Canada Post strike delays Saskatoon sexual assault trial

Canada Post workers were back on the job Tuesday, but the effects of the strike will be felt well into the new year.

The jury trial for Kenneth Braun at Court of King’s Bench in Saskatoon was scheduled to begin in January 2025 but the justice on the case has now postponed the trial to Nov. 3, 2025.

Braun’s lawyer Jay Watson said the decision was made because jury notices couldn’t be delivered to rural areas during the postal strike.

Braun, a massage therapist in Saskatoon, has been charged with multiple counts of sexual assault between 1996 and 2022. Charges were laid in 2022.

The Ministry of Justice said in a statement that sheriffs worked with the courts to ensure all steps were taken to fill juries during the postal strike, but the presiding judge makes the final decision to postpone a case. The statement also said decisions are made on each case depending on the individual factors.

Workers at Canada Post were off the job for more than a month until the federal Labour Minister came out on Friday and asked the Industrial Relations Board to order operations to get going again.

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