own life, suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, and has moved away from Calgary.
Messam said he’s sorry for any harm his actions caused.
“I never intended for any of this to happen … nor did I know the level of pain that the situation caused her,” he told court.
“I take pride in what I’ve done on the football field. It sucks that my career was cut short. I made a bad choice. Do I feel the punishment fits the crime? No. I lost everything in a span of 48 hours.”
Prosecutor Janice Walsh said jail time isn’t appropriate. She recommended a suspended sentence of 18 to 24 months, which would give him a criminal record, followed by probation.
“I’m not asking the court to consider that Mr. Messam’s fact pattern is near the far end of the spectrum, but nor is it a mere observation and nor is it at the conditional discharge end of the spectrum,” Walsh said.
“This falls somewhere in that middle range of sentences, which requires a criminal conviction but does not require the punishment of jail, either in the community or actual jail.”
Walsh rejected suggestions that media attention Messam received after he was charged and the loss of his CFL career should be factors in the sentencing.
“The CFL has its own conduct policy. The CFL has exercised their discretion,” Walsh said.
“With regard to the media attention, it is inevitable and inextricably linked with the profile of Mr. Messam and his previous position as a member of a professional football team.”
David Nguyen, Messam’s defence lawyer, asked for a conditional discharge, which would spare him a criminal record.
“This case involves only two parties, that is the complainant and Mr. Messam,” Nguyen said. “In respect to the subject matter, there was no distribution, there was deletion of the files and there was no attempt to capitalize or extort or use for financial gain.”
Nguyen said Messam has no previous criminal record and the attention has been a deterrence. He said his client works with young children, their parents and other adults providing physical training.
“Right now, he’s operating without a criminal record and working without a criminal record,” he said.
“This court should consider what the effect of a criminal record would have on his future employment, and providing for himself and for his family.”
Messam also asked the judge to consider a conditional discharge.
“I just want to say that I pray, my lady, that you’ll look at the big picture and know that my rehabilitation would be greatly affected by this record.”
A judge is to give a decision on Dec. 5.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2022.
MONTREAL – One expert says entry-level pay under the tentative deal between Air Canada and its pilots could be a stumbling block ahead of a union vote on the agreement.
Under their current contract, pilots earn far less in their first four years at the company before enjoying a big wage increase starting in year five.
The Air Line Pilots Association had been pushing to scrap the so-called “fixed rate” provision entirely.
But according to a copy of the contract summary obtained by The Canadian Press, the proposed deal announced Sunday would merely cut the four-year period of lower pay to two years.
John Gradek, who teaches aviation management at McGill University, says as many as 2,000 of Air Canada’s roughly 5,200 active pilots may earn entry-level wages following a recent hiring surge.
After the airline averted a strike this week, Gradek says the failure to ditch the pay grade restrictions could prompt pushback from rank-and-file flight crew and jeopardize the deal, which is up for a vote next month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.
ROME (AP) — Salvatore “Totò” Schillaci, the Italy striker who was top scorer at its home World Cup in 1990, has died. He was 59.
Schillaci had been hospitalized in Palermo following treatment for colon cancer.
The Palermo Civico hospital said in a statement that Schillacci died on Wednesday morning after being admitted 11 days ago.
Schillaci scored six goals for Italy during the 1990 World Cup. He came on as a substitute during Italy’s opener against Austria, scored in a 1-0 victory, and went on to earn the Golden Boot awarded to the tournament’s top scorer. He only scored one other goal for Italy in his career.
Italian soccer federation president Gabriele Gravina announced that a minute of silence would be held in memory of Schillaci before all games in the country for the rest of the week.
“The uncontrollable celebrations, in which his face was the symbol of shared joy, will remain forever part of Italian soccer (history),” Gravina said. “Totò was a great player, a symbol of tenacious desire and redemption. … His soccer was full of passion. And that fearless spirit made everyone appreciate him and will make him immortal.”
Schillaci also won the Golden Ball award at the 1990 World Cup as the tournament’s top player ahead of Lothar Matthaus and Diego Maradona.
Schillaci played for Messina, Juventus, Inter Milan and Japanese team Jubilo Iwata during his club career.
“You made an entire nation dream during the Magical Nights of Italia ’90,” Inter said on its social media channels.
West Germany won the 1990 World Cup, beating Argentina in the final, while Italy beat England for third place with a winning penalty kick from Schillaci.
Roberto Baggio, who scored Italy’s opening goal in the third-place match, wrote on Instagram, “Ciao my dear friend.”
Having been born and raised in Palermo, the Palermo soccer team announced that it would hold a public viewing of Schillaci at its Renzo Barbera stadium ahead of the funeral, the Gazzetta dello Sport reported.
French soccer player Wissam Ben Yedder will stay free ahead of his trial on charges of sexual assault while intoxicated, one of his lawyers told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Marie Roumiantseva said Ben Yedder will remain under strict judicial supervision after a woman filed a lawsuit for sexual assault earlier this month.
The 34-year-old Ben Yedder, a prolific striker in the French league, was briefly detained then released after the alleged incident in his car on the French Riviera. Ben Yedder had been stopped by police after he first refused to do so. He was then put in a jail cell.
After he was summoned to appear in court on Oct. 15 and placed under judicial supervision, the Nice prosecutor’s office appealed the decision not to remand the player in custody. The investigative chamber of the Court of Appeal of Aix-en-Provence did not grant this request and kept Ben Yedder under judicial supervision.
Ben Yedder attended a hearing Tuesday during which he offered to go to rehab. He has admitted he drove while under the influence of alcohol but has denied any sexual assault.
In a separate legal case last year, Ben Yedder was charged with “rape, attempted rape and sexual assault” over another alleged incident in the south of France.
Ben Yedder has been without a club since his contract with Monaco expired at the end of last season.
